just wonder if any one has any good recipes for making carnitas?

Question

i bought a caso . it is a big copper pot for cooking big batches of pork .I was wondering if there is any web sites that i can check out . you have to love that good tender carnitas .

Answer 1

Carnitas


2 pounds lard
2 1/2 pounds pork butt, trimmed
and cut into 2-inch cubes
2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup Chile de Arbol Salsa, recipe above

In a large saucepan melt lard over moderate heat. Add pork, salt and pepper and simmer until tender. Cook about an hour, being careful not to crisp the meat. Remove pork and set aside until cool. Shred the meat by hand or with tines of a fork. Remove and discard any remaining fat. Transfer to a medium saucepan, add the arbol salsa and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently. Serve or assemble within a toasted corn tortilla to make taco. Carnitas can stay refrigerated for up to five days before assembling within a taco.

Answer 2

4-1/2 lbs. Farmer John® Boston Butt Pork Roast
2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Cumin ground
1/2 tsp. Coriander ground
1/2 tsp. crushed Oregano Leaves
2 medium-size Onions chopped
2 Carrots chopped
Recipe Instructions:
1: Place pork in casos and cover with water. Add salt, cumin, coriander, oregano, onion and carrots. Bring water to a boil, cover pan and reduce heat and simmer for 2 1/2 hours or until fork tender. Lift meat from stock (save for soups) and place in a shallow baking pan.

2: Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until meat is very well browned. Drain off all fat. Remove both bones. Shred or separate meat into chunks to serve.

Answer 3

The following super-easy, pretty low-fat recipe is adapted from Diana Kennedy's "The Cuisines of Mexico" or else from her "Recipes from the Regional Cooks of Mexico." I think she classifies it as an appetizer. I once spoke with a man who runs a hugely popular restaurant in the Central Valley in California where they sell hundreds of pounds of carnitas every weekend, cooked in copper pots like yours, and he told me that his recipe is very similar to this, basically the seasonings are salt and orange juice. No garlic, he said. No oregano. Very simple and very traditional. He's from Michoacan originally and makes carnitas as he learned to do back home. He didn't give me his recipe but confirmed my recipe has the right seasonings. I expect there are other good recipes but I use this one. There's almost no active prep time with this, but make it when you're hanging around the house because it boils for a couple of hours and occasionally you have to tend the pot for a couple of seconds at a time. I only make small quantities myself. Here's my small-size variant that will easily serve 4, especially if you have side dishes like beans and Mexican rice:

* About 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. pork, preferably boneless "country style spareribs". You need not trim off the fat unless there are really big pieces of fat. The fat will melt out and you'll use it to fry the meat. That's why there is no added fat here.
* Salt
* Water
* Three oranges
* A lime (my addition)

- Put the pork in a saucepan with water to just cover. Wash one of the oranges and squeeze it in; tear off bits of the squeezed orange, peel and all, and drop in a couple of bits. You can also squeeze in the lime, now or later. Bring the pot to a boil. Turn heat down and simmer with lid off or only partly covered for awhile (don't bother checking till it's been at least 30 or 40 minutes).
- When about half the water is gone, squeeze in the other orange and it's also OK if bits of this fall in. Grab two forks and break up the meat into smaller chunks. Keep simmering, and every few minutes, break up some more of the meat into smaller chunks (You can do this while the pot cooks if you're careful about the steam). You want to break the meat down into bite-size chunks. Keep letting the meat cook.
- When almost all the water is gone, squeeze in the third orange. Keep cooking till you hear the meat start to sizzle and fry. Then, take a spatula and stir-fry the meat till it starts to turn from its pale grayish boiled color to a nice golden-tinged look from frying with the caramelized orange juice. The meat will be in chunks and shreds.
* If you reheat the meat, warm it in a pot, on the stove, moistened with a little orange juice and a little water. Not in the microwave which dries it out too much.

* Serve with:
* Warm corn tortillas, best brand available
* Thinly shredded raw, crunchy green cabbage
* Sliced avocado
* Thinly sliced radishes
* Chopped cilantro
and
* Salsa (I make my own, by throwing the following things in the Cuisinart and whizzing: Tomatoes or tomatillos (fresh or canned), sea salt, fresh cilantro, about 3 cloves of garlic, and about 3 of any of the following chiles: Fresh serranos or dried chile de arbol or dried chile japones).

Answer 4

Carmelized Carnitas

Ingredients

(10 servings)

1 1/2 lb Pork shoulder; bonless, *
1 tb Tequila
1/2 ts Salt
2 ea Clove garlic; finely chopped
1 ea Green onion w/top; sliced
2 tb Brown sugar; packed
1 tb Molasses
1/4 ts Pepper
1/3 c Water


Instructions

* Pork should be cut up into 1-inch cubes. --------------- Place pork cubes in single layer in 10-inch skillet. Top with remaining ingredients except green onion. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally unti the water has evaproated and the pork is slighly carmelized, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle with green onion and serve with wooden picks.

Answer 5

Here's a great recipe I've used before. It says to use a large pan, but your caso works even better. Hope you love it!

3 pounds thick, meaty country style pork ribs, pork butt or pork shoulder
2 pounds lard, or enough to cover the meat
1/4 cup water
1 orange, zest removed with a vegetable peeler in wide strips
1 lime, zest removed with a vegetable peeler in wide strips
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
12 soft corn tortillas
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Guacamole, accompaniment, recipe follows
Emeril's Pico de Gallo, accompaniment, recipe follows
Trim most of the fat from the meat, leaving a thin layer. Cut into 4-inch pieces.
In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the lard over medium-low heat. When it has melted but is not yet very hot, add the pork, water, orange zest, lime zest, garlic, and salt. Cook at a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally so that the meat evenly cooks, for about 2 hours, or until the meat is tender. If the meat needs more time and all of the water has evaporated, add a bit more water and continue to cook until the meat is tender.

Once the meat is tender, raise the heat to medium-high. (Don't panic if the lard comes to a rolling boil - this will diminish as the water evaporates and will become small bubbles.) After the boiling lard changes to small bubbles, cook the meat for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until light golden brown and crispy all over. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon or tongs and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with the salt. When the meat has cooled slightly, pull the meat apart using 2 forks into shreds and smaller pieces and discard the bones.

To heat the tortillas, heat a medium skillet over low heat. Place the oil in a small dish and before placing in the pan, brush both sides of each tortilla with 1/2 teaspoon of the oil. Place the oiled tortilla in the skillet and cook until just warm and soft, 2 to 5 seconds per side. Remove from the heat, place on a plate and cover with a cloth to keep warm until ready to serve.

To serve, make the tacos with the meat and warm tortillas, and garnish with the guacamole and pico de gallo.

Guacamole:
2 large, firm--ripe avocados, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup minced white onions
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, or more to taste
1 teaspoon minced serrano chile
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch cayenne
In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and mash with the back of a fork until mostly smooth with a few chunks. Adjust the seasoning, to taste, and serve.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings (about 2 cups)

Emeril's Pico de Gallo:
1 1/2 pounds plum tomatoes, cored, seeded and diced
3/4 cup finely chopped white onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons minced, seeded jalapeno or serrano chiles (about 2 medium)
1 teaspoon minced garlic clove
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch cayenne
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Cover and allow to rest at room temperature for 1 hour for the flavors to blend.
Yield: about 3 cups

Answer 6

Guy's Big Bite on www.foodtv.com did a carnitas recipe about a month ago.

Answer 7

http://food.cookinglight.com/cooking/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1227902