CARNITAS
- 2½ – 3 pound pork butt, cut into large pieces at least 2×2 inches in size
- 1 pound lard (if you cannot find lard at your local market, use suet)
- ½ orange, skin on, quartered
- 1 lime, skin on, quartered
- 4 medium garlic cloves skinned and left whole, slightly smashed
- 1 jalapeno stemmed and sliced into ½ inch rings, seeds left in
- 1 medium onion, skinned and quartered
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup bacon fat
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
- In a 9x11x2 casserole dish, or similar volume oven-proof vessel, place all ingredients. Cover with parchment and foil and bake for five hours.
- Remove from oven and scoop out meat with a hand strainer or spider strainer. Dispose of remaining liquids and solids.
- Place cooked pork on a foil-lined sheet pan brushed with the olive oil and place under broiler for five minutes. If the bottoms seem too wet, flip the pork and broil the other side for another minute or two. This step needs to be watched – you want the meat to caramelize without burning it or drying it out.
- Serve simply in a warmed flour tortilla with chopped onion and cilantro.
source:afamily