Beef & cheddar brisket sandwich from Firehouse Subs.
I made carnitas yesterday. Feel free to steal the recipe, though you'll want to scale it depending on the audience size (we had a few guests, and the leftovers were packed away):
The Meat
2.5 lb pork butt
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. minced garlic
1 tbsp. annatto
1 tbsp. cayenne
2 tbsp. oregano
1/2 tbsp. onion powder
1 small white onion, thinly sliced
The Tacos
1 dozen corn tortillas
3 cups white onion, finely diced
2 bunches cilantro, washed and chopped roughly
Salsa of your choice (I made fresh, with tomatoes, onions, garlic, green peppers, cilantro and spices)
Right. Now, then, assemble a rub from the dry ingredients listed in the meat section above and liberally coat the meat -- pat it dry with a paper towel and then pat the ingredients all over the damned thing. Place it in a slow cooker / Crock Pot / what have you and cover with the onions. The butt is fatty enough that you don't need to add any sort of braising liquid; the fat will liquefy, and the onions will provide their own moisture, and they'll provide the cooking liquid on its own:
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After several hours (some people say to cook five hours on high, but I prefer 90 minutes on high and another six hours on low), the meat will be frying in its own fat and will also be obscenely tender and practically falling apart:
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Remove the meat from your slow cooker, and then grab a couple of forks (or whatever kitchen utensils you prefer) and shred that big, beautiful slab of meat candy up:
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You'll have to forgive the lack of photos for the following step; I was preoccupied with other dishes that I put my camera aside. Anyway, move the shredded pork to a cookie sheet or pie tin and place it under your broiler until the tips and edges start to crisp up (once you see that crisping and blackening taking place, remove immediately). Finally, transfer that delicious fatty / crispy / awesome meat to your warmed tortillas, garnish with cilantro, white onion, your choice of salsa, and enjoy. I put lime wedges on the plates, because, in my mind, a little squirt of lime juice turns a taco from acceptable to fucking great:
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Booyah.
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