Carnitas Delicioso!

Name: Carnitas Delicioso!
Total time: 25200 s
Yield: 10-12 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 lb. Lard (no substitute!); 1 c. Bacon fat; 3-4 lb. Pork butt, cut into large pieces; 1 lg. Orange, quartered; 1 lg. Lemon, quartered; 2 Limes, quartered; 1 lg. Onion, peeled & quartered; 10-12 garlic cloves, peeled; 12 jalapeño slices (from a jar); Salt; Pepper; Cumin; Garlic powder; Flour tortillas; Grated sharp cheddar cheese; Sour cream; Salsa; Cilantro; Diced onions; Pineapple tidbits (seriously good!); Refried beans

Maggie Conlon @WarsawNan

Orlando, FL

Somewhat labor intensive, these authentic style Carnitas are SO worth the prep and slow-cook time! I always do the slow-cook of the pork the day before. Day 2 is when I broil/char the pork to serve with my homemade refried beans and warm flour tortillas.

Melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and leftovers freeze and reheat very well; so if you're a small household, don't hesitate to make this: cook once, eat 4+ times.

Maggie Conlon @WarsawNan

Orlando, FL

Melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and leftovers freeze and reheat very well; so if you're a small household, don't hesitate to make this: cook once, eat 4+ times.

Saved

Ingredients

7 hours

10-12 servings

1 lb.Lard (no substitute!)
1 c.Bacon fat
3-4 lb.Pork butt, cut into large pieces
1lg. Orange, quartered
1lg. Lemon, quartered
2Limes, quartered
1lg. Onion, peeled & quartered
10-12garlic cloves, peeled
12jalapeño slices (from a jar)
Salt
Pepper
Cumin
Garlic powder
Flour tortillas
Garnish suggestions:
Grated sharp cheddar cheese
Sour cream
Salsa
Cilantro
Diced onions
Pineapple tidbits (seriously good!)
Refried beans

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Steps

7 hours

1

Preheat oven to 250°F. Place lard in large (turkey-size) roasting pan and place in oven to melt. Add bacon fat and set aside.
2

Prep all your ingredients while the lard is melting. The photo shows the cut sizes. A regular large roasting pan, as shown in this photo, is too small for cooking this dish. Use a larger/deeper turkey roasting pan.
3

NOTE!! I don't recommend a disposable aluminum turkey pan because lime juice eats a hole through aluminum foil! (I learned this the hard way!)
4

Place pork pieces (fat side up) in the roasting pan with the lard & bacon fat. Squeeze the citrus pieces over the meat, and place them around the meat pieces, skin side down. (The large piece with fat cap has a wide flat bone running the length of the piece, which is why it's bigger.)
5

Add the garlic cloves, onion quarters and jalapeño slices to the pan. Sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cumin over the meat (to taste; I don't measure them).
6

Lay a sheet of parchment paper over everything to keep the limes from touching the foil. Then tightly cover the pan with aluminum foil, sealing well all around so steam doesn't escape while cooking.
7

Bake in 250°F oven for 6-1/2 hours. Turn off oven and allow pan to cool before removing foil.
8

NOTE: At this point, I usually refrigerate the pork pieces (discard fruit and lard) and finish the recipe the next night when I'm ready to serve it. But you can do it all in one day if you start early.
9

Char the pork pieces under the broiler. Keep an eye on them, flipping the pieces to get an even char. Takes 10-15 minutes.
10

Serve with warm flour tortillas, your favorite condiments, and refried beans.

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Cooksnaps

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Maggie Conlon @WarsawNan

on August 01, 2020 22:27

Orlando, FL

My 5 siblings and I were raised in the 1950s and 60s midwest by a major foodie dad who was a great cook. We all learned to cook at a young age. I love to cook for my 2 daughters, 7 grandkids, 10 great-grandkids, and extended family. My 4 year old great-grandson makes my day when he says "Nan sure is a good cooker!". :-). I'm trying to get all my favorite recipes saved here so my family and friends all have easy access to them even after I'm gone. My Cookpad collection is their inheritance, so I try to add my comments and memories to each recipe; that way they'll remember me with a smile when they use the recipes years from now. Recently I've called on my grandkids (all adults and avid cooks) to send me their own favorite recipes, with their prep photos, so we can collect everyone's favorites together in one place.