How to Make Pork Carnitas | Oven Braised | Homemade Corn Tortillas |

pork shoulder

🥗Healthier: pork tenderloin

💰Cheaper: pork butt

Pork tenderloin is leaner, while pork butt is often less expensive.

lard

🥗Healthier: olive oil

💰Cheaper: vegetable oil

Olive oil is healthier, while vegetable oil is usually cheaper.

Preheat a Dutch oven on medium-high heat.

Add rendered lard to the Dutch oven.

Cut pork shoulder into irregular two-inch chunks.

Sear the pork chunks in batches until browned on all sides, transferring each batch to a bowl after searing.

Add more lard to the Dutch oven if needed for the second batch of pork.

Sprinkle spices (cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, achiote powder, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder) over the pork and mix well.

Deglaze the pot with 2 cups of homemade chicken stock, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon.

Add the seared pork back into the pot along with any juices from the bowl and a few splashes of apple cider vinegar.

Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and transfer to a preheated oven at 350 degrees.

Cook in the oven for about 2.5 to 3 hours or until the pork is tender.

Prepare the masa dough by mixing 3 cups of masa harina with 1.5 teaspoons of salt and hot water, adding water gradually until the dough is firm and springy.

Cover the masa with a damp towel and let it rest for one hour.

After resting, line a tortilla press with parchment paper and press a golf-sized ball of masa into a tortilla.

Preheat a griddle on high and cook the tortilla until it easily releases from the griddle, then flip and cook for another minute.

Place cooked tortillas in a tortilla basket lined with a damp towel to keep warm.

After 2.5 to 3 hours, remove the pork from the oven and shred it with a fork, ensuring it is tender and easily breaks apart.

If there is excess liquid, turn up the heat on the stovetop to let the pork absorb the liquid until evaporated.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary