Tacos La Playita Carnitas Recipes

CARNITAS RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325°F. Pat the pork butt dry with a paper towel. Use a large, sharp knife to trim away excess fat. Cut the pork butt into 1" thick slices. Then, cut each slice into 1" cubes.
• Transfer the pork to a 4-5 quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven. Add all of the dry spices, and massage them onto the pork with your hands.
• Add the orange juice, lime juice, and a 1/2 cup water to the Dutch oven and stir to combine. Add the bay leaves, cover, and transfer to the oven.
• Cook for 2 hours. Remove from the oven, and turn on the broiler on high. Have ready a rimmed sheet pan lined with nonstick aluminum foil.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pork to the prepared sheet pan. Using the tines of a fork, gently press down on the pork to ever-so-slightly break it apart.
• Place the pork under the broiler, and watch closely so that it does not burn. As soon as the pork begins to tinge with dark brown hues and crisps up on the edges, remove it from the oven. Depending on your broiler, this could take anywhere from 1- 4 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
• Place the Dutch oven on the stovetop over medium-high heat and allow to come to a simmer. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water. Add the cornstarch slurry to the cooking liquid and allow to simmer until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• Either add the pork back to the Dutch oven and stir or brush the sauce lightly over the carnitas. Serve with tortillas and your favorite taco toppings and enjoy!

CARNITAS WALKING TACOS

Steps:

• Place the pork shoulder, garlic, bay leaves, large chunks of onion, ancho chile powder, cumin, cloves, orange juice, lime juice, 1 tablespoon salt, a generous amount of black pepper and 1/2 cup water in the bowl of a 6-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook until the meat is tender and can easily be shredded with a fork, 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low.
• Remove the pork to a large bowl and use two forks to shred. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the pork and 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated and the pork is crispy and dark brown, about 15 minutes. Remove to a plate and repeat with the remaining oil, pork and 1/2 cup cooking liquid (discard the remaining liquid), another 15 minutes.
• Open the tortilla chip bags and crush a few of the chips. Gently roll down the tops of the bags about a third of the way. Fill the bags with some dollops of sour cream, then pork, then garnish with the finely chopped onions, radishes, cilantro and a few dashes of hot sauce. Serve with the lime wedges.
• In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, chili powder, salt and lime zest. Set aside.

THE BEST CARNITAS TACOS (PULLED PORK TACOS!)

Steps:

• Start by making the Mexican Pork Carnitas. This will take you about 8 hours to make in your slow cooker or in a pot.
• In a medium-sized bowl, mash the avocados with the lime juice, garlic, and salt.
• Put a scoop of carnitas in a tortilla, add a spoonful of the mashed avocados (guacamole), top with a sprinkle of minced red onions and any or all of the optional toppings.

TACOS LA PLAYITA CARNITAS

Steps:

• Cut the pork butt into 6 or 7 large pieces. Combine salt, pepper, bay leaves and oregano in a small bowl then sprinkle over the pork on all sides, using all the seasoning mixture. This step is best done 1 or even 2 days in advance. Leave uncovered in the refrigerator until ready to use.
• When you are ready to cook, remove pork from the oven 1 hour in advance. Heat lard in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add pork (in batches if necessary, don't crowd the pan) and brown pork on all sides, about 5-8 minutes per side.
• Add remaining ingredients to the pot, then add enough water to cover three-quarters of the way up the side of the pork. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, turning occasionally until pork is pierced easily with a fork, about 3 hours.
• Remove pork from pot, leaving liquid simmering on the stove. When pork is cool enough to touch, shred or cut into bite-sized pieces. Return pork to pot and raise the heat to medium-high. Continue cooking until almost all the liquid has evaporated and all that is left is the rendered fat. Turn the heat to low and fry meat, stirring frequently until edges are crispy and well-browned.

ZESTY CARNITAS TACOS

Steps:

• Carnitas: Trim fat from pork. Cut pork into 2- to 3-inch pieces; transfer to a 4-quart slow cooker. Stir in onion, orange juice, cumin, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, oregano, and cayenne.
• Cover and cook on Low 8 to 10 hours, or on High 4 to 5 hours. Transfer pork to a large bowl; shred using 2 forks. Add enough cooking liquid from slow cooker to moisten.
• Lime Crema: Add 2 tablespoons lime juice to a small bowl. Stir in yogurt and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Dust with chili powder.
• Tacos: Serve pork in tortillas with cabbage, red onion, and pico de gallo (if using). Garnish with crema and lime zest.