Meat market

Call that a taco! Colin Fassnidge challenges Anthony Puharich’s definition of the Mexican standard with his very own ‘Irish’ version – Fass-exican (remember, you heard it here first).

Our chef and butcher stick their (pork) neck out.

C I love pork neck. It’s like a Swiss roll! A Well… C And it’s perfect to marinate and use for tacos. A Here we go, then. C Yes, buckle up! We’ll cut the pork neck from top to bottom lengthways into about 3cm pieces. Then we’ll marinate the pork pieces in soy sauce, honey, apple cider vinegar and oil.

A Why don’t you just season the pork with salt and pepper? C Because I want a marinade on it! A Okay, but soy, honey and apple cider vinegar? Really?

C Yes. Come on, tell me what’s wrong. I know you’re going to anyway. A Is that Mexican? C No! Because I’m Irish. A It doesn’t sound particularly Irish, either. C Just because these are tacos, they don’t have to be marinated in traditional Mexican flavours! It’s Fass-exican.

A Well that sounds wrong. This is the Pauline Hanson of tacos. Completely misunderstanding multiculturalism.

C Don’t bring in politics for goodness sake. I’m going to flash-fry the meat. Hot, hot, hot! It’ll only take about five minutes. Then we’ll pour over our remaining marinade and roast it until it’s just cooked through. Delicious.

A I really like the idea of pork neck tacos. But I don’t know about the soy.

C Don’t worry, the soy is sweetened by the honey, then there’s a bit of acidity from the vinegar. Sweet, sour, savoury. Bit of umami in there. A The rest of it is really nice. C Look, let me finish, I think you will come around to the idea.

A Alright, so the pork is done. What else is going in these un-PC tacos?

C We’re going to make a pickled cabbage slaw. Shred some cabbage first, then mix coriander seeds, apple cider vinegar and honey together in a saucepan and bring to the boil. A There’s that apple cider vinegar again. C Yes! And we’ll pour the hot mixture over the cabbage, then leave it for 15 minutes so it can pickle a bit. A That might work. C It will! Tomatoes are in season, too, so we’ll also make a quick salsa of thinly sliced tomatoes, onion and lemon zest and juice.

A Sounds easy enough. And you’re verging on Mexican there, at least.

C Then we just slice the cooked pork and serve in soft tortillas with the pickled cabbage, salsa and wedges of avocado. A Hold on, no guacamole? C I don’t like guacamole, I would rather the avocado is chunky or just sliced.

A No guacamole is heresy isn’t it? Why aren’t we having proper guacamole?

C Because this is Fass-exican and I do things my way!

A Soy and vinegar, pickled cabbage and no guacamole. These are a massacre of great tacos – it’s a Fass-acre! C Bet you think that’s clever, hey? A Actually, yes.

STICKY PORK NECK SOFT TACOS WITH PICKLED CABBAGE MAKES 12

800g pork neck, cut into four 3cm pieces 2 tbs each light soy sauce, runny honey

and apple cider vinegar

1/ 3 cup (80ml) sunflower oil 2 tomatoes, halved, thinly sliced

1/ 2 red onion, thinly sliced Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon 12 small white tortillas, warmed 1 avocado, cut into wedges Coriander sprigs, to serve CORIANDER & HONEY PICKLED CABBAGE 300g red cabbage, shredded 1 tsp coriander seeds, toasted, crushed

1/ 3 cup (80ml) apple cider vinegar 1 tbs runny honey

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a baking tray and line with baking paper.

Place pork, soy, honey, vinegar and 2 tbs oil in a bowl and toss to combine. Stand for 5 minutes to marinate.

Meanwhile, for the pickled cabbage, place cabbage in a heatproof bowl. Combine coriander seeds, vinegar and honey in a saucepan over high heat and bring to the boil. Pour over cabbage, stir to combine, then stand for 15 minutes to pickle slightly.

Meanwhile, toss tomato, onion and lemon zest and juice in a bowl.

To cook the pork, heat remaining 2 tbs oil in a large frypan over mediumhigh heat. In 2 batches, add pork and cook, turning halfway, for 5 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to prepared tray and repeat with remaining pork. Pour any remaining marinade over pork and roast for 8-10 minutes or until just cooked through. Stand for 10 minutes to rest.

Slice pork and serve on tortillas with pickled cabbage, tomato and avocado. Scatter with coriander and drizzle with pork cooking juices to serve.