Originally published on June 3, 2016
Mexican food is one of my very favourites, so when we featured it at the restaurant for the month of May, I was so excited I came home and started cooking what I had spent so much time on at work. My home version of pork carnitas features authentic Mexican pulled pork (which is all pork carnitas really is,) and a chipotle barbecue sauce we made for the carnitas at work, but you can leave out the sauce if you wish and still enjoy authentic pork carnitas.
Just like you can go with or without barbecue sauce, you can also eat the carnitas as is, or you can wrap them in taco shells or soft tortillas. I found these cute tortilla bowls at the grocery store, which let you first dig into the pulled pork and delicious toppings with a fork before wrapping it all together and finishing it off.
Ingredients:
For the pork carnitas:
- 3 pounds boneless pork shoulder
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, coarsely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno, chopped
- 1 orange, cut in half
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- Sour cream (optional)
- Guacamole (optional)
- Shredded lettuce (optional)
- Red onions, chopped (optional)
- Tortillas, taco shells, or tortilla bowls
- Salt $0.01
- Freshly ground black pepper $0.01
For the barbecue sauce:
- 1 cup ketchup
- 3 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 chipotle pepper, chopped with adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
1.) Generously salt and pepper the pork shoulder. Mix the oregano and cumin with the olive oil and rub all over the pork. Place the pork in a slow cooker and top with the onion, garlic, and jalapeno. Squeeze over the juice of the orange and add the two halves. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or on high for 4 hours.
2.) When the meat is nearly ready, place all the ingredients for the barbecue sauce into a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring regularly, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
3.) Once the meat is tender, remove from slow cooker and let cool slightly before pulling apart with a fork. In a large saute pan, heat the vegetable oil over high heat. Press the pulled pork into the oil and fry until crusty on one side.
4.) Mix the pork carnitas with barbecue sauce before piling into tortilla bowls. Top with red onion, guacamole, and sour cream, if using.
5.) Serve and enjoy!