Tender pieces of spicy pork are served in a corn tortilla with avocado and cilantro.
Course
Main Course
Cuisine
Mexican
Prep Time15minutes
Cook Time2hours
Total Time2hours15minutes
Servings24
Ingredients
4 1/2lbspork butt
6cupswater
7slicesorange zest
6garlic clovesminced
1 1/2onionsdiced
1 1/2teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2cinnamon stickspreferably Mexican
2bay leaves
1 1/2teaspoons oregano leavescrushed
1 1/2teaspoons kosher salt
salt
1/4teaspoon ground cloves
24small corn tortillaswarmed
chopped fresh cilantro
finely chopped onion
Avocado slices
fresh salsa verde or hot sauce
Method
Trim any thick fat from the outside of the pork butt. Cut the meat into 1-inch cubes. Discard any cubes that are pure fat, but don't try to trim all of the fat out of the meat.
Put the pork in a large pot. Add the water the strips of orange zest, garlic, onion, red pepper flakes, cinnamon, bay leaves, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and cloves. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Skim off any scum that forms on the surface. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours, until the pork is very soft, adding more water if necessary to keep the meat submerged. Season with salt.
Bring to a gentle boil and cook until the water has evaporated about 30 minutes.
After water has evaporated, cook a little longer to brown the meat slightly. (Note: if you want extra-crispy carnitas, fry approximately 25 minutes.) Watch carefully to prevent burning.
Remove the bay leaves and cinnamon sticks. Put the meat in a fine strainer and push gently with a wooden spoon to remove any excess fat. Discard the fat.
Fold a few tablespoons of carnitas inside each tortilla and top each taco with cilantro, onion and salsa. Avocado if desired