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Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Nut-Free
Skill Level: Beginner
Yield: Serves 6-8 people
Prep Time: 20-25 minutes
Cooking Time: 8-9 hours on low or 5-6 hours on high/10-15 minutes cook time on stovetop
Equipment Needed:
The Recipe:
This recipe is adapted from a recipe by America's Test Kitchen
Ingredients:
3-4 pounds boneless pork butt (sometimes called pork shoulder), pulled apart at the seams and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
1 small onion, peeled and cut in half
3 (2-inch) strips orange zest
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (juice from about 2 oranges)
3 (2-inch) strips lime zest
2 tablespoons lime juice (juice from about 1 lime)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
3 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
18-24 (6-inch, taco size) corn or flour tortillas, charred or warmed
Procedure:
Combine pork chunks, onion, orange zest, orange juice, lime zest, lime juice, minced garlic, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper and bay leaves in slow cooker. Cover and cook until pork is tender, 8-9 hours on low or 5-6 hours on high.
Using slotted spoon or tongs, transfer pork to a large bowl. Using a potato masher or tongs, smash or break apart pork until it is coarsely shredded.
Set a fine mesh strainer over a separate bowl and strain the liquid remaining in the slow cooker into the bowl; discard solids.
Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add shredded pork to skillet.
Whisk cooking liquid to recombine, then add 1 cup of liquid to the skillet with the pork. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated and pork is evenly browned and crisp in spots (this will take 10-15 minutes).
Taste, and season with salt and pepper as desired.
Transfer pork to a serving dish and moisten with remaining cooking liquid as needed.
Serve in charred/warmed tortillas with toppings of choice.
To Serve: I love topping my carnitas tacos with pickled red onion, queso fresco or crumbled cotija cheese, avocado, cilantro and hot sauce.
Adjusting for your diet: If you want to make this recipe gluten-free, be sure to use corn tortillas. Or, if you want to ditch the tortillas all together, serve your carnitas over a bed of greens with some toppings for a delicious salad!
Omit any type of cheese topping to make sure these remain dairy free.
Tips:
The original recipe said to trim fat off pork prior to cooking, but I like to leave it on because it adds flavor. Once the pork is done cooking and I'm shredding it, I remove the squishy pieces of fat and discard them.
I like to use a tongs to shred meat when it's this tender. I just grab pieces of meat, push them against the bottom of the bowl and twist.
I really think low and slow is the way to go when cooking in a crockpot, so if you have the time I'd highly recommend using the low setting instructions. You could easily prep this one the night before and put the crockpot in the fridge, so all you had to do in the morning was pop it in the base and turn it on.
If you haven't done strips of zest before, it's super easy! Just use a vegetable peeler to shave off a strip of your citrus peel that is approximately 2 inches long. Try not to get too much of the white pith, but if you get a little it'll be okay. I have a pretty decent photo of my zest pieces in the story down below.
When I'm juicing citrus, I like to put a fine mesh strainer over a liquid measuring cup and juice right over the strainer. That way any pulp or seeds that come out with juicing are immediately captured.
The more you cook, the more you realize all cloves of garlic are not created equal. If I get a really huge clove, I usually count it as two. I just used the 3 big cloves in the photo below to account for the 5 called for in this recipe.
I found it helpful to use a ladle to pour the cooking liquid into my liquid measuring cup in step 5 of the recipe.
The Story:
I have a real obsession with tacos, fam. I love that there's tons of different filling options, I love that the toppings are only limited by your imagination, and I love setting up a huge taco bar at a party or cabin weekend and letting everyone individualize their meal.
Carnitas are definitely a personal fav. Juicy, tender pork simmering in a bright mixture of citrus juices, garlic, onion, spices...what could be better?! I've tried several recipes for carnitas, and this one is going to be my new go-to because it was SO incredibly easy and the flavor was phenomenal. If you haven't tackled something like this before but are interested in trying...this is the one! Slow cooker recipes are always awesome, especially in the summer when you may be trying to avoid heating up your house with the oven; this one is spectacular because unlike a lot of recipes, you don't have to brown the meat on the stovetop before adding it to the slow cooker.
One thing I want to mention about tacos is that if you haven't tried charring or warming tortillas before...this is the day you'll start. It's a total game changer in terms of flavor. I have a gas stove, this was actually one of my requirements when we moved into our house 5ish years ago. The house was perfect except it didn't have a gas stove-BUT my handy husband got that installed for me within a few months of our move. My favorite method for charring tortillas (I prefer corn, but to each their own) is doing it right over the open flame. I use a tongs to flip and it only takes 5-10 seconds per side.
If you don't have a gas stove, no worries! You can heat a skillet over medium heat and heat each tortilla for 20-30 seconds per side to achieve a similar result. If I'm doing these for a crowd, I stack all the tortillas on a plate as I go and then either cover them with a clean dish towel or wrap them up in foil to keep them toasty warm.
Another point I want to mention: don't skip out on the last step of the recipe, where you crisp up the carnitas on the stovetop. There's nothing better than getting some of those deliciously crispy bites; it's a great texture contrast to these tacos.
Last but not least: toppings!! So many good options that you can make or buy. The photo above is topped with crumbled cotija cheese, sliced avocado, a little poblano hot sauce and pickled red onion and serrano pepper. I pretty much always have some version of pickled red onions in my refrigerator; they're super easy to make and last quite a while. I use them to top all kinds of tacos, throw them in wraps or on sandwiches, put them on burgers...so versatile.
Occasionally I have a homemade chipotle sauce sitting in my fridge as well; that doesn't keep quite as long but it's another sauce I like using on multiple dishes (tacos, black bean burgers, sandwiches, etc.). I love queso fresco and cotija cheese on tacos because they're creamy and salty, but if you don't have any of these traditional Mexican cheeses on hand or don't feel like purchasing, any kind of cheese would be great on these (or no cheese at all).
Other delicious topping options might include radishes (pickled or sliced thin), cilantro leaves, squeeze of lime or anything else that floats your (taco) boat!
Happy tasting!
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