Carnitas
Ingredients
- 2 pork tenderloin (1.5-2 lbs total) silverskin removed, in 2” cubes
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1-2 chiles, chosen on preference from the options below, diced
- Mild: use two Serrano peppers, seeds removed
- Medium: Leave the seeds in your Serranos
- Hot: One Serrano and one Habanero
- Note: You can sub jalapeños for the Serranos if you like a very fruity flavor from peppers. I love jalapeños, but there’s a lot of variability in heat level from pepper to pepper, so they’re a bit of a roll of the dice
- 12 oz cane-sugar cola (real sugar is important)
- ¼ cup orange juice
- Veggie or canola oil
Spice Rub
Mix the following in a large workbowl
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground chipotle
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp ground smoked paprika (optional)
Directions
Dutch Oven Method
My preferred method.
Preheat your oven to 300º F.
Mix the spice rub together in a large workbowl, then add the meat and toss to evenly cover.
Set a dutch oven on the stove over medium-high heat, pour in enough oil to cover the bottom. Once hot, add the pork to sear on all sides. You may need to work in batches, depending on the size of your dutch oven.
Remove the seared meat, and set aside on paper towel. Add a little more oil if necessary, then add the onion and peppers to the dutch oven. Sauté until the peppers are soft, and the onion is just turning translucent. Pour in orange juice and deglaze. Then, add the meat back into the dutch oven, doing your best to arrange in a single layer. Pour the cola over the meat, and bring to a light simmer.
Once it’s just bubbling, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and put the dutch oven in your hot oven. Let it cook for 90 minutes to two hours. The liquid will cook down a little, and the meat should be tender enough when it’s done that it will start to come apart when squeezed with a pair of tongs. Remove the dutch oven to the stovetop, and remove the meat to a bowl or casserole, and let the meat cool while you reduce the braising liquid.
Leave the braising liquid in the dutch oven, and cook with the lid off at a simmer until the liquid is reduced by a third to half.
Once the liquid is reduced, shred the meat using two forks or your hands. Discard bits of connective tissue, gristle, or fat that hasn’t completely melted in the braise.
Spread the shredded pork across a baking dish, doing your best to keep a single layer. Drizzle over several ladles-full of the braising liquid, and toss to coat entirely. Put the baking dish under a broiler for a few minutes until the edges of the meat begin to caramelize, then toss and repeat. Once caramelized a second time, remove.
Serve on rice, or in tortillas with lime and cilantro.
Slow Cooker Method
Mix the spice rub together in a large workbowl, then add the meat and toss to evenly cover.
Sauté the onions and peppers in butter or oil until the peppers are soft, and the onion is just turning translucent. Remove from heat and put the sautéd onions and peppers in the slow cooker. Add the meat, and pour the OJ and cola over. Start your slow cooker and cook for 6-10 hours.
Remove the chunks of meat, which should be fork tender at this point, to a workbowl. Pour the remaining cooking liquid into a saucepan and reduce by half. Move the meat into a baking dish, pour over braising liquid, and broil just as in the dutch oven method.
Why it Works
Pork is a mild meat which doesn’t impose its own flavor, making it a great canvas upon which you can apply flavor. Spice rub, searing, a low-and-slow cook, and a high-sugar sauce all create layers of flavor.
