Did you know I absolutely love to cook? It’s true, so I will frequently be sharing what I’m going to call #nomnom posts. They are merely my own personal recipes. You can expect to see a lot of Mexican food, along with Indian, Asian, and deep south.

Growing up in San Antonio, TX meant getting exposed to some amazing and authentic Mexican food. Tacos Al pastor were always a real treat: crispy, perfectly seasoned with some pico and taco sauce. Foodie heaven, right there.

I have never even attempted to try making it because I well remember the line cooks cutting it off a turning spit in thin shavings onto tortillas. I had nothing approaching the right equipment. But recently, some fifteen years into married life, the hankering for authentic al pastor – a dish that is literally available no where in my central FL area – became too strong.

It turns out that NutriChef makes a stand up rotisserie. It has its criticisms: a door that slams shut unless all the way open, poor customer service if you buy direct from the company, a design that seems somewhat risky and easily topple-able.

But I tried it for the first time today and despite its flaws, it worked very well. The broil setting is no joke – I managed to burn my hand in a few places by accidentally brushing my knuckles on the elements, but for a multi-purpose stand up electric rotisserie, I was very impressed.

Tacos al pastor is relatively easy to make. You add a bunch of spices together, thinly slice a few boneless roasts, layer them with seasonings overnight, broil on the rotisserie and shave off the crispy edges every 10 minutes.

Granted, it’s “time consuming,” but I picked a day where I was going to be in the kitchen canning all day anyway.

Outcome: muy, muy bueno. Downright incredible as a matter of fact, and that’s even though my shaving and timing wasn’t exactly on point.

We are on a two week baby count down (we’re welcoming #9!!), so this probably won’t happen again for awhile – but I say that knowing that I’m likely deeply underestimating my cravings for Mexican street food.

We topped our al pastor tacos with queso fresco, some pineapple, and the best hot sauce E V A H.

Check out the recipe below:

Tacos Al Pastor

• 3-6 lbs boneless roast, mixed meats (beef and pork and lamb preferred), almost frozen and sliced 1/4″ thin
• 6tbs paprika (we skipped the annatto because it turns out our seasoning had monosodium glutamate)
• 3 tbs garlic powder
• 3 tbs cumin
• 3 tbsp salt

Layer meat in a container with seasonings and rest in the fridge overnight. The following day, layer meat onto rotisserie skewers (we used a foil ring at the bottom to raise the meat above the round drip tray) from largest slices at the bottom to smallest slices at the top. Top with a ring of pineapple.

Roast/broil on the rotisserie setting. I found the broil setting seemed very harsh and quick cooking, but perfect if you can slice off the crispy bits every 10 minutes. We also had to use bamboo tapas skewers to stabilize the whole of it while slicing, but that’s mainly because the roasts we used were on the small side which made for uneven cuts.

Remove the just crispy edges with a long sharp knife and reserve until all the meat is roasted cut free. Season with additional salt as needed. Serve with corn or flour tortillas, drained pineapple chunks or crushed pineapple, sauteed thin ribbons of onions and peppers, queso fresco, and salsa or hot sauce.