Carnitas Nachos
“Fill up your iced bucket with beers and invite your friends, it’s time for serious snacking with the carnitas nachos!”
The ingredients:
(serves 4)
Pico de Gallo (300g / 10 ½ oz)
- 2 tomatoes
- 1 jalapeño
- ½ red onion, diced
- juice and zest of 1 lime
- 1 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Carnitas
- 1 tsp cumin, ground
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 lbs (500g) pork shoulder or neck
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 tbsp chipotles in adobo sauce, roughly chopped
- 2 white onions, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- juice and zest of 2 limes
- juice and zest of 1 orange
- 7 fl oz (200ml) beer
- 1 tbsp honey
Garnish
- 5 oz (150g) grated cheddar
- 5 oz Cheesy Nacho Dip (Santa Maria)
- 9 oz (250g) nachos
- 3½ oz (100g) black olives, cut into rings
- 1 avocado, diced
- 1 fresh jalapeño, cut into thin rings
- 5 oz (150g) Pico de Gallo
- 4 fl oz (125ml) sour cream
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves
Gear:
- Large BBQ with cover for indirect grilling
- Cast iron grill grate
- Skillet or oven dish
- 4 cherry or apple wood chunks for smoking (2 x 2 inch pieces)
- Tin foil
How to make:
Duration: prep 1 hour
Cooking: about 40 minutes
Prepare a BBQ with cover for indirect grilling and heat to 130 °C (266 °F).
For the Pico de Gallo quarter the tomatoes, remove the seeds and cut the flesh into small cubes. Remove the stem and seeds from the jalapeño and cut into small cubes. Mix in the other ingredients and season with salt and pepper.
Mix together the cumin, paprika, chili powder, salt, and black pepper. Rub the pork shoulder with sunflower oil on all sides and sprinkle with the spice mixture.
Mix together the other ingredients for the Carnitas in a cast iron skillet or oven dish.
Place your wood chunks among the hot coals and place your spiced pork and skillet with the other ingredients on your grill grate. Smoke for 2 hours.
After 2 hours, add the meat to the sauce in the skillet, cover and wrap with tin foil until air tight. Smoke for 3 more hours until the meat is soft enough to ‘pull’ with a fork.
In a pan, mix the grated cheddar with the Cheesy Nacho Dip and let melt on low heat. Divide your nachos evenly in a large oven dish. Use 2 forks to pull apart the pork and dive the meat over the nachos. Garnish with the olive rings, avocado, jalapeño, Pico de Gallo, sour cream, coriander leaves, and the warm cheddar sauce.
