Sous Vide Carnitas Tacos

Taco truck-style carnitas are easy to make at home when you’re using a precision cooker. Give the pork a generous 8 hours in the water bath, sealed up with fragrant citrus and earthy spices, and it will essentially fall apart when touched with a fork. The broiler will render any remaining fat and give the pork a gloriously caramelized and crisp exterior.

Author

Kate Williams

Kate is a freelance food writer and editor living in Berkeley, CA. Before moving to the Bay Area, Kate spent two years working as a test cook at America’s Test Kitchen, and has contributed to Serious Eats, The Oxford American, KQED and The Hypocrite Reader, among others. She's currently the editor of Berkeleyside NOSH.

Prep Time: 00:30

Recipe Time: 08:00

Temperature : 176F / 80C

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds pork shoulder or country-style pork ribs, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 medium onion, peeled
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 orange
• Small corn tortillas, for serving
• Fresh cilantro leaves, for serving
• Chopped white onion, for serving
• Thinly sliced red radishes, for serving
• Lime wedges, for serving

Directions

1. Set the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 176ºF (80ºC).
2. Combine pork shoulder, onion, lime juice, salt, cumin, oregano, and bay leaf in a large zipper lock or vacuum seal bag. Juice the orange into the bag. Add the spent orange half. Seal the bag using the water immersion technique or a vacuum sealer on the moist setting.
3. Place the bag in the water bath and set the timer for 8 hours. Cover the water bath with plastic wrap to minimize water evaporation.

Finishing Steps

1. When the timer goes off, remove the bag from the water bath. Heat the broiler to high and line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
2. Remove pork from bag and transfer to the foil-lined baking sheet. Season to taste with salt. Strain cooking liquid through a fine-mesh strainer into a small saucepan.
3. Bring cooking liquid to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer until mixture has reduced by one-third, about 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, broil pork, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Heat tortillas over an open flame until charred. Serve pork on tortillas, drizzled with sauce and topped with cilantro, onion, radishes, and lime wedges.