Five things to grill with Smoked Pineapple

Smoked Pineapple is built on 100% real tequila with grilled pineapple and a whisper of mesquite behind it. Here’s what it’s best next to.

1. Al pastor — anything al pastor

The obvious one, and obvious for a reason.

Al pastor is pork marinated in chiles and achiote, stacked on a vertical spit, shaved off, and — traditionally — served with a slice of pineapple that’s been roasting on top of the stack the whole time. The pineapple isn’t a garnish. It’s structural.

You are essentially drinking the top of the trompo. If you make one pairing off this list, make it this one.

2. Chicken thighs with a chile rub

Not breasts. Thighs.

The fat renders, the skin blackens in spots, and the rub caramelizes rather than burning. Something with ancho or guajillo, a little cumin, brown sugar if you like.

The drink’s smoke meets the char and the toasted-agave note sits underneath the chile without fighting it. This is the weeknight version of the pairing and it’s almost too easy.

3. Shrimp skewers, hit hard and fast

High heat, three minutes a side, off before they seize up.

Shrimp take on grill char quickly without needing much else — salt, oil, lime at the end. The drink’s acidity does what a squeeze of citrus would, so you can keep the seasoning simple and let the fire do the work.

4. Grilled corn, blackened, with lime and chile

Elote, or something adjacent to it.

Corn caramelizes on a grill in a way that nothing else does — the sugars go deep and slightly bitter at the edges. Add crumbled cheese, lime, and chile powder and you have the ideal thing to eat standing up, one-handed, next to a cooler.

If you’re only cooking one vegetable, cook this.

5. Pineapple. Actually.

Put it on the grill and it becomes a different fruit.

Thick rings, no oil needed, four or five minutes a side until the sugars go dark and lacquered. Eat it hot, on its own, with a little salt or a dusting of chile.

It’s the most direct echo of what’s in the can, and it makes the pairing feel deliberate rather than coincidental. Also, it takes four minutes and looks like you planned something.

A note on serving

Cold. Very cold.

Smoke reads as heavier at warmer temperatures, and this one wants to stay crisp against hot food. Straight from the can is fine, though a glass with a lot of ice keeps it right for longer if you’re the type who gets distracted by the grill.

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