The Best Pork Carnitas

My husband judges most Mexican restaurants by the quality of their Pork Carnitas. In my household, it’s a meal that we eat somewhat regularly.

Why eat out, when you can’t really top your own?

I had two recipes that were delicious and simple, and this one comes from a blend of the two.

THE BEST PORK CARNITAS

Begin with good meat. I know, I talk a lot about buying local, humanely raised meat. It really DOES matter. For the taste,  your health, the planet, the animal.

I use a shoulder or butt roast. This one was a bit large to fit inside of my pot with the lid on… so I cut a slice off the bottom to make it fit.

Step one:  Salt and pepper the meat.

Step two: Slather the pork roast with mustard.  (Dijon is great – though this time I used a blend of yellow and whole seed mustard… it was what I had on hand)

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Step three:  Drizzle with honey.  (It was probably about 1/2 cup)

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Step four:  Sprinkle with seasonings.  I use dried oregano and a natural mexican spice blend (cumin, paprika, oregano, garlic, onion, and chili powder), then a bit more salt.  (It’s a big hunk of meat, afterall.) You want to be generous here – sort of forming a crust.

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Step five:  Squeeze orange juice into the pot.  I used the juice of two oranges.

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Step six:  Put the lid on and pop into the oven to SLOW cook.   My favorite way to do this is put the oven down to 225 and leave it overnight while I sleep.  Then,  the next day, I turn my oven down to the lowest setting and keep it warm until it’s time to eat.   There are times when I only have 6 hours or so to do this, so I turn the heat up to 250 and it’s deliciously tender.  You can absolutely do this in a crock pot, as well.

 

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Shred with two forks, and pour the lovely juices from the pan back over the meat.

 

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The end result is incredible.

Serve on top of a corn tortilla with some simple toppings. Our faves  are a simple cabbage, cilantro & onion slaw with fresh salsa.

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Check here for the recipe for these homemade organic corn tortillas.  ENJOY!

Add to Plan to Eat

Pork Carnitas Tacos

This is a revised description.

Serves:

Ingredients

  • Pork Shoulder or Butt
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Dijon mustard
  • .5 Cup Honey
  • Oregano
  • Cumin
  • Paprika
  • Oregano
  • Garlic
  • Onion
  • Chili Powder
  • 2 Oranges Fresh

Directions

  1. Salt and pepper the meat
  2. Slather the pork roast with Dijon mustard
  3. Drizzle with honey
  4. Sprinkle with seasonings: oregano and a natural mexican spice blend (cumin, paprika, oregano, garlic, onion, and chili powder), then a bit more salt. You want to be generous here – sort of forming a crust.
  5. Squeeze orange juice into the pot. I used the juice of two oranges.
  6. Put the lid on and pop into the oven to SLOW cook. My favorite way to do this is put the oven down to 225 and leave it overnight while I sleep. Then, the next day, I turn my oven down to the lowest setting and keep it warm until it’s time to eat. There are times when I only have 6 hours or so to do this, so I turn the heat up to 250 and it’s deliciously tender. You can absolutely do this in a crock pot, as well.
  7. Shred with two forks, and pour the lovely juices from the pan back over the meat.
  8. Serve on top of a corn tortilla with some simple toppings. Our faves are a simple cabbage, cilantro & onion slaw with fresh salsa.

Amount Per Serving (1)

  • Nutritional Score (generic): 15
  • Calories: 457
  • Protein: 4
  • Sugar: 16
  • Carbohydrate: 14
  • Fat: 16
  • Cholesterol: 32
  • Sodium: 16
  • Fiber: 43
  • Estimated Cost: 1.86

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