Pork carnitas

by Ross Dobson

Serves 4

This recipe involves cooking the pork in a seemingly unusual combination of ingredients. Yet, cooking pork in milk is not unusual in many Latin-based cultures. Here, the milk is deliciously flavoured with bay leaf, oregano, cumin and orange. There are two steps to this: you will need to cook the pork first in a slow cooker or low oven for many hours. The ‘pulled’ meat is then wrapped in cooking foil so it can easily be reheated on your firepit. This is also a good recipe to have in your repertoire if you are ever asked to ‘bring a plate’ – it can be easily transported and reheated on someone else’s firepit. Have carnitas, will travel.

You’ll need

  • 1 cup (250 ml) milk
  • ½ cup (125 ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dried chilli flakes
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 onion, roughly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 1.25 kg (2 lb 12 oz) piece of pork scotch fillet
  • 8 large soft burritos, to serve

Method

Combine the milk, juice, sugar, oregano, cumin, chilli, bay, onion and garlic in a bowl. Season well with salt and black pepper. Add the pork. Roll the pork around in the marinade.

Put the pork and milk mixture in a slow cooker. Cover and turn the heat to high. Cook for 3hours. Turn over and cook for a further 3 hours, until the pork easily falls apart when pressed with a fork. (If you don’t have a slow cooker, cook in a heavy casserole dish, covered, in a 140°C (285°C) oven for 5 hours.) Switch oˆ and leave in the cooker to cool for 30 minutes.

Use a potato masher to press down gently on the meat – it should fall apart. Use forks to shred any larger pieces of meat. Transfer to a container and refrigerate overnight.

Lay a large sheet of cooking foil on the work surface. Top with a sheet of baking paper. Put the pork on the baking paper, spreading it out slightly. Top with another sheet of baking paper then cooking foil. Fold in the sides to make a parcel.

Your firepit is ready to cook on after about 20 hours of burning, when the timber is charcoal black, has transformed into red hot coals about the size of golf balls, and the smoke has all but subsided. To test for heat, you should not be able to hold the palm of your hand 5–10 cm (2–4 inches) above the grill for more than 2–3 seconds. Replace the grill over the firepit and give it around 10 minutes to heat up. (See page 9.)

Put the pork parcel on the firepit grill and cook for 15–20 minutes, until heated through. Heat the burritos on the grill until golden. Unwrap the meat at the table. Serve with warm burritos.

Images and text from Firepit Barbecue by Ross Dobson, photography by Alan Benson, Murdoch Books RRP $35.00.’