Carnitas: Braised and Fried Pork

4.8(99)

Juicy, crispy-edged pieces of pork just waiting to be tucked into tortillas for tacos. This carnitas recipe is the classic way to make them—well, almost.

by Roberto Santibañez, JJ Goode·published 2011-02-23

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Servings

(24–32)

Total time

Calories / serving

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Ingredients (10)

serves

4 pounds fatty pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch pieces
3 cups waterwater
1 medium white onion, thinly slicedonion
1/2 orange, cut into 2 piecesorange
1/4 cup pork lard or vegetable oiloil
8 garlic cloves, peeledgarlic
3 bay leavesbay-leaf
1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milksweetened-condensed-milk
2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Mexican, crumbledoregano
2 teaspoons fine salt, or 4 teaspoons kosher saltsalt

Instructions (3 steps)

01Put all the ingredients in a wide 6-to 7-quart heavy pot (don't worry if the pork is not completely covered) and bring the water to a boil, skimming the surface as necessary. Lower the heat and simmer vigorously, stirring occasionally, until the pork is fork-tender and the liquid has completely evaporated, 1½ to 2 hours. Discard the orange pieces and bay leaves. If the liquid hasn't evaporated after 2 hours, transfer the pork pieces to a bowl and let the liquid continue to bubble away, stirring often, until it has.
02Preheat the oven to 450°F. Transfer the pork and fat to an ovenproof dish, if necessary, and brown the pork, uncovered, in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes. There's no need to stir.

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Not rich — missing servings, total time, or calories.