DANNY'S CARNITAS - MULEGE - 'The Best'

DANNY'S CARNITAS - MULEGE

Hey, Today is Saturday!

(Okay, so I'm a day late in posting this on Sunday. Hey, It's Baja...)

Saturday carnitas at Danny's in Mulege has become a tradition with the community and visitors alike. AND TODAY IS THEE DAY!

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Background: For those who are as yet unaware of carnitas, here's what they are made of...and what they look like....usually.



Carnitas literally "little meats", is a type of roasted or braised pork. Pork is traditional, but it can also be made from beef.




The meat is braised or roasted slowly until it is easily shredded or chopped. It is then roasted at higher heat until it is caramelized. It is often served with cilantro, onion, salsa, guacamole, refried beans and tortillas. It can be a dish by itself, or as an ingredient in tamales, tacos, tortas, and burritos.

Pork carnitas is traditionally made using the heavily marbled, rich 'boston butt' or 'picnic ham' cuts of pork. Contrary to their misleading names, these are neither rump or ham areas, but rather the upper and lower sections of the front shoulder of the hog. The sections are usually cut down to a workable size and seasoned heavily before slow braising or slow roasting.


ANTONIO

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...as Antonio is showing us above.



Prior to serving, the pork, along with some of the rendered liquid, is placed in fairly shallow pans to maximize surface area, then roasted at high heat for a few minutes to produce the desired alternating texture of succulent softness and caramelized crispness.


Carnitas preparation varies throughout Mexico, but for my money, Danny's of Mulege wins hands down.
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Original Danny's (Ramon's)


Ramon
Here's what it looked like when an old amigo, Ramon, first opened it. He first started out at El Nido's in Mulege, but that steakhouse (El Nido's) closed after a couple of poor seasons. Around 1987-88 I believe.

A photo of friends taken from Ramon's showing the pre-pavement days of Mulege. This was just after a good rain, which of course turn the streets to mud. Always fun.




The cafe before Hurricane Jimena flooded the town.


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It took on a new look after the flood clean-up.




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LORENA

Today it looks like this. Ramon's son, Antonio along with his friend pictured above, Lorena, operate the business now, and are very successful. The Saturday crowds are becoming more and more a social event, too. Good place to see old friends and meet some new ones.

I like to get there by about 11. Uh...Texas-Holdem at 1 on Saturdays, y'know.



Some great times at Ramon's/Antonio's & Lorena's.






You might ask Antonio for his 'other specialty'...MAPACHE tacos. Ummmm...yummy.

Watch him smile as the Spanish-speaking customers look a little concerned..a fun little thing we've been doing for many years. First with Ramon, now with his son. I drive by slowly when the place is busy and yell.."Hola, Antonio. Tiene mapache hoy?" -- He yells back, " Si, Rogelio..mucho mapache! I chop some now for you." Any Spanish speaking customers get a little green and anxious-looking until they see Antonio grinning down into his chopping block.

It's a great hoot and it has become OUR little tradition these last 20-some years. My oh my, where has the time gone?

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And you owe it to yourself to try the soup. Ranchero style with..what else?..beans.

I should never wear a white shirt to this eatery. They should just rename the cafe..."Limpie mi Barbilla."

RECIPE TIME!!

Now...Here's MY favorite carnitas recipe:...so far, anyway..

This recipe is long and involved, a tour around your kitchen, but the results are well worth the effort! The meat comes out tender/crispy, rich and flavorful. You're gonna love it. Think Super Bowl tailgate party.

Ingredients:

1 boned, tied pork shoulder or butt (4 to 5 lb.) In Mulege get it at Manuel Cuesta's tienda, La Celina just across the street from Danny's carnitas. You may have to order it ahead by a week or so..so get crackin'! If you find a Baja butcher who knows what a Boston Butt is, then you are halfway there already. (Hey, if you want to get Manuel to smile.. ask Manuel for his speciality..a 3-legged pig..and tell him Rogelio sent you.)

2 onions, peeled and quartered
4 stalks celery (including leaves), rinsed and cut into chunks
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 dried bay leaves
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk

Directions:

Rinse pork and put in a 6- to 8-quart pan. Add onions, celery, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and enough water to cover meat--2 1/2 to 3 1/2 quarts.

Bring to a boil over high heat; cover, reduce heat, and simmer until meat is very tender when pierced, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. With slotted spoons, transfer pork to a 9- by 13-inch pan; reserve cooking juices. Discard string, and use 2 forks to pull meat into large chunks. Pour milk over meat.

Bake pork in a 325 oven until drippings are browned, about 1 hour, stirring and scraping pan occasionally.

Meanwhile, pour reserved juices through a strainer into a bowl; discard residue. Skim and discard fat. Return juices to pan. Boil over high heat until reduced to 2 cups, about 45 minutes.

When pork drippings are browned, add 1 cup of the reduced juices; scrape drippings free and stir meat, breaking into smaller pieces. Bake until juices have evaporated and drippings are browned, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Repeat step, using remaining juices, and cook until meat edges are crisp and browned, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt.


At our house on "Taco Night Tuesdays", we eat ground beef, pulled pork, or shreaded chicken. After one Tuesday of all three meats being set out, the chicken and beef went to waste and everyone loved the carnitas....so adios to beef and pollo on Taco Nights.

Like all recipes, you can improvise with what you have...or don't have..in your kitchen.. Add a couple beers in place of all that water. I've often replaced the herbs with some fresh rosemary and other assorted italian herbs. (Put in your own cilantro, but not a smidgeon of that putrid herb in mine!!...I hate cilantro. But I know most of the world loves it, so go for it.)

The last time I left out the celery because I forgot to get it at the store. Sometimes you forget or can't boil down the liquid into a sauce. No time, maybe? Simply reduce it slightly and pour it over as my recipe says. Definitely leave the fat on till the end..it adds so much flavor. I don't really change cooking times much, just bake it a little longer sometimes. I think the real secret to this recipe is the milk.

The flavor is very rich but your can still taste the pork. The milk almost adds a cheese like flavor that seems to last forever. The texture of the meat is plesantly layered. Crispy, juicy, tender yet firm, melt in your mouth. Because of the intense preparation and cooking, the flavor is also layered. It creates a balance of flavors that almost anyone can enjoy, allowing each person to focus on what they want to taste. My personal record when a young man was 15 of the small ones.

If you like the crispy bits on the outside of a roast, for example, this recipe is for you. Basically turns an entire pork roast shoulder cut into those crispy bits we all love.

Sometimes I use "pork shoulder blade roast" and it works very well, too.

Well, all this yakking about eating those delicious carnitas has got my stomach growling. Plus I see it's about that time to open some red..and fire up the barbeque for tonight's comida conflageration.

As for the carnitas....I'll be doing my own cilantro-free ones again soon!

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Now to get ready to the drive into town...Vamos a la ciudad a Mulegé a comer carnitas.
To Danny's for some delicious CARNITAS!



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..and that's the way it went. Say Good Night, Gracie..

[Edited on 12-28-2009 by Pompano]

[Edited on 12-28-2009 by Pompano]

I recall a visit to Danny's in the company of a legendary norsk fisherman and storyteller with "arches".
The food was good, as always !
Thanks very much for sharing your photos.

Looks Positively Yummy

[Edited on 1-1-2010 by BajaNomad]

Hook, I'm sure those chile rellenos are still on the menu, although I have not had them myself for some time.

Not my favorite 'thang.'