Carnitas! ...a la Eggcelsior

KiterTodd · October 2014

Decided to squeeze in this carnitas style boston butt cook today because it's all new to me and I had the butt just getting old in the freezer anyway. Had to cook it, right? Also I've only done low and slow butts so wanted to try something new.

It's going to be a little different because I didn't have all the same spices or pots, but we'll see how it goes (it's cooking now).

First up, I threw in garlic cloves, latinish spices, and a little fresh rosemary because I love that stuff. Dried spices included paprika, adobo, onion powder, oregano, dried cilantro, sea salt, black pepper, celery seed, fresh ground nutmeg, crushed red pepper and probably a few other things that fell out of the spice cabinet. I added some honey and olive oil for moisture. And I reconstituted the dried herbs so there was some water from that.

I let the butt thaw over night and it had an internal temp of 52 this morning when I threw it on the egg. So, not quite room temp but definitely thawed.

Built up a FOGO fire and loaded it up with some Hickory and Jack Daniels whiskey barrell wood chunks. I like smokiness so figured I'd give it what I could for the 90 minutes it is exposed. I'm planning on following Eggcelsior's method and cooking at 350 for 90 minutes and then putting it in a pot with pepper and onions slices for a couple hours. I don't have a Mojo (as he used) but I will add in some beer and juice.

7 pounder...

Wish me luck!

fljoemon · October 2014

Good Luck! .. looking forward to the finished product!

KiterTodd · October 2014

I do have one question, though!

I don't have a roomy oval pot like Eggcelsior. So my choices are a tight squeeze in a round pot or plenty of room in a taller SS pot. My trade offs...

I think the butt will shrink a bit and the fit won't be real tight in the round pot, but it will definitely be pressed against the sides in some spots. However, the pot will fit nicely on my egg with no changes.

The SS pot has more room (and a thick bottom). I'd have to put it right on the plate setter due to the height. I'd probably throw a couple rocks under it so there is an air gap and it isn't sitting on the grease drippings from the first half of the cook.

What pot would you use?

In the pot on the left there is about an inch of space under the butt that you can't see in the picture.

Eggcelsior · October 2014

You'll be fine in the smaller pot. If the pork is displacing the liquid to the point of overflowing, just scoop some out. I only used about 2 cups of liquid, so a can of beer and some water, OJ, or broth would work well. You can even make Naranja agria with 2 parts orange juice and 1 part lime in a pinch. Rick Bayless has a more involved recipe with Grapefriut, limes, and orange zest.

KiterTodd · October 2014

Damn this smells good! Time for the pot and the mojo...

Okay the MOJO! Found lot of good recipes for this and with tips here and what I had on hand I used the following-
1.5 cups OJ
Splash of passion fruit juice
the juice of one lime
lots of crushed garlic (at least half a head)
oregeno, salt & pepper.
And more fresh grund nutmeg because I like the mild island taste it can bring.

Mixed that up in the pot and added sliced red pepper and red onion (didn’t have yellow or would have used it instead).
Also a yellow tomato from my neighbors garden because I had it and it seemed to go with the theme (it is kind of citrusy in flavor)

This smells great! A charcoaled rub piece that I tried, already tastes different than anything I've done before with a shoulder. I like the way things are looking. I was surprised how quickly the higher temp cook seemed to have firmed things up and the meat is already pulling back from the bone.

Into the pot! Tight fit, but not so wedged that there isn't plenty of space under and on the sides. Thanks for the tips, EggC!

Internal temp is at 138, grill is still at 350ish.

I plan on cooking it covered for two hours or until the internal temp hits 200. I'll let it rest just enough to pull it and then sadly...I have to run out and won't even get to enjoy it as a full meal until much later. Hopefully the family tears into it...

GATraveller · October 2014

Waiting patiently....... :-w

fljoemon · October 2014

Looks amazing .. I'm coming to help you consume it with my special bottle of Tequila that I picked up in Cancun :-)

KiterTodd · October 2014

)
1 hour in the pot, internal temp is up to 170.

Backyard smells great so something must be bubbling around in that pot of mojo goodness!

yzzi · October 2014

Oi Linda
Bella que fa?
Carnitas, carnitas que tal?
But belle
Je ne comprends pas fran§ais
So you'll have to speak to me
Some other way

(every time I read carnitas I get this in my head, and I gotta try this!)

KiterTodd · October 2014

As I type this I am eating a BOWL of pulled pork in MOJO sauce and it is awesome!!!

Gotta run, so I'll be quick but get back on this thread later.

The meat hit 200 like clockwork after 2 hours. I took the pot off the heat at 203, probed it, everything looked good. Let it sit for 30 minutes before pulling. When I took the meat out to pull I also used a gravy separator to get most of the fat out of the mojo and then poured the goodness back in the pot.

