Crispy Pork Carnitas

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Carnitas can be found all across the Lone Star State in Mexican restaurants, taco trucks and even some grocery stores. Snuggle these crispy little pork pieces in a warm tortilla with my ‘Almost Ninfa’s’ green sauce, onion, cilantro and lime and a cold Mexican beer and…yum!!! These crispy little gems have surprisingly very tender interiors that seem to take quite a bit of effort, but if I’m going to make it…it’s going to be simple, easy and quick. Traditionally carnitas are pieces of pork butt cooked in lard (!!) with sliced oranges (to keep the moisture level up) in large pots for hours and when the meat is done, the heat is increased to crisp the outside. Well, I’ve been looking around for easier methods and came across the Homesick Texan..love her site!….Also, Bon Appetit.and Chow-hound forum had several great ideas.

So I made these the other night and I have to say that I was impressed….(Hey, Judd even liked it!!) Making these was easy and they turn out crispy brown on the outside, really tender and very nicely seasoned. The green sauce is a version of Ninfa’s and El Tiempo’s restaurants, just a bit easier…it is creamy, garlicky with avocado and cilantro…SO tasty. I can just image eating these somewhere in Mexico on a gorgeous beach with amazing blue water and white sand…in my flip flops!!! wow…

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 min
Total time: 12 min
Yield: 6
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients:

2-3 lbs pork butt, cut into 1-2 inch cubes
2 cups water
1 cup orange juice
1 tsp each, garlic, onion, & chipotle powders
2 tsp taco seasoning
1 Tbs bacon grease, optional

Directions:

Cut any large pieces of fat from the pork and reserve. Cube into nice size pieces, I used 1 1/2 inch cubes that worked well. Place the pork pieces and fat (remember to take fat out after cooking, it just helps add fat to cooking liquid) in a large wide pan…I used a non-stick dutch oven type.
Add all ingredients and stir. Bring to a boil, cover and lower to med-low. Meat should be barely covered.
Simmer for 1-2 hours until tender. Start checking for tenderness after an hour…timing will depend on how large the pork pieces are. Once tender, uncover, turn heat to high and liquid will start cooking down and evaporate. This is where the extra fat pieces help. The liquid will evaporate, leaving you with tender pork pieces that will get crispy in the small amount of fat that will be left behind in the pan. When you see the liquid is almost gone, really start turning the pieces over so they will brown. I used tongs to turn the meat over and over until they are nicely crispy and browned all over.
Serve with warm tortillas, onions, cilantro, jalapeno,lime and my ‘Almost Ninfa’s’ green sauce.
This is true pork paradise.