1 / 1
Mexican Pulled Pork
This Mexican pulled pork delivers incredibly tender meat with perfectly crispy edges. The pork simmers slowly in a savory broth flavored with fresh orange, lime juice, cumin, and oregano until it falls apart. After shredding, the meat goes under the broiler to caramelize and crisp up, creating a rich texture contrast. Serve this flavorful pork tucked into warm corn tortillas for an outstanding weekend dinner or taco night.
Ingredients
- 1 (3½- to 4-pound) boneless pork butt roast, fat trimmed to ⅛ inch, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 cups water
- 1 onion, peeled and halved
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper
- 1 orange, halved
- 18 (6-inch) corn tortillas, warmed
- 1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Combine pork, water, onion, lime juice, oregano, cumin, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper in Dutch oven (liquid should just barely cover meat). Juice orange into bowl and remove any seeds (you should have about ⅓ cup juice). Add juice and spent orange halves to pot.
Instructions
- 1Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. In a Dutch oven, combine the pork, water, onion, lime juice, oregano, cumin, bay leaves, salt, pepper, orange juice, and the spent orange halves. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.
- 2Cover the pot and transfer it to the oven. Cook for about two hours, flipping the pork pieces once, until the meat is very soft and easily falls apart when tested with a fork.
- 3Take the Dutch oven out of the oven and preheat your broiler.
- 4Use a slotted spoon to move the pork to a large bowl. Remove and discard the onion, orange halves, and bay leaves from the cooking liquid, leaving the fat in the pot.
- 5Place the pot over high heat, being careful of the hot handles. Simmer the liquid for eight to 12 minutes, stirring frequently, until it becomes thick and syrupy enough that a spatula leaves a wide trail when dragged through it.
- 6Continue reducing until you have about one cup of liquid remaining.
- 7Pull each piece of pork in half using two forks. Stir the reduced cooking liquid into the meat, then season with salt and pepper to your liking.
- 8Arrange the pork in an even layer on a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet, or use a broiler pan. The meat should cover most of the surface.
- 9Set the baking sheet on the lower-middle oven rack. Broil for five to eight minutes until the top of the meat browns nicely and the edges turn slightly crispy.
- 10Flip the meat pieces with a wide metal spatula. Broil for another five to eight minutes to brown the other side and crisp the remaining edges.
- 11Serve the hot pulled pork immediately with warm corn tortillas.