Bottom Line Tom makes the meat, I make the salsa & slaw. This is a stand out that we make often.
If you've taken the time to read the About Us part of this website, you will notice two things. First, one of my goals in writing this thing was to have a place to catalog some of our favorite recipes. Tonight's dinner is one of our top 5 dinners, and one we both know how to make without recipes. It exactly fits the bill for: Write it down, and be able to share or look back at it. Second, that page is home to one of the only photos on the website. Since exactly two people (Thanks Maya & Lindsey!) outside of our apartment have read this, and they both said some variety of "put more photos on that", I earnestly set out to do just that. You have to give the people what they want. Unfortunately for my avid readers, I only succeeded in writing down a favorite recipe. Shrug.
We're making carnitas tonight. The recipe is really easy, and the perfect combination crispy, crunchy, salty, and sweet. Tom's brother Matt (maybe he'll read this if I tell him he's featured?) taught him the recipe for the meat, and it was one of the first things Tom made for me when we started dating. I improved it dramatically (like I do most things in Tom's life) with a spicy-sweet fruit salsa and a crunchy smokey slaw. Roll all three up into a tortilla, and it's the first taco I've met that doesn't NEED cheese.
A few things I should note.
If you have a stand mixer, and don't feel like cubing up the pork when it's done, throw it in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and turn it on and off a few times. The meat will shred. This is what Tom calls a "Galaxy. Brain. Move."
Tom says that the salsa SCREAMS for onions. Chop up a red one and throw it into the salsa.
We LOVE Penzy's Spices. For Christmas, my mom bought us tons of spices from them, so almost all the dried spices I use are Penzy's. In these recipes they make a big difference. If you can get them, get them, especially if you have to buy a spice anyway. I use following in this dinner: Smoked Paprika, Ancho Chili Powder, Roasted Garlic, Onion Powder
Since these recipes are mostly one's from our head, measurements aren't exact. This is where I say, trust your taste buds. Start with less, stir, add more. Most of the cooking I do is like this. Season, taste, adjust. It's a tip that I learned from Salt Fat Acid Heat, and one that has improved the food that makes it onto our plate dramatically.
On that note, trust your eyes and other senses too. Pork isn't tender, give it another 20 in the instant pot. Pork shreds don't look crispy on the edges? Keep it in the oven. How many carrots should I add to the slaw?!?! I don't know, what looks nice? It's probably right.
So, without further ado, I'm going to eat another taco. And, leave you with the only photo we took tonight, Tom's hand, making a gin and tonic.
Matt's Carnitas with Elle's Salsa & Slaw Editors Note: Matt did indeed read Elle's post, and wanted her readership to know that he is "most certainly white, and this recipe is inauthentic".