Blueberry Season: Pork Tacos w/ Blueberry-Pineapple Salsa

It's here, it's here!  Blueberry season that is.

BC blueberries are now being picked, sorted, packed and transported to supermarkets, farmers' markets and produce stores across Canada.  They are available fresh in Canada from July through October, but BC blueberries are also frozen, dried, juiced, pureed and powdered, and available for year round-distribution throughout the country and around the world.

Blueberries otherwise known as "natures candy" are without question one of my favourite fruits.  I eat them daily, usually for breakfast with my yogurt, oatmeal or in smoothie form.  But there are hundreds of other ways to enjoy this delightful berry, and provide a flavour boost to any meal.  Visit the BCblueberry.com website for all sorts of creative ideas on how to incorporate this nutritional powerhouse in everything from breakfast to dinner, and the all important, dessert. 

Fans of the berries can also keep updated with news and ideas for using sweet baby blues via the BC Blueberries Facebook page.  The page is a great resource for swapping recipes and photos, and learning about featured chefs' favourites, fun facts and other news.

In the meantime, here is a new fun way to enjoy the blueberry.  Pork Tacos with Blueberry-Pineapple Salsa.  Who doesn't love tacos?  Enjoy and eat up!

Pork Tacos with Blueberry-Pineapple Salsa


Ingredients:

Blueberry Wet Rub for Pork:
1 cup B.C. blueberries, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup onion, diced
2 Tbsp fresh garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp chipotle pepper (canned in adobo sauce), chopped
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp thyme (fresh or dried)

Pork Roast:
3-4 lb pork shoulder

Blueberry Pineapple Jicama Salsa:
1 cup BC blueberries, fresh or frozen
3/4 cup pineapple, fresh or canned, diced
1/2 cup jicama, diced
1 Tbsp jalapeño pepper, de-seeded and finely diced
1 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Tacos:
12 4-6" corn tortillas


Method:

To make rub: In a saucepan on medium-low heat, cook the blueberries, onion, garlic, chipotle, salt, pepper, paprika and thyme until reduced, breaking down the mixture with a spoon.
Remove from heat and allow to cool completely before spreading over the pork to marinade in the refrigerator for 1-5 hours.

Cook marinated pork in an uncovered roasting pan on low heat (275F) for 4-5 hours.  
Allow to rest and cool.  Separate and shred into small pieces

To make salsa:  Mix together blueberries, pineapple, jicama, jalapeño, cilantro, lime, salt and pepper and set aside.

To assemble tacos:  warm tortillas in oven for a few minutes, or microwave for 15 seconds.
Line each tortilla a with shredded pork then top with salsa.

Enjoy!

Yields: 12 tacos

About the British Columbia Blueberry Council

The British Columbia Blueberry Council represents over 800 blueberry growers, located in some of Canada's most rich and fertile farmland. Plantings of premium quality highbush blueberries top 11,000 hectares in British Columbia and produce upwards of 55 million kilograms of blueberries annually. With more than $1 billion in sales in the past five years, Canada is the third largest national producer of sweet and juicy highbush blueberries in the world. Available fresh in Canada from July through October, BC blueberries are also frozen, dried, juiced, puréed and powdered, available for year round-distribution throughout the country and around the world.

All content, recipes, and images are courtesy of the BC Blueberry Council