Carnitas Tostada with Unique Pomegranate Habanero Salsa
I am a home cook and recognize the relation of science to food because my first professional job and college degree was chemistry. So for this recipe I’m going back to my chemist roots to create one based on food science.
Successful recipes are built on balancing the three elements of Aroma, Taste and Texture. Ingredients of a balanced recipe share key aromas in common, but these ingredients should have contrasting tastes (i.e. bitter, sweet) and texture (i.e. soft, crunchy). Expanded descriptions of aroma and taste are provided in the notes section below.
All the ingredients selected for this recipe chemically (i.e. Compounds of Pyrazine, Aldehhydes, Thymol, Esters etc.) share key aromas in common. I used a food pairing website that validates these ingredients. And for contrasting elements of texture and taste, I selected soft, crunchy, sweet, and bitter ingredients. Did it work??? You’ll have to make the recipe to find out. Buen Provecho. Let’s get started.
Ingredients
Serves 4
Tostadas
1 small hard squash, (Delicata, Kabocha, Acorn or Butternut )
8 corn tostadas (home made preferred)
2 lbs of prepared pork carnitas
4 cups shredded red cabbage
¾ cup cilantro chopped
2 tablespoons each of apple vinegar and extra virgin oil
Salt and pepper
Sauce – Somewhat unique and really good salsa
2-4 small habanero peppers (seeds and veins removed) Warning – really hot peppers
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 red bell pepper
1 garlic
½ cup apple vinegar
Salt and pepper
Preparation
Pureed Squash
Wash, peel and remove seeds. Cut into segments, wrap and seal in aluminum foil and cook at 350 ºF for 30-40 minutes or until soft. Puree the squash, salt and pepper to taste.
Home made tostadas
Crispy tostadas are best achieved by using corn tortillas that are dried out. Either set out tortillas on a baking tray from 8 hours to overnight or use the dehydrate feature of your oven. My oven maintains 120 degrees and they are done within 1 hour and 30 minutes. Half-way through the drying process, turn the tortillas over for uniform drying.
Pour oil into a medium skillet to a depth of ½ inch and heat the oil to a minimum of 350ºF. Place a paper towel onto a large plate and have several other paper towels ready. Place a single tortilla into the skillet and fry until golden in color and firm approximately a minute or more. Remove from the oil to the paper toweled plate and lightly salt. Repeat the process in batches.
Carnitas
Store bought carnitas work or go to my link for my carnitas recipe.
Cabbage topping
In a bowl mix the cabbage, cilantro, 2 tablespoons each of apple vinegar, and olive oil Lightly salt and pepper.
Hot Sauce
Using a bender, mix all the ingredients listed above for the sauce. Warning – Habaneros are very hot so start with two then add more as desired.
Assemble
Spread a layer of pureed squash on the tostada, add a layer of carnitas, drizzle hot sauce on the carnitas, top with shredded cabbage. Serve with extra hot sauce on the side
Notes
The importance of aroma
Some ingredients have a natural affinity for one another because ingredients pair well when they share key aromas in common.
When we say something tastes good, what this really means is that it smells good. In fact, 80% of our flavor experience is determined by our sense of smell, while taste and touch account for only 20% of the overall eating experience. Olfaction or our sense of smell enables us to distinguish up to 10,000 different odorant molecules associated with fragrances and aromas. That’s a lot!
The difference between aroma and taste
Taste is defined by the capability to detect five basic tastes: sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami. Taste is easily connected to our flavor experience but should not be confused with flavor.
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