Jerk Carnitas Tacos (with Pineapple-Jalapeno Salsa

• Meat

  • 3 Pork butt - cut into 2'' cubes, Boneless

• Produce

  • 1 Avocado
  • 2 Bay leaves - stalks removed, medium fresh
  • 2 Bay leaves - stalks removed, fresh
  • 1 Cabbage, purple
  • 1/4 cup Cilantro, packed leaves
  • 8 cloves Garlic
  • 2 Jalapeno
  • 1 Lime, wedges
  • 1/2 tsp Oregano, dry
  • 1 1/2 cups Pineapple, fresh
  • 1/4 Red onion - diced (about 1/2 cup
  • 1 Scallions
  • 2 Scotch bonnet chiles
  • 1/2 Bunch Thyme - leaves only, Fresh
  • 1 Yellow onion, small sweet
  • 1 Yellow onion

• Canned Goods

  • 1/2 cup Beef stock, Unsalted

• Condiments

  • 1 1/3 tbsp Honey
  • 1 Hot sauce
  • 3/8 cup Lime juice

• Baking & Spices

  • 1 tsp Allspice, ground
  • 3/4 tsp Chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
  • 1 tbsp Kosher salt, coarse
  • 1/2 tsp Pepper
  • 1/4 tsp Red pepper flakes
  • 2 2/3 tbsp Salt
  • 1 Sea salt

• Oils & Vinegars

  • 6 tbsp Olive oil, Extra Virgin
  • 2 tbsp White wine vinegar

• Nuts & Seeds

  • 1 tsp Cumin

• Bread & Baked Goods

  • 1 Corn tortillas

• Drinks

  • 1 cup Orange juice
  • 1 cup Pineapple juice

• Beer, Wine & Liquor

  • 1 (12 oz lager beer
  • 1 tbsp Jamaican rum, Dark
  • 1 tsp Rum, dark

• Other

  • Splash OJ
  • 5 Scallions – both white and green parts, trimmed and roughly chopped

Found on nospoonnecessary.com

Ingredients

• Jerk Sauce:
• 2 Scotch Bonnet Chiles – stemmed, deseeded & roughly chopped (can substitute habaneros)
• 5 Scallions – both white and green parts, trimmed and roughly chopped
• 1 small Sweet Yellow Onion – roughly chopped
• 5 cloves of Garlic – peeled and smashed
• ½ Bunch of Fresh Thyme – leaves only (about 1 TBS)
• 2 medium fresh Bay Leaves – stalks removed
• 1 tsp Ground Allspice
• ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 TBS Coarse Kosher Salt
• 2 TBS White Wine Vinegar
• 1 TBS Honey
• 1 TBS Dark Jamaican Rum
• 3 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil, or more as needed to thin out sauce
• Carnitas:
• 3 # Boneless Pork Butt – Cut into 2’’ Cubes
• 2 TB Salt
• 3-4 TB Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or as Needed for Browning Pork Cubes)
• 1 (12 oz) Lager Beer
• 1 Cup Orange Juice
• 1 Cup Pineapple Juice
• ½ Cup Beef Stock (unsalted)
• ¼ Cup Lime Juice
• 1 Yellow Onion – Peeled and Halved
• 3 Cloves of Garlic – Peeled and Halved
• 2 fresh Bay Leaves – stalks removed
• 1 tsp Cumin
• ½ tsp Dry Oregano
• 2 tsp Salt
• ½ tsp Pepper
• ¾ tsp Chili Powder
• ¼ tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• Pineapple-Jalapeno Salsa: (yield about 2 cups)
• 1 ½ Cups Fresh Pineapple –coarsely diced
• 1 Jalapeno – stemmed, partially deseeded and finely diced
• ¼ Red Onion – diced (about ½ cup)
• ¼ Cup Cilantro Leaves, packed – roughly chopped
• 1 Scallions – thinly sliced
• 2 TBS Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Honey
• 1 tsp Dark Rum
• Splash OJ
• Sea Salt, to taste
• For Serving:
• Corn Tortillas
• Purple Cabbage – thinly sliced
• Avocado – halved, seed removed and thinly sliced
• Jalapeno - sliced
• Lime Wedges
• Hot Sauce

Directions

• Make the Jerk Sauce: Place chiles, scallions, onions and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Process until all ingredients are minced. Add remaining ingredients and process until smooth. If sauce is too thick add more oil, more tablespoon at a time, until a smooth pourable sauce is achieved.
• Place pork cubes in a large nonreactive baking dish or Ziploc bag. Pour in jerk sauce and roll/stir pork around until thoroughly coated. Refrigerate and allow to marinate for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight, turning pork occasionally.
• Make the Pineapple-Jalapeno Salsa: Combine all the salsa ingredients together in a medium sized mixing bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• To Cook Carnitas: Remove pork from refrigerator and transfer to a colander to drain of jerk sauce/marinade, discarding sauce. Allow pork to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Set a Large Dutch Oven, or large sauce pot, over Medium – Medium High Heat.
• Add ONE Tablespoon of Oil to Pot. Add Pork, in batches and being sure to not over crowd the pot. Brown in oil, about 2 minutes per side, for a total of 6-8 minutes. DO NOT disturb Pork Cubes while they are cooking on each side. After all sides are browned, use tongs to transfer to a plate and set aside.
• Repeat browning process, adding one tablespoon of oil before browning each batch, until all Pork Cubes are browned and removed from pot.
• Deglaze Pan with Beer, Orange Juice, Beef Stock, and Lime Juice; scraping up brown bits from bottom of the pan.
• Add Onion, Garlic, Bay leaves and remaining Carnita ingredients. Add browned pork cubes and any accumulated juices back to pan.
• Bring to simmer. Once simmering, reduce heat to low – medium low to maintain a gentle simmer. Cover and cook Pork 2 Hours, or until are fork tender.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer Carnitas to a baking dish, or sheet pan lined with aluminum foil.
• Strain cooking liquid into a large bowl or container. Set aside.
• Place Oven Rack on Upper-Middle Rack and preheat oven to high broil.
• Add ½ Cup of the strained cooking liquid to the Carnitas and toss to coat.
• Broil Carnitas 4-5 minutes. Remove from oven, flip and again toss to coat with liquid. Continue Broiling an additional 4-5 minutes.
• Serve Carnitas tossed in additional strained sauce or use two forks to shred meat to desired consistency.
• For Taco Assembly: Top each tortilla with a small amount of shredded cabbage, carnita meat, sliced avocados, pineapple salsa, jalapeno rings and a drizzle of reserved strained cooking liquid. Serve and enjoy.