Description
These flavorful pork carnitas street tacos are made with tasty and tender shredded pork, onions and cilantro wrapped in toasted corn tortillas. A finger-licking good meal for Taco Tuesdays, Cinco de Mayo, or literally whenever the craving for Mexican food strikes. Gluten-free and dairy-free too.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 orange, cut into pieces with peel on
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon taco seasoning
- 1 tablespoon oil, for frying
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- Fresh chopped cilantro for serving
- 6 gluten-free corn tortillas
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Season Pork Shoulder: Mix salt, ground cumin, ground paprika, ground coriander, garlic powder, and taco seasoning in a small bowl. Coat each piece of pork shoulder in spices on all sides.
- Sear Pork: Heat up the frying oil in a large skillet and sear the pieces of pork shoulder on all sides for 2 minutes to get a crispy crust, while the meat remains raw inside.
- Transfer to Roasting Pan: Transfer the pork to a roasting pan. Squeeze the juice out of half an orange and pour into the pan. Add the remaining orange pieces to the pan. Pour in a 1/4 cup water and add the bay leaves.
- Roast Until Tender: Cover the pan with foil and roast for 2 hours. If the pork shoulder is still not as soft as you want after 2 hours, you can increase the roasting time by another hour to 3 hours.
- Shred Pork: Using a fork, shred the pork shoulder and add a little sauce to make the meat even juicier.
- Toast Tortillas: Fry the tortilla on both sides in a skillet, brushing it a little with the sauce that remained after roasting the carnitas.
- Assemble the Carnitas Tacos: Place 3-4 tbsp of pulled pork on half of the tortilla. Top with remaining sauce if necessary. Add chopped onion and chopped cilantro. Serve with the remaining sauce, sour cream, lime, and cilantro.
Notes
Pork Shoulder: Traditionally, pork carnitas is made with pork shoulder or pork butt (sometimes the names are used interchangeably) as they have high fat content – these cuts are ideal for being slow roasted as they result in fork-tender meat that can be easily shredded (which is exactly just what we want in carnitas).
Orange: Use a fresh, whole orange. Ideally, since we are leaving the orange peel on, it is best to get organic oranges, or make sure to scrub the peel clean before using.
Bay Leaves: Bay leaves add flavor to the pork as it cooks, so make sure to add it in.
Spices: To season the pork shoulder, I’m using ground cumin, paprika, coriander, garlic powder and taco seasoning for a big boost of flavor.
Oil: You can use any oil for searing the meat (sunflower oil, canola oil, avocado oil, olive oil etc).
Onion: For the topping, I’ve used a diced yellow onion, but white onions or red onions will work just as well.
Tortillas: I’ve used gluten-free tortillas to keep this recipe gluten-free (either yellow corn tortillas or white corn tortillas will work just as well). You can either buy storebought tortillas, or make your own homemade gluten-free corn tortillas. Alternatively, if you are not Celiac or gluten-intolerant, go ahead and use regular flour tortillas instead.
Storing: If not planning on eating straight away, store the pork carnitas and tortillas separately until ready to eat. Store the carnitas in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Reheat in a nonstick skillet before assembling the tacos.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 150 mins
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: Mexican
