No Waste Tacos De Carnitas With Salsa Verde Kenji Food

TACOS DE CARNITAS

Steps:

• 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. Cook a little longer to fry 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.

NO-WASTE TACOS DE CARNITAS WITH SALSA VERDE RECIPE

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 275°F (135°C). Cut one onion into fine dice and combine with cilantro. Refrigerate until needed. Split remaining onion into quarters. Set aside. Season pork with 1 tablespoon salt and place in a 9- by 13-inch glass baking dish. The pork should fill the dish with no extra space. Split orange into quarters and squeeze juice over pork. Nestle squeezed orange pieces into dish. Add 2 onion quarters, 4 cloves garlic, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick to dish. Nestle everything into an even layer. Pour vegetable oil over surface. Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil and place in oven. Cook until pork is fork tender, about 3 1/2 hours.
• Set large fine-mesh strainer over a 1-quart liquid measuring cup or bowl. Using tongs, remove and discard orange peel, onion, garlic, cinnamon stick, and bay leaves. Transfer pork, rendered fat, and cooking liquid to strainer. Let drain for 10 minutes. Transfer pork back to baking dish. You should end up with about 1/2 cup cooking liquid and 1/2 cup fat. Using a flat spoon or fat separator, skim fat from surface and add back to pork. Shred pork into large chunks with fingers or two forks. Season to taste with salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Transfer remaining cooking liquid to medium saucepan.
• Add tomatillos, remaining 2 onion quarters, remaining 2 garlic cloves, and jalapeños to saucepan with strained pork liquid. Add water until it is about 1 inch below the top of the vegetables. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer, and cook until all vegetables are completely tender, about 10 minutes. Blend salsa with immersion blender or in a countertop blender until smooth. Season to taste with salt. Allow to cool and refrigerate until ready to use.
• To serve: Preheat broiler to high with oven rack 4 inches below heating element. Broil pork until brown and crisp on surface, about 6 minutes. Remove pork, stir with a spoon to expose new bits to heat, and broil again until crisp, 6 more minutes. Tent with foil to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, heat tortillas. Preheat an 8-inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Working one tortilla at a time, dip tortilla in bowl filled with water. Transfer to hot skillet and cook until water evaporates from first side and tortilla is browned in spots, about 30 seconds. Flip and cook until dry, about 15 seconds longer. Transfer tortilla to a tortilla warmer, or wrap in a clean dish towel. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
• To eat, stack two tortillas on top of each other. Add two to three tablespoons carnitas mixture to center. Top with salsa verde, chopped onions and cilantro, and queso fresco. Serve with lime wedges. Special Equipment 9- by 13-inch glass baking dish , large fine-mesh strainer , medium saucepan , fat separator (optional), immersion or countertop blender

CARNITAS (SLOW ROASTED PORK) TACOS - TACOS DE CARNITAS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
• 2. Blend the garlic, onion, oregano, thyme, salt and 1/2 cup of water in a blender until fairly smooth.
• 3. Combine the pork and buy leaves in a 6-quart dutch oven or deep baking dish that can hold the porkin no more than 2 layers. Pour the blended mixture and the Coca-Cola over the pork and stir & toss well.
• 4. Cover the pot and cook in the oven until the pork is very tender, about 2 hours. The sides of the pot might look dark. Thats just fine.
• 5. Uncover the pot and return to the oven. Continue cooking, tossing well and scraping the bottom and sides of pot every 10 minutes., until the pork is slightly crispy on the outside and deep golden brown, about 30 minutes. Coarsely shred the pork.
• 6. Make Ahead: You can make carnitas up to three days before you plan to serve.
• 7. Serve alongside 24 warm CORN TORTILLAS and LIME WEDGES and top with CHOPPED WHITE ONION, CHOPPED CILANTRO, and FRESH GREEN SALSA, JALAPENO AND PINAPPLE SALSA, OR PICO DE GALLO WITH LEMON ZEST.