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Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw are packed with flavor and perfect for taco night. Pork tenderloin is marinaded in an Asian sauce and grilled to create tender pork. Thin slices of the pork are then added to your favorite taco shell with a spicy sriracha slaw, cheese, fresh cilantro and chopped cherry tomatoes. 

Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw

I am always looking for new taco recipes to put on the table for my family. My favorite thing about taco night is that it allows my family to interact with the food, create their perfect taco and the kids can customize them to their tastes. These Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw were the perfect change to our normal taco routine. This recipe was actually part of a fun competition, the Food Network “Chopped at Home” challenge series , in partnership with Sargento® cheese, a company located in Mike’s favorite state of Wisconsin!

I participated in this challenge last year and had a great time doing it with this One Pot Cheesy Chicken Red Pepper Pasta.  If you watched the show Chopped, you know that each contestant is given ingredients that they are required to use in a recipe in a given amount of time. I don’t know if I could ever go on TV and be under that kind of pressure, but doing it in the comfort of my kitchen is something I can get on board with.

I participated in a few of these type of challenges as some food blogging events I attended in the past. At first I always feel so stressed out and intimidated, but by the end, the challenges are fun and allow me to get creative in the kitchen. It is a great time to push your cooking skills to the limits and push the boundaries with new ingredients. In case you are wondering what ingredients I was required to use, our mystery ingredients were: pork tenderloin, broccoli, cherry tomatoes and Sargento Chefs Blend 4 State cheddar cheese.

I honestly don’t use pork in my cooking often, but my family loves it. They were happy to see pork on the menu when I created these Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw. The nice thing about pork tenderloin is that it is lean, making it a great meat to marinade and grill. I let the pork marinate overnight in an Asian style sauce {soy sauce, lime juice, olive oil, cayenne red pepper, garlic powder, onion salt and oregano} and then grilled it over high heat following the 7-6-5 rule.

The pork came out perfectly, and honestly can be eaten alone as a meal. I created a spicy slaw to accompany the tacos using shredded cabbage, red cabbage, broccoli, carrots, mayonnaise and Sriracha. It added a little spice and texture to the tacos.

When we were ready to eat our tacos I added the thinly sliced pork to tortillas and then sprinkled the Sargento Chefs Blend 4 State cheddar cheese.  I love the versatile varieties, unique blends and distinct cuts that Sargento Cheese offers that are always cut from blocks of 100% natural cheese.  I then heat the tacos in the oven for a few minutes so the cheese melts over the meat. Next you add your favorite garnishes. My tacos consisted of chopped cherry tomatoes, cilantro, red onion and spicy slaw — the perfect pairing, in my opinion.

Does that challenge sound like fun? Well here is the exciting part, guys! You can join the Chopped challenge. You can submit your recipe using this round’s ingredients to FoodNetwork.com/ChoppedChallenge. The winner will receive $5,000 and a trip to New York City to compete in a televised cook off for a $10,000 prize.

Enter your recipe now through August 1st, then come back and vote for your favorites from August 1 to August 22nd. I promise these type of challenges aren’t as intimidating as they might first appear! Each time I do one I get more and more comfortable and it pushes me to try new ingredients and create recipes I fall in love with.

Looking for more taco recipes? Try my Slow Cooker 4 Ingredient Shredded Beef Tacos, Slow Cooker Shredded Pork Tacos, Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Chicken Tacos or these Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas. 

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Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw

Yield: 6-8

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Asian Pork Tacos with Spicy Slaw are packed with flavor and perfect for taco night. Pork tenderloin is marinaded in an Asian sauce and grilled to create tender pork. Thin slices of the pork are then added to your favorite taco shell with a spicy sriracha slaw, cheese, fresh cilantro and chopped cherry tomatoes.

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Ingredients

For the marinade:

• 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne red pepper {more or less for spice}
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
• 1/2 Tablespoon oregano
• Sprinkle of salt
• Dash of pepper
• 2 pork tenderloins {about 1 lb. each or 2 lb. total}

For the spicy slaw:

• 1/4 of a small head of cabbage, shredded
• 1/4 of a small head of red cabbage, shredded
• 1 cup broccoli florets, shredded
• 2 carrots, peeled, shredded
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Sriracha {more or less for spice}
• Dash of salt and pepper

For the taco assembly:

• Tortillas or taco shell of choice
• 8 oz. bag of Sargento Chefs Blend 4 State cheddar cheese, divided among the tacos
• Cherry tomatoes, chopped
• Freshly chopped cilantro
• Red onion, chopped

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl mix together the soy sauce, olive oil, lime juice, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion salt, oregano and salt and pepper and whisk. Set aside.
2. In a large ziplock bag place the two pork tenderloins and pour the marinade over the pork. Close the bag and work the marinade into the pork using your hands. Refrigerate for 2 hours or ideally overnight.
3. Once you are ready to grill the pork tenderloin remove the pork from the refrigerator 30 minutes before. Heat the grill to high heat.
4. For the spicy slaw shred the cabbage, red cabbage, broccoli and carrot in a food processor. Place the shredded vegetables in a medium mix bowl and add the mayonnaise, sriracha and salt and pepper and stir to combine. Set aside.
5. Once the grill is heated set the two pork tenderloins on the grill and grill the first side for 7 minutes, the second side for 6 minutes and then 5 minutes with the grill turned off and the lid closed or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 145-150 degrees F. Once the pork is done grilling remove from the grill, cover with foil and let sit for 10 minutes then thinly slice the pork and set on a large platter.
6. When you are ready to assemble your tacos place the thinly sliced pork in the taco shell followed by the cheese. Heat the taco for 10-20 seconds in the microwave or you can bake the tacos in the oven to melt the cheese. Garnish with the spicy slaw, chopped cherry tomatoes, cilantro and red onion. Enjoy!

Notes

Feel free to add whatever your favorite taco toppings are. Some other great ideas are sesame seeds, green onions, grated ginger, salsa.

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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sargento. The opinions and text are all mine.