Cafe Rio Sweet Pork Salad

I found this recipe over at Favorite Family Recipes. I LOVE IT!! Cafe Rio/Costa Vida is my favorite place in Utah and I miss it!

Here is what you need:

6 large tortillas
Shredded cheese, Mexican blend
Café Rio Rice
Café Rio Black Beans
Café Rio Sweet Pork
Lettuce (not iceberg, use leafy green or Romaine
Diced tomato, onion, cilantro (pico de gallo)
Guacamole
Sour Cream
Tortilla Strips
Cotija cheese, crumbled (or you can use Parmesan)
Café Rio Cilantro Ranch


Cilantro-Lime Rice
1 cup uncooked rice (long-grain, white rice)
1 tsp butter or margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1 can (15oz) chicken broth
1 cup water
1 TBSP freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp sugar
3 Tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

In a saucepan combine rice, butter garlic 1 tsp lime, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low for 15-20 minutes until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.

Black Beans
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/3 c tomato juice
1 ½ tsp salt
2 TBSP fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro.

SWEET PORK2 pounds pork (we like to use boneless pork ribs)3 cans Coke (NOT diet)1/4 c. brown sugardash garlic salt1/4 c. water1 can sliced green chilies3/4 can RED enchilada sauce (I used Old El Paso brand, medium spiciness)1 c. brown sugarPut the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry).
Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.

In a food processor or blender, blend ½ cup coke, chilies and enchilada sauce and 1 cup brown sugar. If it looks to thick, add more coke, little by little.
Put shredded pork and sauce in crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours. That’s it!!



Guacamole
3 avocados
Red onion, chopped (about ¼ cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
1 jalapeno, finely chopped
1 large ripe garden tomato (or 2 smaller tomatoes) diced
Juice of 1 lime
4-5 shakes of green Tabasco sauce
Kosher salt, to taste
Fresh cracked pepper, to taste

Pit avocados and mash in a bowl. In you like your guac kind of chunky, coarsely chop with the sides of a fork instead of using the fork to mash it straight down. Carefully stir in remaining ingredients until well mixed. That’s it.

Homemade Tortilla Strips
10-12 corn tortillas
Oil for frying
Kosher salt
Cut tortillas into strips using a pizza cutter. You can cut 2-3 at a time pretty easily. Heat oil in a large frying pan. Place strips into hot pan and fry until they become crispy. When nice and crisp, remove from oil and place on a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt after each batch.

Café Rio’s Cilantro Ranch Dressing
1 packet Traditional hidden valley ranch (not buttermilk)
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup buttermilk
2 tomatillos, remove husk, dice
½ bunch of fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic
Juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeño (mild without seeds, spicy with seeds