A love supreme…carnitas
I’m convinced that a good carnitas burrito can’t be found anywhere in this state. Except, in my kitchen. Now settle down folks, no shoving…there just isn’t enough to go around and I’ve called dibs on the last, small little pile of carnitas that’s left. The good news is it’s not difficult to make yourself.
In San Francisco, our neighborhood (Sunset) burrito joint was Gordo’s. They were known for their delectable carnitas burritos that were huge…the size of a baby huge! In fact, pregnant women were known to eat them to induce labor. Of course most women didn’t go that route until they were past due, or at least near their due date. I think I started around my sixth month…I’m not absolutely sure what that says about me. Oh who am I kidding…it says I love pork…we know that already.
Gordo’s worked like this…GH double-parked in front of and I got in line to order. The burrito guys had a assembly line: first they would steam a giant flour tortilla that had some white cheese on it, then they added rice, your choice of beans (I would go with either pink or black), big hunks of perfectly roasted, primo quality, carmely brown carnitas, then salsa, sour cream, and guacamole. All wrapped up like a present. GH, being the wise eater that he is always ordered his “double hulled” as in two tortillas to shore up the vast fillings.
Carnitas is super simple. Take a pork shoulder roast, salt it, put it in a dutch oven, and brown it on the stove over a high heat. Remove it from the heat once it is browned. Toss some spices in… I used a mixture of chili powder, ginger, oregano, cumin, anise seed, mustard seed, ground cloves, and cinnamon. But really, less than a pinch of those last four and I also go easy on the cumin…it can be over-powering and you’re looking for nuanced flavor here.. Also toss in a few cloves of garlic, rough chopped and a bay leaf. Add a liquid of your choice so that it comes up about 2/3 on the roast. I used beef broth because I had an open box in the refrigerator, but you could use chicken stock, water, cola, or milk…all are referenced in this Wikipedia article. Put the lid on the pan, pop it in a 325F oven and let it slow cook for 2 hours.
After two hours check on it. Most of the liquid will be gone and the pork should be fork tender. Remove it from the pan and using two forks shred it apart. Return it to the pan, toss it in the remaining liquid and return it, uncovered to the oven for 5 - 10 minutes.
Serve it up with the fixings of your choice and dig in…I think you’ll agree it’s a love supreme.
27 Responses to “A love supreme…carnitas”
1 leena! 12 November 2007 @ 9:13 pm
Thanks for the inspiration…I don’t get a lot of good Mexican food in Australia, but I never knew carnitas were so easy to make! And I bet they would taste great the next day over eggs…
2 Kalyn 12 November 2007 @ 9:40 pm
I love Carnitas! If you ever come to Salt Lake be sure to try the ones at the Red Iguana. I’m scared to try making them because I’m afraid mine won’t measure up. Your version looks wonderful.
3 vanessa 13 November 2007 @ 6:12 am
Leena, great with eggs or even just as is…those leftovers taunt me.
Kalyn, you should try making your own…really easy and the results are incredible.
4 Peggasus 13 November 2007 @ 10:21 am
Hi ~ I saw this picture on TasteSpotting and HAD to click through…
I love carnitas! So much flavor for such a little amount of work, and inexpensive to boot. I do mine pretty much like yours, and I usually throw in a dried, seeded ancho or pasilla chile ot two with the liquid also. I must make them every week or two for my family, and then we use them in tacos or burritos or even sandwiches.
5 JP 13 November 2007 @ 10:22 am
oh, man… carnitas. I will think of nothing else for days. Must make… must devour fistfuls.
6 Andy 13 November 2007 @ 10:54 am
whoa, not sure if I’d use milk…I’d maybe try the cola though!!
those look great Vanessa, tell us about those tomatoes though! is that from your stash of canned tomatoes?
one off-topic question. Where in Madison can I find dried currants?
Thanks, and keep up the great work on this site!
7 brilynn 13 November 2007 @ 12:24 pm
Why have I never made this? Why??? Looks fantastic!
8 vanessa 13 November 2007 @ 12:52 pm
Peggasus, I bet it’s good with anything!
JP, CAR-NI-TAS!! CAR-NI-TAS!
Andy, I was wondering where you were. I confess…(sigh), those tomatoes aren’t local, they’re del Cabo from Willy.
Currants can be found at TJs…I think. Are you going to the Famers’ Market at Monona Terrace this Saturday? If so we should meet up.
Brilynn, ah my fellow pork lover…you must make it and know the love.
9 Carnit-ahhs 13 November 2007 @ 3:02 pm
Good recipe. I usually use pork butt, which is interchangeable with the pork shoulder. I also put in 1 or 2 jalapeno peppers and the zest from an orange. You can even use the juice of the orange for part of the liquid (or orange soda!). Or half beer and half orange soda!
The old-fashioned Mexican way to make carnitas was outdoors in a huge kettle hanging over a fire. The kettle would be filled about 2/3 full of lard and brought up to a medium-low boil. Several oranges, cut in half are then added to the pot, and then the meat would be added–all of the shoulder and butt and other “cheap” cuts. Maybe even a whole pig would be used. This would crisp up the meat and immediately cool the oil down to a low simmer. The oranges add sweetness to the oil, and also some moisture. It all cooks until the meat is falling-apart tender, at which point it’s fished out of the pot and shredded. I’ve had carnitas done this way at a couple of fiestas. Really good, especially with handmade tortillas… but not something you’d want to make all the time (kind of like deep-fried turkey versus roast turkey).
