When I lived in Daly City, we would take a short 10 minute drive to La Tapatia to get the best carnitas. They have these big cazos boiling the yummiest pork- chicharrones, buche, carnitas, cueritos… I mean, need I say more. They sell all the fixings to go with it, too. But moving an hour away, makes it tricky to get my craving satisfied. About three years ago my husband and I purchased a cazo to make our own outside in the yard. But unless your making these for a large crowd, it’s too much of a hassle. This recipe, however, of pork chunks slowly roasted in the oven with its own fat (pork confit to be fancy), is just as delicious. You can skip the step of rendering the fat and just use lard, but believe me there’s no need. Because the shoulder is a fattier cut, there’s plenty that will be released during the cooking process.
Preheat oven to 350. Start by cutting as much fat off the top layer of the shoulder. As you section the shoulder into smaller pieces about 3 inches each, collect as much fat as you can.
Separate the fat pieces into a medium baking dish. On another baking dish place meat on a single layer. Evenly dredge with spices and salt. Place garlic bulbs on top and set aside.
Add 1/4 cup of water to the fat dish and place in oven. After about an hour you should have plenty of rendered fat. Remove from oven. Place fat pieces on top of the seasoned shoulder. Carefully pour rendered fat over the pork, cover with foil and place in over to roast. After an hour, turn meat pieces over. Cover again and roast for another 45 minutes. Remove foil and roast for another 30 minutes. Meat should be fork tender and lightly browned on top. Remove from oven and keep warm until ready to use. These carnitas can be used in tacos, tostadas, tortas, nachos, or alone as a snack with a nice squeeze of lime.
