Carnitas

What carnitas looks like halfway through the cooking process

Sick of soup? I’m not but I thought I’d give you a break (next up is a Vietnamese crab and asparagus soup). While I didn’t take pictures of the finished product, I did want to document this recipe since it was so delicious and easy!

I love carnitas and always order it at taquerias. I’ve never tried to make it myself because I assumed it would require a lot of work and the fatty techniques would turn me off of carnitas forever. The carnitas at Costco (just heat and serve) is pretty good and also cheap so why bother making your own? That’s what I thought until I tried this recipe–it is ridiculously easy, has a brighter flavor than what you get at Costco and is less greasy than what I get at taquerias.

We had 3 pounds of pork butt originally slated for bo ssam. However, after I realized one of our dinner guests hated garlic and kimchee, I changed course and settled on carnitas tacos. The list of ingredients is so simple we didn’t even have to go to the store to buy anything–meat, store-bought OJ, limes, cumin, garlic and salt. I followed the recipe exactly and the meat turned out perfectly. Serve with the usual taco fixings: corn tortillas, guacamole, salsa, hot sauce, tomatoes, sour cream, lettuce…whatever you want.

With 3 lbs of meat and 4.5 people (.5 because one doesn’t eat much), we didn’t have any leftovers. I’d probably do 1 lb per person next time, giving everyone plenty to eat and just a little left over.