Something else I’ve sometimes done is to put a bed of sliced onions in the Dutch oven (brown the meat, remove the meat, put in the onions, the seasonings, return the meat, add the liquid, cover and continue). Save the onions for another use or serve them with the meat if you like.
You can also make this in a crockpot, but make sure to brown the meat. One more thing: after you’ve shredded the pork and reabsorbed all the liquid, lay it all out on a cookie sheet and bake on low for another 20 minutes or so at 350–which dries out the meat a little and really concentrates the flavor. All of this is really unnecessary, of course, because this recipe has everything you need. Just don’t be afraid to experiment with elements you might like.
AND… I actually prefer a carnitas burrito with a good cold Mexican beer rather than with a margarita.
10 Marsha Calhoun 13 November 2007 @ 6:10 pm
So hungry . . . so hungry.
I have a pork shoulder in the freezer (99 cents a pound, couldn’t resist). This seems like a relatively fast way to cook it, compared to my traditional way of salting and peppering it lavishly, putting in on a roasting sheet and sticking it in a 250 oven and forgetting about it for 9 or 10 hours. Keeps the house warm on a cold day.
No liquid needed, and it just melts off the bone, but the shredded meat somehow retains its integrity. (You do have to watch the fat to be sure it doesn’t spill over the edge of the pan, but this has never happened to me.) I like the idea of the added flavor that the liquid could provide (I have been known to marinate the meat overnight before roasting as above). Thanks for the post (as always).
11 nichole 13 November 2007 @ 6:13 pm
Oh, yahm! I have had good carnitas in Madison, tho - you must try Antojitos el Toril on Cottage Grove Rd.
12 vanessa 13 November 2007 @ 6:33 pm
Carnit-ahhs, I love the addition of oranges. I gotta get to Mexico for some pork. I agree…must be a cervasa. Thanks for the great details and for stopping by.
Marsha, I love the smell of roasting pork…it actually makes me kinda crazy. Thanks for your comments.
Nichole, I’ve heard good things about that place.
13 Candace 13 November 2007 @ 7:14 pm
Oh, wow, that looks amazing. I’ve never tried making my own carnitas, but, seriously, wow. I think I’ll be picking up pork tomorrow…
14 Andy 14 November 2007 @ 9:22 am
I think we are going to try to get to the market on Saturday. What time are you going?
I was thinking TJ’s for the currants as well. That’s where I finally found my hulled pumpkin seeds!
15 vanessa 14 November 2007 @ 10:01 am
You should all know that I’m now singing the Love Boat theme song and replacing the word “the love boat” with “car-ni-tas”. Hah!
Candace, way to go.
Andy, I can be there by 10. I need garlic, onions, mushrooms, and I’m picking up my turkey. Look for me.
16 Andy 15 November 2007 @ 12:40 am
will do. 10 will definitely be do-able, as we sometimes move slowly in the mornings :P
17 stockton 15 November 2007 @ 10:33 am
wow - these look absolutley delicious! i’ll be trying these as soon as i can!
18 Karen 15 November 2007 @ 10:47 am
Yes, yes, yes!
19 vanessa 15 November 2007 @ 5:41 pm
Welcome Stockton and Karen you are new faces here. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Andy, See ya at the market…I’ll have GH in tow if I can tear him away from his computer. I saw currants today at Willy. Check out the dried fruit area in the bulk aisle…I love it because they’re arranged alphabetically.
20 Katerina 16 November 2007 @ 9:45 am
This looks great, and it might just work in my slow cooker too… hmm i have been looking for recipes for my new toy!
21 Kate 16 November 2007 @ 5:30 pm
oh, i kinda think the milk would be wonderful. I read something in F&W magazine about milk braised goat. It almost made me want to find a goat.
Seriously, carnitas? Meat heaven. The only thing better than a pot of good carnitas is making that pork into Carne Adovada.
http://cooknkate.wordpress.com/2007/05/14/carne-adovada/
22 stockton 17 November 2007 @ 12:25 pm
is it just me, or when i think of ‘meat heaven’, its gotta be Pork? anyone else? truly is a noble animal as he saying goes - it just cooks so well in every sense, in every style!
23 vanessa 17 November 2007 @ 1:45 pm
Katerina, yes it works in the slow cooker but it won’t be the same…it needs the dry heat. I’ve got a recipe in the archives for pulled BBQ pork sandwiches that I do in the crockpot.
Kate, I agree about the milk…and I so want to try goat.
stockton, pork is it for me. I can give up beef if I have to, but never pork.
24 Annemarie 18 November 2007 @ 11:10 am
I L-O-V-E carnitas burritos but they’re hard to come by in London. I’ve finally found a good burrito place and have been inhaling them as quickly as I can, but this is the first time I’ve paused for a breath and thought of making some delicious carnitas at home. Thanks for the push in the right direction!
25 Kevin 19 November 2007 @ 9:33 pm
That looks really tasty.
26 Margie 13 January 2008 @ 7:45 pm
A bit late, but thank you for the inspiration to try carnitas at home. I used Coca Cola with delightfully sweet and savory results. Wrapped in a tortilla with homemade refried beans - fried in Nueske’s bacon grease with Penzey’s smoky seasoned salt - plus fixin’s, it was a satisfying meal. Now, I’m in the unusual position of having leftover porky cola in my freezer. I may take Nigella’s suggestion and use it as a base for black bean soup. I enjoy your pork point of view!
27 vanessa 15 January 2008 @ 9:18 am
Margie…I’m so glad you enjoyed it. But now you’re making me hungry!
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