Carnitas ("little meats") are pork slowly cooked in its own fat until meltingly tender, then crisped. This stovetop/oven method gets you the same juicy-inside, crispy-edge result without a vat of lard — the secret is letting the braising liquid cook away so the pork finishes by frying in its own rendered fat.
Ingredients
- 3–4 lb pork shoulder, cut in 2-inch cubes
- 1 orange — juice it, then add the halves too
- 1 onion, quartered + 6 cloves garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp cumin + 1 tsp oregano + 2 tsp salt
- Water or broth to nearly cover
Method
- Braise. Put the pork in a heavy pot with the orange juice and squeezed halves, onion, garlic, bay, cumin, oregano and salt. Add water/broth to nearly cover. Simmer gently (or cover and oven-braise at 300°F) 2–3 hours until fork-tender.
- Reduce. Fish out the orange, onion and bay. Turn up the heat and let the liquid cook off until only the rendered pork fat remains.
- Crisp. Let the pork fry in that fat, turning, until the edges are deep golden and crackly (or spread on a tray and broil a few minutes).
- Shred & serve. Roughly shred and pile into warm corn tortillas with onion, cilantro, salsa and lime.
🍊 Don't skip the orange
The orange (and a splash of its juice) is traditional — it tenderizes and balances the rich pork with a subtle sweetness. Some cooks add a little Mexican cola or milk for the same effect.