The first time that I tried carnitas was in Chicago. There was a "super mercado" a couple of blocks from my apartment that sold them from a counter in the back of the store. Since then I have preferred carnitas over similar dishes that feature beef. Although this recipe takes a few hours to prepare, it's worth the wait. Carnitas have alot of flavor and they are inexpensive to make. For this recipe, I used a flour tortilla (heated in the microwave for 20 seconds), the carnitas, salsa, cilantro, and diced red onions. Here is how you make the carnitas:
Recommended Equipment:slow cooker
Ingredients:2 tspn kosher salt
2 tspn ground cumin
2 tspn garlic powder
1 tspn oregano
1 tspn coriander
4 pound pork shoulder
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken stock
Preparation:- In a bowl, mix together the first 5 ingredients.
- Cut pork into large chunks about 2 inches by 2 inches.
- Run spice mixture from step #1 into the pieces of pork.
- Place the pork and the bay leaf into the center of the slow cooker.
- Pour the chicken stock around the pork. Try to avoid pouring the stock directly on the pork so that the spices stay adhered to the pork.
- Place cover on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Shred the pork into smaller pieces, place them on a baking pan and then bake the pork in the oven for 20 minutes. Reserve juices in the slow cooker.
- Remove pork from the oven and place it back into the juices in the slow cooker.
- Serve with rice, Cuban Black Beans, tortillas, guacamole, salsa, cilantro, juice of a quarter of a lime, and diced red onions.
Mexico
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