Make Ahead Carnitas

Everyone should know how to make carnitas, specifically, this make-ahead version just makes sense for the home cook. It's literally, cut up pork chunks, add salt, add water, cook until tender and crisp up beautifully. It takes about an hour and a half total, but like 10 minutes of that is active time.

Technique from The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy

Ingredients

• 2-3 pounds of boneless pork shoulder marbled with fat

• 1% salt by weight of pork

• Water to barely cover pork

Method

1. Cut the meat into small cubes roughly 1 inch big. Set a pot over a scale and add the pork hunks. Note the weight down and add 1% salt based on the weight of the pork (e.g. 1500 g pork = 15 grams of salt). Fill the pot with water to just barely cover the pork pieces.

2. Set the pot on medium high heat and bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat to medium low. Let the pork cook while stirring occasionally until the liquid has evaporated, about 45 to 60 minutes.

3. Once the water has completely evaporated, the pork should be cooked through, but not falling apart. There also should be a layer of fat that has rendered out in the pot where you now have two options:

   • If serving immediately: Continue cooking the chunks of pork until they have lightly browned and gotten crisp. Chop or bash into pieces and serve with tacos, salsa, etc.

   • If saving: Remove the pork from the pot. Add a handful of pork chunks at a time to a mortar and pestle and bash to create little shreds of pork. Store the carnitas in a container in the fridge. When ready to use crisp up on a cast iron before serving.

Potential uses:

• Tacos

• Over rice and beans

• Burritos

• Enchiladas

• Sandwiches (Tortas)

• Pizza Topping

• Add to soup

• Pastas