How To Make Authentic California Carnitas Without a Vat of Lard

Recipe right at the top! Scroll down for tips.

Authentic California Carnitas recipe:

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Real California carnitas is prepared by cooking pork shoulder (pork butt—same thing) in a cauldron of lard, over an open fire. Most people do not have access to 10 lbs of lard, or a huge pot in which to cook the carnitas over an open fire. This is the best Authentic California Carnitas recipe you can cook in the oven.

• NO, you CANNOT cook authentic carnitas in a crockpot, or in an Instant Pot. No. That is just “ok” pulled pork that has no flavor or crispyness.
• NO, you CANNOT cook authentic carnitas using “pork loin”, “pork tenderloin”, “country pork ribs”, or any pork that has less fat than a pork shoulder. You need the fat of the pork shoulder to pull this recipe off.
• You CAN make authentic carnitas without cutting the pork into 3×3 portions. If you cook carnitas with a whole pork shoulder, it will take more time. Stick a spoon in it after 12 hours, and every hour after that, until it melts—if you can’t “cut” it with a spoon, keep cooking the carnitas until you can.
• You CAN make authentic carnitas if all you have is a pork shoulder, or pork butt, but you don’t have oranges, garlic, bay leaves, coriander, cumin, or even salt; the extra ingredients just add about 10% better flavor.

To make the absolutely BEST, AUTHENTIC, CALIFORNIA CARNITAS RECIPE:

• • Grill the pork shoulder whole (don’t cut it up yet) on a charcoal grill. *The fatty side will flare up; so be a pro griller and do not grill the fatty side if the charcoal grill is above 300 degrees so you don’t burn your face off because you set the pork on fire. Move the pork shoulder to a metal pan with high sides after browning and put it off to the cool side of the charcoal grill, close the lid but leave the vents open. Leave the pork on the grill for at least two hours, or until the grill is cool. This will fake-smoke the pork shoulder and increase the tenderness. You will still need to move the pork to the oven.
    • Don’t use a disposable foil pan. The hot lard will accumulate while the pork is resting on the grill, and a foil pan can buckle when you pick it up, pouring boiling oil all over you. That’s how I got a 3″ x 13″ second degree burn on my leg. After that disaster, I bought two of these stainless steel pans with high sides. They’re easy to transport from grill to oven, and also work great for deep dish pizza and lasagna.
  • Add oranges and seasonings; cover the pork with foil and move it to a 200 degree oven for at least 11 hours, but probably 13 hours. Use the spoon test to know when your carnitas are perfectly done: if you can “cut” your carnitas with a spoon, it’s done.
    • Your stupid oven will turn off after 12 hours if your oven is less than 10 years old. Make sure to restart your oven before it turns off after 12 hours. Freaking bureaucratic babysitters.
  • Just before serving, broil the cooked pork for a few minutes to increase the crispyness.
• To serve authentic California style carnitas:
  • Browned corn or flour tortillas, preferably homemade. (Sear both sides of the tortilla in a dry cast iron skillet over medium-high heat).
  • Lime squeezes
  • Shredded cabbage
  • Finely chopped white onion mixed with cilantro
  • Avocado sauce
• This carnitas recipe also works for pulled pork with barbecue sauce:
  • Add one bottle of barbecue sauce (about 18 oz) per 4 lbs of cooked pork shoulder. You’ll get about half the raw weight of a pork shoulder as cooked meat, so an 8 pound pork shoulder will yield 4 pounds of carnitas.
• If you don’t have time to grill/fake smoke the pork shoulder, just put it in the 200 degree oven, covered with foil, for 13 hours. You will get the same result of moist, tender carnitas with crispy edges; you will not get the smoky flavor of the charcoal grill. BUT, carnitas is not about smoke, it’s about crispy edges and super-moist meat, so the oven is a perfectly fine replacement for a lard-filled giant pot over an open fire.

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