Flavor

Savoring Sayulita

Pork belly tacos at Shoreline Coffee Shop.

IN 2011, AFTER 47 years of operating Mill Valley’s Shoreline Coffee Shop in Tam Junction, Santiago Ojeda sold his business to Ged Robertson, chef and owner of the erstwhile Small Shed Flatbreads. Robertson shifted the menu toward local and organic ingredients like eggs from Woolly Egg Ranch on Tennessee Valley Road and bread from Green Gulch Farm off ighway 1. Robertson and Lagos also added local and organic products to the menu, such as meat from Marin Sun Farms and coffee from Four Barrel. House-made granola was added to the existing offerings of American fare, with a few south-of-the-border treats, like cochinita sandwiches, to honor Ojeda, as well. “You can find inspiration anywhere,” adds Robertson. “There’s a little hole-in-the-wall in Sayulita run by a multigenerational family of women, Naty’s Cocina, that my son Quincy had his first pork belly taco experience in.” The tacos were served with sautéed squash, and Robertson and his family found themselves leaning over paper plates, eating pork belly tacos for lunch there every day. “My son didn’t need to ask, which is good when your mouth is stuffed — we just nodded at each other and went to work on our version for the coffee shop the week we returned.” Here, he shares the recipe for the beloved tacos. shorelinecoffeeshop.com KASIA PAWLOWSKA

RECIPE

Pork Belly Tacos

Note You can adjust the amount of pork belly to your taste. For the brine, simply follow the basic ratio of 1 pound pork belly to 4 teaspoons salt and 4 teaspoons sugar. THIS RECIPE MAKES 3 POUNDS, WHICH WILL SERVE 6 TO 8 PEOPLE.

Ingredients

3 pounds skinless pork belly ¼ cup salt ¼ cup sugar Ancho chile powder Vegetable oil for frying Flour tortillas Chipotle aioli (homemade or store-bought) Red cabbage slaw Fresh cilantro sprigs Lime wedges

To Prepare

Brine the pork 1 One day before serving, combine the salt and sugar in a bowl. 2 Place the pork belly on a rimmed baking tray and evenly coat the pork with the salt and sugar mixture. 3 Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Roast the pork 1 Preheat the oven to 425°F. 2 Remove the pork from the refrigerator, unwrap and pat dry with paper towels (do not rinse). 3 Place the pork on a clean rimmed baking tray and generously season on all sides with the chile powder. 4 Transfer to the oven and roast for 30 minutes. 5 Reduce the oven heat to 275°F and continue to roast the pork until tender, 1½ to 2 hours. 6 Remove and cool in the refrigerator. 7 Cut into bite size pieces. Prepare the tacos 1 Deep-fry or pan-fry the pork pieces in oil until crispy. 2 Serve on tortillas with chipotle aioli, red cabbage slaw, cilantro and lime wedges.

RECIPE EDITED BY LYNDA BALSLEV

the DISH

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