Citrus Carnitas, Camp Version
Pork shoulder braised down in beer and citrus until the fat renders and the edges crisp.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 11 oz
- cal / oz
- 56
- protein
- 45 g
- serves
- 6, scales
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 165 min
- total time
- 180 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Pork shoulder | 4 lb | cut into 2 inch chunks at home |
|---|---|---|
| Chili powder | 1 tbsp | |
| Brown sugar | 2 tbsp | 1 tbsp in the rub, 1 tbsp held back for the finish |
| Garlic powder | 1 tsp | |
| Cumin | 1 tsp | |
| Dried oregano | 1 tsp | |
| Salt | 2 tsp | |
| Black pepper | 1 tsp | |
| Bacon fat or vegetable oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Mexican lager | 1 can | gluten-free if that tag matters to you; check the label |
| Orange juice | 1 cup | shelf-stable carton or reconstituted |
| Lime juice | 1/4 cup | bottled travels fine |
| Garlic cloves | 12 | peeled, left whole |
| Bay leaves | 2 | |
| White onion | 1 | chopped |
| Tortillas, diced onion, lime wedges, avocado | to serve |
Method
- Build a bed of coals, or set the dutch oven over a stove burner on medium-high. Cast iron needs about five minutes to come up to heat.
- Mix the chili powder, 1 tbsp of the brown sugar, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Toss the pork chunks in it until every piece is coated.
- Melt the bacon fat in the pot and sear the pork in batches, two or three minutes a side. Crowding the pot steams the meat instead. Set the seared pieces aside.
- Pour in the beer and scrape the bottom of the pot. Add the orange juice, lime juice, garlic cloves, bay leaves, onion, and the remaining tablespoon of brown sugar.
- Return the pork, lid on, and hold it at a bare simmer for about two and a half hours. On a fire that means a modest coal bed under the pot and a ring of coals on the lid. Check every 40 minutes and add coals as they die.
- When the meat shreds under a fork, pull the lid and let the liquid cook down to a glaze. Shred the pork in the pot and press it against the hot iron for a few minutes to crisp the edges.
- Serve in tortillas with raw onion, lime, and avocado.
This is a long, low braise, which is exactly the kind of cooking a cast iron dutch oven over coals does better than anything at home. The acid from the orange and lime, plus the sugar, breaks down the connective tissue in the shoulder while the fat renders out and becomes the frying medium for the final crisp. Nothing here needs refrigeration once it is in the pot, and there is only one pot.
The prep is the part that belongs at home. Cubing four pounds of pork shoulder on a picnic table is unpleasant and the spice rub takes five containers. Do both in your kitchen, freeze the seasoned meat flat, and the camp version is sear, pour, wait. The one thing worth watching is the last twenty minutes: the liquid has to actually reduce or you get boiled pork instead of carnitas.
The lager is not gluten-free unless you buy a beer that says so. If the tag matters, use the water-and-citrus version in the variations.
Packing
Cube and rub the pork at home, then freeze it flat in a zip bag. It travels as its own ice block and thaws on day one. Premix the spices in a film canister. Juice goes in a bottle, not a carton, unless you want it in your cooler.
Variations
- No beer: a cup of water plus another splash of citrus gets you most of the way.
- Leftovers reheat in a skillet with a little fat and go into quesadillas or eggs the next morning.
https://www.lodgecastiron.com/blogs/recipe/citrus-carnitas