Omani shuwa tacos
Shuwa, a popular slow-cooked marinated meat dish in Oman, becomes a succulent taco filling in chef Dina Macki’s sharing dish.
Ingredients
For the shuwa tacos
- 2 tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 5 cloves
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 5 cardamom pods
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 tbsp chilli flakes
- 100ml/3½fl oz white vinegar
- 2 dried limes
- 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp salt
- 3 tbsp garlic paste or 10 mashed cloves
- 50ml/2fl oz vegetable oil
- 1 leg or shoulder of lamb, sheep, chicken or any other meat
For the onion, mango, and pomegranate salsa
- 1 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 mango, peeled and finely diced
- ½ pomegranate, seeds removed
- 2 tbsp fresh chopped coriander
- 1 fresh habanero chilli, finely diced
- 1 tomato, finely diced
- 1 lemon, juice only
- pinch salt
To serve
- 6–8 corn tortillas
- 150g/5½oz pureed black beans
- 1 avocado, peeled and sliced
Method
To make the Omani Shuwa tacos, preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Tip all the spices into a small ovenproof dish, mix well, then roast for 15 minutes.
Transfer the spices to a blender and blend until you have a fine powder. Combine the spice mix with the vinegar, limes, sugar, salt, garlic and oil. Blend well until you have formed a paste.
Make several slits in the meat with a sharp knife, then pour over the paste and rub it in very well.
Chill for a minimum of 12 hours and up to 48 hours.
Preheat the oven to 140C/120C Fan/Gas 1. Wrap the meat very well in kitchen foil so there are no holes.
Cook for approximately 5 hours. The meat should be falling off the bone and easy to shred.
Meanwhile, to make the salsa, mix all the ingredients together, season and set aside.
To serve heat the tortillas in a pan, or oven or microwave. Spread the pureed black beans onto the warm tortilla, then the shredded lamb, topped with the avocado, salsa, and fresh coriander.