Watcha cookin'?

[Pegleg]

I too thought "not gonna weigh in on this one" but had the same reaction, "I hope he's planning to crisp that carnitas up." I use a method for carnitas that's basically like oftpistes, but I use a mix of Mexican Coke, orange and lime juice instead of water and put some spices (cinnamon sticks, cloves, can't recall what else) in when it simmers to get everything nice and flavorful. The sugar in the Mexican Coke cooks down and adds a caramel sweetness to the finished product.

I bought a "carnitas" burrito from a stand at a concert last weekend and asked whether they fry the carnitas to crisp it up. The Mexican dude behind the stand gave me this funny look and said "that's how I do it at home, but you're the first person who's ever asked me about it here." He gave me my burrito for free. I think he was ashamed at being called out on his meat shenanigans.

[abraham]

Ha!

[oftpiste]

Interesting approach. I've come to the conclusion that flavors I attempted to add during the cook-down never really added much. Although I never tried anything like your liquid. I'm sure that packs quite a punch of flavor!

I too thought "not gonna weigh in on this one" but had the same reaction, "I hope he's planning to crisp that carnitas up." I use a method for carnitas that's basically like oftpistes, but I use a mix of Mexican Coke, orange and lime juice instead of water and put some spices (cinnamon sticks, cloves, can't recall what else) in when it simmers to get everything nice and flavorful. The sugar in the Mexican Coke cooks down and adds a caramel sweetness to the finished product.

[Cruiser]

Been keeping a jar of pickled red onions, jalapenos, and garlic in the fridge pretty much all the time lately. They're really quick to make and they keep well for 2ish weeks.

Par boil thin sliced onions in well salted water. Drain them and bring homemade red wine vinegar spiced with cumin, guajillo powder, and Mexican oregano to a boil. Add onions, thinly sliced jalapeno rounds with seeds, and smashed garlic cloves as well as just enough water to cover everything before returning to a boil. Once it boils it goes into jars and then refrigerated. Good the next day and better after 5 more.

[abraham]

Have you done the pickled carrots with epazote that are always at the taco place?

[Cruiser]

Nah, the success of these onions has got me thinking I ought to though. Got a recipe ya like?

[abraham]

I don't, but I just started some kimchi this weekend so I'm in that picking state of mind again. And I ate a bunch of those carrots and tacos after climbing on Monday.

I'll​ probably give it a shot tonight or tomorrow. With the quick pickles it's easy to test recipes and make tweaks

[~mikey b]

braised short ribs



with beets and carrots



and quinoa with cashews and coconut

[oftpiste]

I made fucking seafood paella in the smoker tonight and fully intended to post a pic here. Of course I forgot to take the pic and it got pretty much destroyed.

[Skidog]

lol what's your method gringo? [emoji12]

Carnitas are traditionally braised in lard then fried. But I know a few old Mexicans who do it in a crock then pan fry to add the little bit of crisp.

Really not much to it- just take tender slow cooked pork and give it a little crisp

Exactly how I do. Crock. Pull it all..crisp in frying pan prior to taco assembly. I was just letting yet another simply retarded comment slide. Dude clearly has no clue what good carnitas are.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

If you haven't tried the braised in lard method for carnitas you're missing out. Pork butt or shoulder. Basically pork confit, it's not greasy, very moist and tender. Salt, cumin and maybe a little ground dried orange peel for a rub and let come to room temp before putting in the hot oil. I cut the pork into 2-3" chunks. You can use you crock pot for this but I use a enameled cast iron dutch oven on the stove top.

[Supermoon]

I've made this carnitas recipe a handful of times and it's the best thing I've ever eaten. There is a Mexican grocery store near my house that had everything I need.

I once even made this whole spread for a party I was hosting. Took all damn day, but man it was worth it.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/nicolasmedi...A7E#.aqx0vL1Jz

[Dantheman]

I was just letting yet another simply retarded comment slide. Dude clearly has no clue what good carnitas are.

Whatever you say, chief.

[Pegleg]

As always, Kenji's recipe at Serious Eats for carnitas looks awesome, and it does away with the need for a bunch of lard to cook it in. I haven't actually tried it yet (been trying to eat more vegetables and less animals fried in their own fat lately) but I'd bet it's a winner.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/07/t...t-of-lard.html

[Dantheman]

^^^^Too funny, that's almost exactly how I do it. I do away with a cooking vessel entirely by wrapping the meat in a double layer of aluminum foil. The package will leak a bit, so I place it on a foil-covered sheet pan which you can then use later for the broiling step. No dishes!

