Carnitas: Braised and Fried Pork

By sadams1001

Editor's note: Chef Roberto Santibañez, the chef/owner of Fonda in Brooklyn, New York shared this recipe as part of a festive taco party menu he created for Epicurious. To make tacos, you'll also need 24 to 32 warm corn tortillas, 2 cups of salsa, chopped white onion, chopped cilantro, and lime wedges. Santibañez recommends serving the tacos with Fresh Tomato Salsa , Roasted Pineapple Salsa , or Taco-Shop Guacamole, a blend of avocado and tomatillos.

Ingredients

• 4 pounds fatty pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 cups water
• 1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 orange, cut into 2 pieces
• 1/4 cup pork lard or vegetable oil
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Mexican, crumbled
• 2 teaspoons fine salt, or 4 teaspoons kosher salt

Details

Servings 24
Adapted from epicurious.com

Preparation

Step 1

Put 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.

Preheat 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.

Carnitas keeps in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Note: If you want to make half a batch, cut the amount of pork, salt, and oregano in half, but use the same amount of the remaining ingredients and water. You will need to use a slightly smaller pot.