Carnitas (Little Pieces of Browned Pork)
February 17, 2010 | Filed Under Mexican recipes, pork | 18 Comments
With the exception of the occasional bacon and ham, I do not prepare or eat pork dishes. However, the other day, I saw an enticing Mexican recipe posted by Mari of Once Upon a Plate that I just had to try it. The food looked so mouth-watering and I liked that the recipe was SO simple. There were three basic ingredients — pork, salt and water. Long-time readers know that I like the simple things in life, such as simple recipes. This one had my name written all over it, so I decided to prepare it at the next possible occasion.
According to Mari, carnitas are a popular snack in central Mexico. It’s served with a fresh tomato salsa and wrapped in a warm tortilla. Mari used flour tortillas, so I did the same. The snack is also served with cilantro, radishes, avocado, onions and sour cream. How could I resist all these tasty ingredients? How, I ask you?
The occasion came to prepare carnitas when I was home during last week’s snowstorm. The only hard part of the dish preparation for me was cutting the pork into cube pieces. Okay, okay. I’m exaggerating a bit a lot. Cutting the pork into pieces wasn’t really hard but it was the most energy that I had to expel making carnitas.
The intriguing thing is that you aren’t supposed to use a lot of water in preparation of the pork. I was a little nervous that I’d used too much water. Then because I don’t normally buy pork, although Mari mentioned what kind of pork to buy, I feared that I hadn’t bought the right kind, so that it would brown properly. Turns out that I worried for nothing. I’d put used the right amount of water and the pork had enough fat to brown the pieces. Everything turned out perfectly.
Thanks to a recipe from Simply recipes, I made fresh tomato salsa. Perfect. It made my carnitas even more tasty. I won’t wait for another snowstorm before I make carnitas again.
Paz
Ingredients:
3 pounds pork shoulder, butt, or boneless country-style pork spareribs, etc.
Cold water to barely cover
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
This dish requires some fat on the meat in order to make the finished meat succulent and juicy, if you are looking for a low-fat dish you would be better off choosing something else.
Cut the meat, with the fat into strips about 2" x 3/4", or 1 1/2" to 2" cubes. Place meat in a large pot and barely cover with water, add salt and bring to a boil over high heat (don’t cover the pot.)
When pot boils lower the heat a bit and allow to cook briskly until all liquid has evaporated; the meat should be cooked through but not falling apart. Lower the heat once again and continue cooking until the fat has rendered out. Continue turning the meat until it is lightly brown all over and slightly crisp. this usually takes between 45 to 70 minutes. Taste and add additional salt if needed.
Tips:
-No need for an expensive cut of meat, you want cuts with a fair amount of fat so the meat browns properly later.
-The meat will cook more evenly if the pot is large (and rather shallow if possible)
-Do not add too much water at the beginning, or the meat will fall apart when frying later
-If the meat is still rather firm when water has evaporated then add a little more water and continue cooking.
Recipe adapted from Diana Kennedy’s "The Cuisines of Mexico", an excellent resource.
I highly recommend.
Fresh Tomato Salsa Recipe
Ingredients
- 2-3 medium sized fresh tomatoes (from 1 lb to 1 1/2 lb), stems removed, finely diced
- 1/2 red onion, finely diced
- 1 jalapeño chili pepper (stems, ribs, seeds removed), finely diced
- 1 serano chili pepper (stems, ribs, seeds removed), finely diced
- Juice of one lime
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Optional: oregano and or cumin to taste
Method
1 Start with chopping up 2 medium sized fresh tomatoes. Prepare the chilies. Be very careful while handling these hot peppers. If you can, avoid touching them with your hands. Use a fork to cut up the chilies over a small plate, or use a paper towel to protect your hands. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water after handling and avoid touching your eyes for several hours. Set aside some of the seeds from the peppers. If the salsa isn’t hot enough, you can add a few for heat.
2 Combine all of the ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Taste. If the chilies make the salsa too hot, add some more chopped tomato. If not hot enough, carefully add a few of the seeds from the chilies, or add some ground cumin.
Let sit for an hour for the flavors to combine.
Makes approximately 3-4 cups.
