Versatile and fork-tender, this delicious pork recipe works for both casual and formal meals. Serve it for dinner as a stew over rice, in tacos for football-watching or in a hearty Mexican salad. Also, pile it onto a mound of nachos or between tortillas for grilled quesadillas or… well, you get the idea.
Note: This recipe is a Food52 Community Pick.
Carnitas
Recipe Type: Main
Cuisine: Mexican
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 8 servings (or 16 tacos)
Ingredients
- 1 boneless pork shoulder roast (approximately 4 pounds)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 large yellow onions
- 8 garlic cloves
- 2 jalepeños, stemmed and seeded
- 2 cans beer, preferably lager
- 3/4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
- 2 medium oranges, grated zest and juice
- 1 lime, grated zest and juice
- 2 cups chicken broth, as needed
- 2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano
- Lime wedges, cubed avocados, chopped onions and chopped cilantro for garnish, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Generously sprinkle the pork shoulder with salt and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or other oven-proof pan on top of stove. Add the pork shoulder and sear on all sides, turning frequently, approximately 10 minutes. Transfer the pork to a platter.
- Place roughly chopped onions and jalepeños in food processor and pulse until minced. Over medium heat, add the onion and jalepeños to the pan and sauté until the onion begins to soften.
- Place garlic in food process and process until finely minced. Add the garlic to the onion mixture and cook 1 minute.
- Add the beer to the onion mixture and deglaze the pan, scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the juice and zest of the oranges and lime, the coconut milk, the oregano and 1 cup broth. Return the meat to the pan and bring just to a boil.
- Transfer the pan to the preheated oven, cover and cook for at least 2 1/2 hours. Periodically check that the pan is not drying out. If so, add more broth to the pan. At the end of the cooking time, the pork should easily fall apart when sliced and the liquid ingredients should form a thick, juicy gravy.
- Transfer the shredded pork to a platter and spoon with the thickened broth. Serve over coconut rice or with tortillas.
