Pork Carnitas Recipe

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Pork Carnitas
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Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tbsp cumin
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 tbsp black pepper

Directions:

  1. PART 1: Place shortening in pan and heat over medium-low heat until the shortening liquefies.
  2. Remove from the heat and wait 5 minutes, then add the spices (Chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Mix well with a wooden spoon and let cool until the mixture becomes solid again. **Do not refrigerate, the shortening will become too hard to work with later.**.
  3. Once the mixture is cool and solid, lay out a very large piece of aluminium foil. (enough to wrap around the shoulder at least once). Place the pork shoulder on the foil and rub all the shortening on to the piece of meat. Wrap the foil around the meat tight and then turn over and repeat the wrap with another piece of aluminum foil. Place in baking dish.
  4. Place in refrigerator overnight.
  5. Part 2: Place the baking dish in the oven with the tightly wrapped meat and turn oven on to 250 degrees F.
  6. Cook at this temperature for 10-12 hours (aprox 1.5 hours per lb of meat cooked). Internal temperature should be 200 F when finished.
  7. Remove from oven and let sit on the counter for 30 minutes.
  8. Cut open the foil and remove the pork. There will be a lot of liquid, **DO NOT DISCARD**.
  9. On a cutting board or in the baking dish with all the liquid (foil discarded). Take two forks and shred the meat, it should be very easy because the meat should already be falling apart. Place the meat back into the liquid and mix until all the liquid is absorbed into the meat. This may take a while 30-60 minutes.
  10. Once the meat and liquid are together and the meat is mostly cooled, it can be bagged and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Bag according to meal size.
  11. Part 3: Thaw meat from the freezer or remove from the refrigerator.
  12. Preheat oven to 475-500°F.
  13. Place the pork into a large cast iron skillet and place into the oven for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. It should be dark and crispy on the outsides, and smell outstanding.
  14. Serve on corn or flour tortillas, with shredded lettuce (cabbage is traditional), cheese, tomatoes.
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Nutrition Facts

Per ServingPer 100 g
Amount Per 1 Serving
Calories 5647.87 Kcal (23647 kJ)
Calories from fat 2939.83 Kcal
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 326.65g 503%
Cholesterol 2127.38mg 709%
Sodium 9526.52mg 397%
Potassium 11084.36mg 236%
Total Carbs 7.53g 3%
Sugars 0.65g 3%
Dietary Fiber 3.99g 16%
Protein 636.97g 1274%
Vitamin C 32.1mg 53%
Vitamin A 0.1mg 3%
Iron 35.4mg 197%
Calcium 518.5mg 52%
Amount Per 100 g
Calories 170.62 Kcal (714 kJ)
Calories from fat 88.81 Kcal
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 9.87g 503%
Cholesterol 64.27mg 709%
Sodium 287.8mg 397%
Potassium 334.86mg 236%
Total Carbs 0.23g 3%
Sugars 0.02g 3%
Dietary Fiber 0.12g 16%
Protein 19.24g 1274%
Vitamin C 1mg 53%
Iron 1.1mg 197%
Calcium 15.7mg 52%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Find out how many calories should you eat.

Tastes

  • salty
  • savory
  • bitter
  • sweet
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Recipe Tags

Weightwatchers Points

  • 139.4
    Points
  • 143
    PointsPlus

Good Points

  • saturated fat free,
  • sugar free

Bad Points

  • High in Sodium,
  • High in Total Fat

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