Carnitas are one of those classic proteins that are easy to make using a reasonably priced cut of meat with very little hands on time required. The pork is tender, juicy and wonderfully flavorful with fresh citrus, herbs, warm spices and beer in the braising liquid.
This is a great recipe to make for a big group of friends and family or for meal prepping the whole week at once and whether you are planning to enjoy it in a warm tortilla, over rice or a big bed of crisp greens, one thing is for sure… you are going to love these beer braised carnitas.
Let’s get started…
Carnitas is traditionally made with pork shoulder or pork butt, both of which are very reasonably priced cuts of meat. Using a boneless portion will be less work, but they are a little more expensive. Using a bone-in piece will take a little longer to cook, but it should cost less than the boneless cut and can result in a more flavorful finished product.
Both bone-in and boneless pork shoulders will work great for carnitas and you can even buy the bone-in version and use a sharp knife to remove the bone yourself!
There are many suggestions when it comes to cook times and optimal temperature for pork shoulders, depending on who you ask, but for this recipe and 4 pound boneless pork shoulder should be tender in about 3 hours. In contrast, if you go with a 6 pound bone-in pork shoulder (which should be roughly the same amount of meat as the 4 pound boneless one has), this will take 4 to 4 1/2 hours to be fully cooked and tender.
Start by drying your pork shoulder with paper towels and season all sides generously with salt and black pepper. Place a large deep pot or dutch oven over medium to medium high heat, add a splash of a neutral oil and sear the pork shoulder all over.
Once the pork shoulder has been seared on all sides, transfer the pot off of the heat and start adding your vegetables and aromatics…
One of my favorite things about this recipe is that once you sear the pork shoulder, you just dump everything into the pot and let it braise for a few hours. No stirring or baby sitting required. Just let you oven do its thing.
Nestle all of the cloves from a large bulb of garlic and 2 large quartered yellow onions along side the seared pork shoulder. Sprinkle a tablespoon of cumin, 2 teaspoons of dried Mexican oregano, a tablespoon of fresh orange zest and a tablespoon of fresh lime zest over the pork, add a large cinnamon stick and 3 bay leaves in there and pour 1/2 cup of fresh orange juice, 1/3 cup of fresh lime juice and 15 ounces of Guinness (or your favorite stout or porter) into the pot.
Just by looking at everything in this pot, I know this situation is going to be delicious. Now, I know that I have already made these carnitas a few times, but how can pork not turn out fabulous when it is braised in all of this goodness?
Now that everything has been added in, cover the pot and place it into a 325 degree oven.
Braise your pork for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until the meat is fork tender and the interior temperature reaches a minimum of 145 degrees.
Shred the pork and discard the cinnamon stick and bay leaves.
There are 2 ways that you can serve carnitas: saucy or crispy.
If you prefer everything to be all smothered in gravy then shred your pork and put it right back in with the braising liquid, but if you like your carnitas crisp…
… then spread some of the shredded pork over a baking sheet and broil it until all of the edges are crisp and caramelized. The more crispy you want it, the more you’ll want to mix it and broil it… mix it and broil it… repeating this until all of the shreds are golden brown.
Most of time, I prefer my tacos to be half protein and half toppings. Lots of cheese, salsa, shredded lettuce and various sauces, but these carnitas really don’t need much to reach taco perfection.
Just a little bit of diced onion, some cilantro and a squeeze of lime and you’ll be in carnitas heaven.
If you are a fan of the many layers of flavor that carnitas are known and loved for having then you will have to make this simple, delicious version for yourself. You are going to love it…
Beer Braised Carnitas
Ingredients
- 4 pounds of boneless pork shoulder
- salt and black pepper
- neutral oil
- 1 large bulb of garlic, cloves removed and peeled
- 2 large yellow onions, peeled and quartered
- 1 tablespoon of ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons of dried oregano
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 bay leaves
- 1/2 cup of fresh orange juice
- 1 tablespoon of fresh orange zest
- 1/3 cup of fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon of fresh lime zest
- 15 ounces of Guinness or a similar stout or porter beer
Instructions
- Thirty minutes prior to cooking, allow the pork to come to room temperature
- Preheat your oven to 325°
- Season your pork shoulder generously with salt and black pepper
- Place a large braiser or Dutch oven over medium to medium high heat and add a few tablespoons of neutral oil
- Sear the seasoned pork shoulder on all sides until deeply golden brown
- Place the quartered onions and garlic cloves around the seared pork shoulder
- Add 1 tablespoon of cumin, 2 teaspoons of dried oregano, 1 cinnamon stick, 3 bay leaves, 1/2 cup of fresh orange juice, 1 tablespoon of fresh orange zest, 1/3 cup of fresh lime juice, 1 tablespoon of fresh lime zest and 15 ounces of Guinness
- Cover the pot and braise in a 325° oven for 3 to 3 1/2 hours
- Once very tender, shred the pork
- If desired, spread the shredded pork over a baking sheet and broil until the pork has crispy edges
- Serve warm with rice, over greens or in tortillas
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