The Ultimate CARNITAS Recipe Guide: Pork Butt, Ribs, Cuero & Traditional Ingredients | Arnie's Asada

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 can be more budget-friendly.

Welcome to Arnita Sada. Today we're making carnitas.

Rinse the pork butt to remove any liquid.

Cut the pork butt into chunks about the width of your hand.

Season the pork butt with salt and place it in a Tupperware container to marinate overnight.

Prepare the ribs by salting both sides and cutting them into sections of three bones each.

Clean the copper pot (caso) with salt, baking soda, and lemon juice before cooking.

Heat 12 lbs of lard in the copper pot to 380°F.

Add the pork butt chunks to the hot lard one at a time to sear them.

Stir the meat around to ensure it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.

Monitor the temperature of the lard, which will drop as you add the meat, and adjust the heat to bring it back up.

After about 10 minutes, check the temperature of the oil and ensure it gets back into the 300°F range.

While the pork is cooking, prepare salsa verde by boiling tomatillos, jalapeno, serranos, onion, and adding garlic at the end.

After 35 minutes, check the carnitas for color and tenderness; remove them from the pot to sear the ribs.

Sear the ribs in the remaining lard, then lower the temperature for further cooking.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary