Hawaiian Venison Tacos with Ground Cherry Salsa

I love ground cherries, but they sure can be difficult to find ! I discovered them last year, and made a really excellent chutney with them, but I wanted to do something different this year. 

To me, they taste a lot like mango, so I decided I could sub them into any recipe where I would normally have mango, so here I made a sweet and spicy salsa to top my "Hawaiian" tacos. I call these Hawaiian because of the soy based marinade for the steaks, and I used pineapple in a previous version as a topping. They still have that tropical feeling, with the ground cherry salsa, and the flavor combination is stunning. 

Hawaiian Venison Tacos with Ground Cherry Salsa 

For the Salsa; 

2 cups ground cherries, husked and sliced in half 

1/2 cup purple onion, diced finely 

3 small jalapenos, diced finely 

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped 

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice 

1 teaspoon salt 

Mix all ingredients together, and let rest while you prepare the rest of the tacos. 

For the meat: 

1 1/2 pounds venison steaks 

1/4 cup soy sauce 

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar 

1/4 cup honey 

1/4 cup water 

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes 

Mix all marinade ingredients together, and immerse steaks. Let marinate overnight. Remove from liquid and pat dry, and let come to room temperature before cooking. Heat grill to high, and cook 3-5 minutes on each side, until steaks are medium rare. Remove from heat and let rest 3-5 minutes, then slice thinly and assemble tacos. 

For the tacos: 

Flour tortillas 

Grilled, sliced venison steak 

Ground cherry salsa 

Crumbled queso fresco 

Assemble tacos as you like. Enjoy !