FOR THE MEXICAN SLAW
1 red onion, grated
Juice of 1 lime
½ white cabbage, very thinly shredded
5 tbsp soured cream
1 bunch coriander, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds, dry fried until aromatic
FOR THE CHIPOTLE MARINADE
2 tbsp chipotle paste
1 tbsp honey
FOR THE CHILD-FRIENDLY MARINADE
1tsp paprika
Salt and white pepper
¼ tsp ground cumin
2 dsp tomato puree
1 tsp honey
ALSO
1 pork tenderloin fillet (they are tube shaped)
Olive oil
Pitta breads or wraps
TO MAKE THE SLAW
Leave the onion soaking in the lime juice for at least 30 minutes. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl, then add the wet ones just before serving, to keep the cabbage nice and crisp.
TO MAKE THE PORK
Set the grill very high, and make each marinade by mixing the ingredients in a small bowl. Cut the pork loin in two, and make a few shallow slashes in the meat. Rub on the marinades and drizzle each piece with a little oil.
When the grill is hot, char the meat all over. The marinade should be just starting to crisp up and darken. Then wrap each piece in foil and cook in the oven, 10 minutes at 140 degrees. Test it, it should still be juicy but not pink. Leave it to rest for 5 minutes while you set out the coleslaw and pittas, then slice it thinly and dribble over any of the juices from the foil. Serve on a chopping board, and everyone helps themselves.
Kids famously hate cabbage, and raw cabbage? Forget it. But our kids love this recipe. The Mexican slaw is easy to make, and puts shop bought coleslaws in the shade. It complements the spicy pork, which has a sweet and smoky taste thanks to the marinade.
Coleslaws made with mayonnaise can taste gloopy, but this one uses sour cream instead, making it tangy and light. The lime-soaked red onion also lifts the flavour. Onions are naturally sweet, but we usually notice only their sharpness. Soaking them in an acid (like lime juice) cancels out that sharpness, which means you can enjoy them raw without an aftertaste.
Cabbage is a great source of vitamin K, C and fibre. It’s also been linked with a reduction in the rate of bowel and prostate cancers. Onions meanwhile combat everything from the common cold to Alzheimer’s, people are calling them the great overlooked superfood.
I make two versions of the meat, because our youngest won’t touch anything spicy. Nevertheless, it’s pretty easy, and there’s usually some of the delicious coleslaw left over for the next day.
If we’re feeling virtuous, we use pittas instead of wraps, because they don’t contain palm oil. (Palm oil cultivation is destroying forests.)
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