Carnitas Tacos
Citrus-braised pork, crisped edges and warm corn tortillas.
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The 2.5-hour braise is mostly passive - start it before a workout or a meeting and the kitchen will smell incredible by the time you're back.
Ingredients
Everything below makes 4 servings.
- 3 lbboneless pork shouldercut into 2-inch chunks
- 2 tbsplard or olive oil
- 1orangehalved
- 2lime1 halved for braise, 1 cut into wedges
- 1 mediumwhite onionhalf quartered, half finely diced for garnish
- 6garlic clovessmashed
- 2bay leaves
- 1 tspground cumin
- 1 tspdried oregano (Mexican preferred)
- 2 tspkosher salt
- 12corn tortillas
- ½ cupfresh cilantrochopped
In the app these rescale to however many people you're feeding.
Nutrition
Per serving, as written.
- 780calories
- 44gprotein
- 36gcarbs
- 51gfat
Swaps move these numbers. A different protein or base changes them.
Instructions
Knife work first, then the stove. Nothing below asks you to chop while something burns.
- Cut the pork shoulder into 2-inch chunks.
- Halve the orange. Halve one lime; cut the other into wedges.
- Quarter half the white onion (for braise). Finely dice the other half (for garnish).
- Smash 6 garlic cloves.
- Chop a small handful of cilantro.
Layer
Heat oven to 300°F. In a dutch oven, combine pork, lard, quartered onion, smashed garlic, bay leaves, cumin, oregano, and salt. Squeeze the orange and lime halves over and drop the spent rinds in. Add water until the pork is just barely covered.
Braise
Cover and slide into the oven. Braise 2.5 hours until the pork is fork-tender and falls apart easily.
150 min · hands offCrisp
Remove pork to a cutting board and shred into bite-sized chunks. Spread on a sheet pan, spoon a few tablespoons of the braising fat over, and broil 4-6 minutes until edges crisp and char. Watch closely.
5 min · hands onWarm tortillas
Warm corn tortillas directly over a gas flame or in a dry skillet, 20-30 seconds per side, until pliable and lightly charred.
3 min · hands onPlate
Pile crispy carnitas onto warm tortillas. Top with diced white onion, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.
1 min · hands onMake it yours
Every swap here is one Maui already knows how to make, including what it does to the timing.
Reduce braise to 45 min - chicken thighs shred at ~30 min, then crisp under broiler. Saves about 120 minutes.
Sauté jackfruit with the aromatics 15 min; skip the long braise entirely. Saves about 135 minutes.
Warm flour tortillas 30s per side; note these contain gluten.
Cook rice and heat canned beans separately during braise. Adds about 5 minutes.
What keeps
Carnitas reheat beautifully - make a double batch, store in the braising fat. Re-crisp under the broiler for 3-5 min before serving.
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