fishuntr - 4-2-2007 at 07:36 PM
Planning a fiesta. I have watched Carnitas prepared in Baja dozens of times, but never actually paid close attention, except for the finished
product. I have my wooden paddle, my cast iron kettle and a propane burner. I will buy about 25 pounds of pork shoulder from our local Mexican
supermarket "Vallarta."
How do I proceed from there? I know I can count on you guys.
jerry - 4-2-2007 at 09:40 PM
i personally havent done it but i have done turkeys should be simular
you will need some lard depending on your pot how much id just buy it at the storethe lard will need to just about cover all the meat when in the
pot but remember the grease level will raise when adding the meat
a thermomater whould be great you dont want to burn the oil
id try to stay at 300 be care full to add the meat the grease will statter drying each piece with cloth or paper towel will help some
add a little at a time it will controll the heat of the lard then ajust the flame to a controlled temp
allso you dont want the grease to boil over or you will have a hell of a fire only do this on dirt with burnables well out of the way stir it offten
the meat will turn golden brown when it reaches 170 degrees inside its done
mix some horsdradish with some sour cream and injoy
or just hire a mexican to do it and injoy your company
as i said i never done it but this is what id do jerry
vgabndo - 4-2-2007 at 10:37 PM
I've had a couple of "pros" tell me that the secret is all in the TWO temperatures you'll need. The first, cooler, for the long boil, and the second
much hotter right at the end to give those yummy morsels some crispiness. I haven't tried it, and if I was having a lot of guests, (ditto above) I'd
get a local to do it and teach me at the same time.
buen aprovecho
Bedman - 4-3-2007 at 12:55 AM
Jimmy!! So good to see you poasting, let's go Fishin!! We leave for the Bay on Monday.
Here's a couple of recipes for Carnitas. Not my recipes, but they sound pretty good.
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Carnitas (from the Spanish for "little meats") is a type of braised or roasted (often after first being boiled) pork in Mexican cuisine. Sometimes it
is actually prepared by frying. It can also be made from beef using a chuck roast, although using pork seems to be the more common method.
Pork carnitas is traditionally made using the heavily marbled, rich 'boston butt' or 'picnic ham' areas of the hog. Contrary to their misleading
names, these are neither butt nor ham areas, but rather the upper and lower sections of the front shoulder of the hog. The 6 to 16-lb sections are
usually cut down to a workable (6 to 10-lb) size and seasoned heavily before slow braising or slow roasting, generally in the range of 160 to 180 °F
for 8 to 12 hours. At this stage the collagen in the meat has broken down sufficiently to allow it to be pulled apart by hand or fork or chopped with
a cleaver.
Having been dismantled, some of the rendered liquid is added back to the pork. Prior to serving, the pork is placed in fairly shallow pans to maximize
surface area, then roasted at high (375 to 425 °F) heat for a few minutes to produce the famous alternating texture of succulent softness and
caramelized crispness.
Traditional carnitas. Given todays climate for more low-fat, healthier foods, alternative methods like braising and roasting have become popular.
These non-traditional methods tend to produce a less savory result. The traditional way to cook carnitas is in a copper pot which disperses the heat
evenly (you may use any thick bottomed pot to get the same result). You begin by using enough lard to cover all the meat you will cook. Once the lard
has melted, add pork and flavorings (usually salt, oregano, marjoram, thyme, bay leaf, crushed garlic cloves), then add milk. The trick to traditional
carnitas is to boil the meat until tender over a very low heat. Once the meat is tender, the heat is turned up, the milk will evaporate, and the
outside of the pork will begin to get crisp. Once this is done, the carnitas can be cooled and shredded. Another method of cooking carnitas is by
using a citrus juice of some sort in place of milk; usually lime. This is a method observed by many Mexican Chicanos.
Another version:
Yield: 4 servings
3 pounds Boneless pork ribs
2 Strips Lime peel
2 ½ pounds Lard
¼ cup Water
Place the lard and water in a deep heavy pan (a dutch oven or one of your deep cast iron pots would be perfect.) Heat over medium heat until the lard
is melted. Add the lime peel and meat (one cook I knew marinated the meat in half orange juice, half beer before cooking -- made a nice flavor).
Reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer the pork in the lard until cooked through, but not browned, about 1 hour). Increase the heat to medium high,
and cook another 15-20 minutes or so, until the meat is well browned and crispy on the outside. Drain meat, and serve with tortillas, guacamole,
homemade pico de gallo, sprigs of fresh cilantro, lime wedges, sliced onion, whatever other condiments appeal to you. The lard can be cooled,
strained, and poured into a container. It will keep indefinitely under refrigeration, and may be reused 3-4 times. When cooked this way, the lard
seems to render all of the fat out of the pork, leaving crispy bits of meat that taste like the good, crisp exterior of a pork roast. The inside is
tender, juicy, and delicious. In Mexico, they do this in BIG outdoor kettles, and cook most portions of the pig. The result is used for taco fillings,
tortas (Mexican- style Po-Boys), and various other dishes. I've seen versions of the dish that call for cooking the meat very slowly in an oven
(probably developed by someone who was horrified at the amount of lard used in the dish), but IMHO, these variations seem to actually be greasier and
fattier than the old-fashioned method of frying the pork in lard.
Bedman
AmoPescar - 4-3-2007 at 01:16 AM
Hey Fishuntr...
For that large of an amount, it would be MUCH easier to just go to a local Taqueria or Carniceria and buy it by the pound. I'm sure it would be more
expensive, but if you're buying a large amount, I'd bet you could get a pretty good deal on it, and they might even throw in some tortillas and salsa
gratis.
My sister is married to a Mexican and often buys large amounts for their large family gatherings. She sure feels it's the easiest thing to do. Lets
you enjoy the party more! For one large party, she only had to pay $4.00 per head for meat, beans, rice, tortillas, chips and condiments.
For such a large amount, you might consider the roasting/braising method as opposed to the traditional deep fried Carnitas. It would sure be easier to
prepare and much easier to clean up. Think of the hassle of disposing of lots of liquified Lard!!
IMHO...BUY IT...and enjoy the fiesta!!!!
AMO 
Mexitron - 4-3-2007 at 07:07 AM
My way of cooking Carnitas seems to come out great without using all that lard:
In a large pot place pork and cover with water. Add a couple onions, and entire garlic head, a couple of tablespoons of oregano, a tablespoon of
garlic salt and black pepper, and a jalapeno pepper. Open a beer. Turn the flame on low. Cook for at least five hours, making sure each time you
come back for another beer that the liquid is still covering the pork--if not add more. When the meat is falling apart have another beer and take it
out of the pot and spread the pieces on a baking pan, then put it in the oven for about an hour on 220 degs or so(or you can crisp it up faster in a
hotter oven but I like the texture of the slow method). You can also do a quick fry in hot oil to crisp it up. Have another beer and serve with lots
of limes and the usual condiments(and beer!)
This method works very well over a small fire while camping in Baja too but you have to use the oil method to crisp it up.
Mexitron - 4-3-2007 at 04:51 PM
Here's cousin Huddo watching over the Baja camping Carnitas method...
fishuntr - 4-6-2007 at 09:34 PM
Well; it's over. Everybody said it was great. Would I do it again. I should have listened to you guys. What a lot of work. The reason for the
fiesta was my 44th anniversary and my 64th birthday. All my friends and family had a ball; I worked my fanny off. No; I had fun too.
Here is what I did. I bought 25# of pork. It was as Bedman said, in the form of 5 shoulders, bone, skin and meat. I skinned the shoulders, boned
out the meat and cut it into fist sized pieces.
I had access to a large stainless curved pot and a propane burner. I put the skin and some fat in the pot and covered it with smal amount of water;
medium heat. The water warmed the fat and it rendered itself as the water boiled away. I cooked the skin crisp. and removed it. I then added the
chunks of meat to the pot. I had a wooden hardwood paddle.
I cooked the meat over a 3 hour period, stirring frequently. I had the heat medium until it was bubbling merrily, then turned it down. After it had
been cooking for about 2 1/2 hours it was getting tender. I poured in a Coca Cola. (yea I know; I couldn't believe it either). The Coke evidently
helped to brown the meat.
When I removed the meat, it was brown crisp on ythe outside, and real juicy inside. We served it with fresh hot corn tortillas and all the rest. All
this time, I was pounding brews, and snacking on hot Chicharonis. By the time I was finished, I just sat and watched everybody eat.
This was the first time I tried to do this in this way. Like most of you, I have watched it many times. It was fun, and part of the deal is the
show, with everybody watching and snacking. I still think Amo had the best idea.
Bedman - 4-7-2007 at 12:56 AM
Half the fun is the snacking!!
Congratulations on both counts, B-day and Ann-day.
OK, Now can we go Fishin??
Bedman
fishuntr - 4-7-2007 at 03:19 PM
Maybe in May, Bedman. Lots goin on here right now. Thanks
woody with a view - 4-7-2007 at 06:43 PM
now you can give pointers on the perfect carnitas.......congrats!