If you are a proud owner of a Kamado Joe and have already gained some experience cooking on it, you may be interested in trying out one of the most popular recipes, the JoeTisserie Al Pastor. When you hear the term “Al Pastor,” it may instantly remind you of Mexican Tacos. Tacos Al Pastor, which means “shepherd style” in Spanish, are a popular street food that usually features marinated pork cooked on a spit.
Interestingly, this recipe has its roots in the Middle East, where Lebanese immigrants brought the technique of cooking lamb shawarma to Mexico. Over time, the recipe evolved, and pork became the meat of choice. However, other meats like chicken, lamb, and steak can also be used to prepare this dish.
To make JoeTisserie Al Pastor, you can take advantage of the Kamado Joe’s unique feature of spinning the meat, which replicates the traditional al pastor cooking method. This cooking technique ensures that the meat is cooked evenly on all sides, resulting in a delicious and juicy flavor. Some may even refer to this recipe as JoeTisserie Shawarma, as it shares some similarities with the Middle Eastern dish.
Al Pastor & Shawarma Marinades
Marinating the meat is the crucial first step in achieving a delicious and flavorful dish. While marinating for a full 24 hours is ideal, several hours in advance will still help tenderize the meat and allow it to absorb some of the marinade flavors.
There are countless marinade options to choose from, each offering a unique taste and style. Some popular marinades include
- Lemon, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and oregano
- Yogurt – yes, you read that right. Goes really well with chicken and pork.
- Orange juice, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, salt and pepper
Next up, is prepping your spit with the meat. There are various ways to do do this. Some will put only the meat on the Joetisserie, others will layer on different vegetables and even fruits. Here are a few different items to separate the meat:
- Onions – check out the best onions for grilling
- Large pepper slices
- Pineapple
JoeTisserie Al Pastor Cooking Times & Temp
Finally it’s time to cook and make amazing Tacos al pastor! Cooking times may vary depending on how much meat you have layered on. As always, it’s safest to check the temperature of your meat, with a thermometer. Check out our temperature guides:
For pork, what we’ve found is getting the Kamado Joe dome temperature to 300°F, and cooking for four to five hours. As you approach hour four, start checking the meat temperature to ensure that you do not overcook the meat. One method of creating juicy meat is pulling it from the grill at around 150-160 degrees and allowing the meat to rest and come to temperature with the residual heat. If you’re cooking thin pork chop cutlets, the rotisserie time can be in as little as one hour.
JoeTisserie Shawarma
The prep and cooking times are very similar for JoeTisserie Shawarma. The major difference is changing your pork or chicken recipe to contain middle eastern herbs and spices.
Shawarma rubs and marinades typically contain cumin, coriander, minced garlic, oregano, kosher salt and cayenne pepper to taste. When cooking JoeTisserie Shawarma, we’ll often times marinade the pork or chicken in Greek yogurt first. This will help tenderize the meat and help it retain its moisture. We like to marinade it overnight – ideally 24 hours, but any extending period of time will do.
Once the meat is marinaded in yogurt, we’ll add our spices about an hour before we assemble the meat for roasting on the JoeTisserie. Don’t worry if you don’t have all of the spices above. We typically use what we have readily available in our spice cabinet. Any combination of cumin, oregano, salt, pepper and garlic will make a great rub for JoeTisserie Shawarma.
As with cooking anything on the JoeTisserie, the cooking time will vary on the amount and thickness of your meat. On average it takes about two to four hours. If it’s a small batch (2-4lbs) it can cook much quicker. Periodically check your internal temperature to ensure it’s not cooking too fast.
Al Pastor JoeTisserie Demo
Here’s a one of our favorite demo videos on YouTube that showcases pork slowly cooked layers of pineapple. Look at that delicious rotisserie tacos al pastor.
Check out our Napoleon basket chicken wings recipe on the Kamado Joe.