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spicy carnitas recipe

Spicy Carnitas Recipe

Spicy carnitas recipe oven style, irresistibly delicious and insanely easy! Restaurant-quality, easy carnitas recipe!
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours 10 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 15 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 12 people
Calories 498 kcal

Equipment

  • Large Roasting Pan
  • Aluminum Foil
  • Skillet

Ingredients
  

For Baking:

  • 8 lb Pork shoulder/butt **bone in
  • 1 tbsp Salt
  • 2 tsp Black pepper
  • 3 tbsp Dried Oregano
  • 3 tsp Ground cumin
  • 4 tbsp Minced garlic
  • 2 Md White onions **chopped
  • 5 Jalapenos **Sliced
  • 1.5 c Orange juice (or 4 squeezed oranges)
  • 3 c Water

For Crisping:

  • 1/4 c Olive oil

Instructions
 

For Baking:

  • Preheat oven to 325F.
  • Pat the prok dry with a paper towel.
  • Rub all over with salt, pepper, oregano and cumin.
  • Place in roasting pan, fat side up.
  • Spread minced garlic all over the top of the meat and press in with hands.
  • Chop onion and jalapeno and scatter in pan around pork.
  • Pour orange juice and water over pork.
  • Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
  • Bake in preheated oven for 2.5 hours.
  • Remove foil and return to oven for another 1.5 hours or until internal temperature reaches 145F.

For Crisping:

  • Heat skillet with olive oil over medium heat.
  • Remove pork from roasting pan.
  • On a cutting board, trim off unwanted fat and cut into cubes/shred pork off of the bone.
  • Remove onions and jalapenos from remaining liquid. Set aside.
  • Skim/strain fat from the remaining liquid. Set aside strained liquid..
  • Cover the bottom of skillet with prepared pork and turn up to medium high heat. (Only fry what you are serving. If you are serving it all, this may take 4-5 rounds.)
  • Fry until browned (about 3-5 minutes).
  • Flip and add desired amount of onions and jalapenos. Fry for 3 more minutes or until slightly browned.
  • Add some of the juices to the pan. Stir to coat and then serve!

Notes

Notes:
  1. Storing/Making Ahead: Complete all baking instructions. Shred/cut pork into cubes, remove onion and jalapeno, and strain remaining juices. Store in separate air tight containers in fridge for up to 4 days. Complete remaining instructions for crisping when serving.
  2. Freezing: Store separately in air tight containers. Freeze for up to 4 months.
  3. Shredded carnitas method: Trim fat and cut meat off the bone. Using two forks, shred meat.
  4. Cube carnitas method: Trim fat and cut from bone. Cut pork into cubes (about 2"x2").
Serving Suggestions:
1. Tacos (shred carnitas method): diced onion, fresh cilantro, pico de gallo, salsa, sour cream, tomato, avocado, cheese, pickled cabbage/red onion, shredded lettuce.
2. Dinner (cubed carnitas method): Plated with refried/black beans and rice. Serve with a guacamole salad and soft tortilla shells.
Frequently Asked Questions:
  1. What do I do if I don't have much liquid left when I remove the aluminum foil? A. IF this happens, simply add some more water to the pan.
  2. Can I make this recipe with boneless pork? A. Absolutely! You may need to adjust the cooking time though because it will cook quicker without a bone. (At 325F: bone in pork: 25-30 min/lb - boneless: 18-20 min/lb)
Keyword carnitas, pork, spicy carnitas