Carnitas
I’ve never been impressed by any of the Carnitas recipes I’ve tried online or in books…UNTIL NOW! This Carnitas Recipe method by Diana Kennedy, requiring only pork, water, and salt, is the simplest and most delicious carnitas recipe I’ve ever had.
These carnitas are not made in the slow cooker, which is a good thing.
I love my slow cooker as much as the next person, but so many of the carnitas recipes online are slow cooker versions, with results that are a far cry from the truly crispy chunks of tender pork that you normally get at Mexican restaurants and taco joints.
But this method? It will give you perfect carnitas at home.
What is Carnitas?
It’s basically crispy, savory chunks of tender pork. They are particularly great for filling tacos and burritos.
This particular Carnitas Recipe is from Diana Kennedy, a long time Mexican cooking authority (she’s 94 years old)!
I’ve only discovered her work recently after coming across this recipe in the Genius Recipes cookbook, and I’m excited to look at some of her own cookbooks because so far I’m pretty enamored with her, hah!
You may have noticed that a lot of carnitas recipes call for orange juice, lime juice, oregano, and so on.
But here all we’ll need is pork, salt, and water, which is traditional.
How to Make Carnitas:
Begin by cutting strips of pork shoulder, and place them in a high-sided skillet:
Add enough water to cover the pork:
Season the water with plenty of salt:
Simmer the pork for about an hour and a half until the water eventually all cooks off.
Beware that it will look like there’s more water than there actually is, because a fair amount of rendered fat will be left over in the pan.
Eventually when the water is all gone and the rendered fat (or lard) is left, the pork chunks will brown and crisp in their own rendered fat:
It’s recommended that you don’t shred the carnitas, but leave them in their chunk form.
I throw these carnitas into this breakfast burrito recipe, I saute green beans with the rendered fat and pork shreds, I make huevos rancheros with the meat, and so on. There are so many ways to use it up, and you may even just want to eat it by itself, it’s so good!
What to Serve with Carnitas:
- Mexican Rice
- Mexican Corn Salad with Black Beans
- Cotija Cilantro Corn on the Cob
- Jalapeno Tomato Salsa
- Guacamole
Recipe Tips:
- Can Carnitas be frozen? Yes, the meat will freeze beautifully! Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Can Carnitas be made with boneless pork loin, pork chops, or another cut? Not really. You need the pork shoulder (aka boston butt) because it has fat that will render down and eventually fry the pork chunks. Pork loin and pork chops are pretty lean.
- How long will carnitas keep? Refrigerate for 5 days, or freeze for 2 months.
- How to serve carnitas: Carnitas are wonderful as the protein for recipes like tacos, burritos, rice bowls, etc.
Pork Carnitas Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless pork shoulder (aka boston butt)
- 1.5 tsp salt
Instructions
- Cut the pork into strips about 2 inches by 3/4 inches in size (do not trim any of the fat).
- Place the pork strips in a high-sided skillet, and add just enough cold water to barely cover the pork.
- Add the salt, then bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to bring the water back down to a simmer (medium low heat), and simmer until the water has evaporated, approximately 90 minutes.
- Reduce the heat more, and keep cooking the pork for about another 30 minutes, turning the meat every 10 minutes or so, until the fat has rendered out, and the pork is browned all over.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
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26 Comments on “Carnitas”
Wow! I thought this sounded too good to be true. Just water and salt? But I thought why not? I’ll give it a shot. I buy 9-10 lbs Boston butt roasts for $12 at most. I cut pork chops from it but there’s always a pound or two around the bone that can’t be cut neatly. So it usually ends up being breaded and turned into nuggets. But I’m tired and that sounded like too much work and I’m tired of the same old thing.
This is the perfect busy week night recipe! It really is as easy as it sounds. I added a can of mild rotel towards the end of the boiling time, but I fought the urge to add any extra seasoning. Best burritos I’ve ever had! Couldn’t stop munching out of the pan as they were cooking. Lol even without the rotel it would’ve been amazing. I just like my veggies. May add bell peppers and onions next time, we’ll see.
I cooked fatty pieces in a 12″ cast iron skillet, but some of the meat became too dry, not juicy as other pieces. Newbie error, I’m sure. I see that your skillet is stainless, probably heavy duty too, is that correct? Do you think the kind of pan I use is vital in order to get juicy carnitas?
I’ll def try again!
Unless the carnitas were burning on the outside, I wouldn’t think the pan would affect that. Is it possible you had the heat too high/aggressive at points?
This is the best,best,best way to go!!!
I like the simplicity of this recipe, but cooking time is way under. 2 hours later and my water was no where near evaporated. I recommend planning for double the cooking time at least.
Hey I let the pork boil until it is partially cooked with saffron, masala, chili’s, garlic and onion, butter, salt.
I put a skillet with plenty oil, and chilis .
Let the pork cool off and slice the chunks into 3 pieces , throw them into the skillet.
Turn them after a minute on high heat. Add teriyaki sweet sauce in with the chili and pork . both sides of the meat look brown then heat a few minutes on medium heat, add to a bowl of rice. Mmm
My first time making carnitas and they came out so tender and juicy with a great crust! I made a pico de gallo with chopped avocado. Served it on corn tortillas. Awesome!
Not good. Need to cook slower/longer
Good recipe, authentic as used by Mexican housewives. But the pork can be cut into larger chunks, 3 or 4 inches and slow simmered until fork tender, 2 to 3 hours.