Most of the meat pulled as easy as a traditional slow cook would. The meat in the center, which was still cooked to temp, was a little tougher but I still broke it all apart by hand. I was surprised what a nice smoke ring I got after only 90 minutes. The smoke flavor on the pork is not too strong, just right.

The pork itself is pretty good, particularly the stuff near the outside or fat...but once you mix it back in with the mojo and I adjusted salt and pepper...it is off the charts how good this is. There are so many different ways I can think to eat this, but a fork seemed like the best at the moment.

Some pics...

End of cook. (see how much the liquid level came up?)

Nice smoke ring;

A pot of pulled meat...

Mixed up with Mojo! This picture doesn't do it justice...it's pretty damn good!!

So, a little less tender than a low and slow cook (just a little) but it is compensated by the flavor and juiciness of the mojo you mix it up with. Da-amn! Thanks for the suggestion EggC!

KiterTodd · October 2014

This was killer.
Had some in a bowl right after I ate it, and brought some over to a friend's house for dinner.
We had it on top of warmed corn tortillas and it was so tender and delicious.

3 people have asked me for this recipe already. That's a good sign....

Smokinpig · October 2014

You think the center was still frozen at all when you started hence the difference? How many pounds was the but, I have a similar size Dutch oven and I am intrigued. Looks really good.

texaswig · October 2014

Oh s***! That rub looks amazing.

KiterTodd · October 2014

Smokinpig said:

You think the center was still frozen at all when you started hence the difference? How many pounds was the but, I have a similar size Dutch oven and I am intrigued. Looks really good.

I used a 7 lbs butt. I think that is the max that would have fit in this pot. 5-6 would have been perfect.

It was well thawed. I probed lots of places before I took it off and everything said 199 to 203. While it is possible that I didn't probe in the dead center (my temp probe is short) and that needed to cook more, the meat seemed a little drier and tougher and I think it was the faster cooking. I could be wrong. I know I have seen this in the past but don't recall if it was from not cooking long enough or cooking too fast.

BUT... It was only a minor difference. I was still able to pull it all by hand and mixing it up with the sauce at the end covered up any differences in meat. Every bite I had of the finished product was tender and juicy.

I'd make it Smokinpig! Seems to be a reliable 3.5 hour cook time. So including the rest, you can be eating tender juicy BGE pork 4 hours after you put it on the grill. :-bd

pgprescott · October 2014

When I do mine, I cut the butt into 4-5" chunks and cover the pot for most of the cook and uncover to reduce and to build a bark. FWIW.

KiterTodd · October 2014

Okay...these are my last pictures on this thread. Sorry for so many. When I make something for the first time I like to share. Even if it is old news for many of you, I hope someone takes something from it as I did EggC's initial post. It's nice to make something this delicious that requires minimal effort (and I suspect, is hard to screw up

)

So, as EggC said, it is even better the next day. Last night's pot picture didn't really show the color well so here is a smaller portion I heated up this morning...

With some eggs for breakfast, served up on tortillas with green chili sauce and hot sauce...

The flavors really do pop the next day. It is also new for me because I like things spicy so I tend to overspice things which, frankly, scares off the rest of the family. On this cook I completely keep the heat out of it and it is awesome. And easily spiced up on your plate.

If I didn't say it enough, thanks again Eggcelsior. :-bd

Smokinpig · October 2014

That seals it, this is happening in my future. Nicely done again and eggcelsior.

nolaegghead · October 2014

@eggcelsior I think we need to coin this the 'Beaker Method".

blind99 · October 2014

Yep that looks delicious. Will have to make this. Nice work!

Eggcelsior · October 2014

Take the meat and fry it a bit in a skillet to crisp the edges. Then add it to a tortilla or make a sandwich. I just did it with naan, swiss cheese, mustard, chopped pickles, and homemade hot sauce.

This is fantastic!

KiterTodd · October 2014

Eggcelsior...the egghead that keeps on giving!

The wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our cuban sandwiches this afternoon! F-N YUM!!!

DocWonmug · October 2014

Looks outstanding.

fusionhq · September 2018

I’ve made this recipe a few times and love it. Catering a party with it again this weekend and I can’t remeber the qty’s of the rub. Does anyone have it written down, or is it a ‘to taste’ kinda thing..? I feel like the first few times I made it, it was great and the next few tomes it was a bit salty. I remember using adobo seasoning in it also.

GrillSgt · September 2018

I did something similar a few weeks ago. I pulled at 175 and chunked it up and cooked down in similar and then shredded. The next day I finished in hot CI for a little char. Awesome.

Carnitas! ...a la Eggcelsior

Comments

Categories