The no-liquid method is money for any kind of braise. There is more than enough water in the meat itself, and it's delicious meat-flavored water. For something like short ribs where you want to add wine and other flavors I reduce it down to a syrup which gets added to the meat before wrapping.

[Pegleg]

Yeah, I've been finding the same with pressure cooker recipes. You can put chicken legs, a couple of tomatoes, onions, garlic, poblano peppers, and some spices in the pressure cooker with no liquid at all, and by the time it's done (in about 15 minutes), you can pull out the chicken to shred and blend the rest into a very tasty enchilada sauce.

[Rideski]

[Cruiser]

Picked up a Costco rotisserie chicken and shredded the meat for the enchilada filling then used the carcass for stock to make the red chili sauce. Stupid good food...

[Rideski]

[abraham]

You bastards inspired my cooking for closing day. No pictures, I didn't think about it at the right times.

I made carnitas for the first time in two years. 5.5-6lbs pork cooked for 2.5 hours in the oven with an onion, bay leaves, cumin, Mexican oregano, and a 50:50 mix of water and squeezed​ orange juice with a bit of lime. Just enough to cover the meat, brought it up to a simmer then put it in the oven.

I roasted two tomatillos for the last 30 minutes. Then pulled the meat out, added the tomatillos and reduced the juice to a slightly thick sauce, poured that on the meat and tossed it in the fridge.

Then I needed veggies so I did a version of cruiser's onions.
1 red onion, 1 jalapeño sliced thin and mixed them in a blend of salt, crushed black pepper, a crushed clove, some more oregano, and some crushed allspice. Let that sit for a bit then transferred to a container and covered with the juice from an orange, a lime and enough white vinegar to cover everything. Only let it sit for 10 hours before serving

Last was a shredded red cabbage with sauce made by mixing sour cream, lime juice, and the liquid from a can of chipotles.

Serving was simple, just took a scoop of meat and crisped it on the griddle, filled a tortilla and made the toppings available

[oftpiste]

These were fuckin' killer. Seriously.

You bastards inspired my cooking for closing day. No pictures, I didn't think about it at the right times.

I made carnitas for the first time in two years. 5.5-6lbs pork cooked for 2.5 hours in the oven with an onion, bay leaves, cumin, Mexican oregano, and a 50:50 mix of water and squeezed​ orange juice with a bit of lime. Just enough to cover the meat, brought it up to a simmer then put it in the oven.

I roasted two tomatillos for the last 30 minutes. Then pulled the meat out, added the tomatillos and reduced the juice to a slightly thick sauce, poured that on the meat and tossed it in the fridge.

Then I needed veggies so I did a version of cruiser's onions.
1 red onion, 1 jalapeño sliced thin and mixed them in a blend of salt, crushed black pepper, a crushed clove, some more oregano, and some crushed allspice. Let that sit for a bit then transferred to a container and covered with the juice from an orange, a lime and enough white vinegar to cover everything. Only let it sit for 10 hours before serving

Last was a shredded red cabbage with sauce made by mixing sour cream, lime juice, and the liquid from a can of chipotles.

Serving was simple, just took a scoop of meat and crisped it on the griddle, filled a tortilla and made the toppings available

[BigKuba]

How'd it turn out? I followed through with a green version and it was great. Very different from the red version since you don't have the fruitiness inherent to ripe peppers, but excellent in it's own right. I ended up using equal parts poblanos, jalapenos and serranos and it had a solid kick to it.

I kinda knowingly neglected it and let it ferment a bit longer, and finished last weekend. Also needed more than the 5-10 min of simmering to thicken, but that's a matter of personal preference. It's great. Definitely brighter than regulation Sriracha (in color too), tastes close enough to be recognizable and a direct substitute, but different enough to be unique. I think I'm sold

Next time I might augment with habaneros or chipotles (I like it smoky) for a bit more kick, which I find surprising since I obliterated it in a blender so even the seeds got incorporated into it

Might be tempted to try the green variant too

[Cruiser]

Moar cornbread!

[Supermoon]

That looks legit

[~mikey b]

Kale pesto