Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepperto taste
1roasted poblanocut into strips
1 ¼cupchicken broth
½cupbrewed coffeecan be leftover from morning brew
2tablespoonspickled jalapeno slices
1tablespoonpickled jalapeno juice
4clovesgarlicsmashed
1onionquartered
1tablespoontoasted coriander seeds
1 ½teaspoonscumin
2bay leaves
fresh lime juice from one limedivided
Orange Cabbage Slaw:
½cuporange juice fresh squeezed + zest of one orange
¼cuprice vinegar
1tablespoonhoney
1small head of cabbage thinly sliced into shreds
1small red onion thinly sliced
2tablespoonsfresh cilantro chopped
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepperto taste
For Serving:
lime wedges
fresh cilantro
corn or flour tortillas or tortilla chips
Instructions
The Carnitas:
Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 300 degrees.
Preheat a large heavy skillet, over high heat (see notes). Sprinkle a drop or two of water onto the pan to test the heat. The water should sizzle and jump around. Next, add the oil to the pan and allow it to warm, but do not let it burn. When you start to see ripples in the oil, carefully add the meat to the pan. Be careful the hot oil may spatter!
Once the meat is in the pan, do not move it. Let the meat sear for a few minutes. When the meat releases from the pan and is browned, using tongs, flip it over and sear the other side. Then roll it over on each side to brown all the way around. When the meat is browned on all sides, the inside will still be raw. Place it in a large dutch oven and combine all the carnitas ingredients in a large Dutch oven, with the juice of only half of the lime. Cover the Dutch Oven, transfer to the oven and cook until the pork falls apart when prodded with a fork; about 3 to 4 hours.
Remove the pork from the oven and turn on the broiler. Prepare a large jelly roll pan, by lining it with aluminum foil; set aside.
Transfer the pork to a large cutting board to cool, reserving the liquid in the pot. Pour the reserved liquid and vegetable solids into a bowl through a strainer. Discard the vegetable solids. Allow the liquid to settle. Using a spoon, skim off excess fat and discard, if needed.
When pork is cool enough to handle, shred with two forks. Spread the pork out on the foil-lined jelly roll pan and broil for 5 minutes, or until the meat is crispy. Remove from the oven and pour about a ¼ cup of the reserved cooking liquid onto the crispy pork and toss. Place the pan back under the broiler for 5 more minutes or until the meat is crispy. Pour an additional ¼ cup liquid over the crispy pork. Serve immediately with lime wedges, fresh cilantro and corn or flour tortillas. Get some tortilla chips for the best nachos you've ever eaten!
The Orange Cabbage Slaw:
Chop the cabbage, onion, and cilantro and put them in a large mixing bowl.
In a small bowl, whisk together orange juice, zest, vinegar, and honey until combined.
Pour dressing over cabbage, onion, and cilantro, then season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Toss the cabbage, onion, and cilantro in the dressing; coat well.
Allow the slaw to sit at room temperature for at least 20 minutes, tossing now and then, to keep the cabbage coated.
Notes
The pork can be browned using the dutch oven you will be roasting the pork in. I realized this after I had already used a skillet to brown the pork. To get the brown bits off the bottom of the pan I poured the chicken broth into the hot pan to deglaze the pan. I scraped up the brown bits with a spatula and got all those brown bits of flavor into the dutch oven with the pork before roasting.
The Orange Cabbage Slaw can be refrigerated for a couple of days, but after that, the veggies start to wilt too much.
The pork can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 3 months.
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