I plan on cooking carnitas tomorrow using this recipe by Kenji. I was thinking of getting some smoke on the meat first, maybe an hour over hickory or oak before finishing the confit. Has anyone here tried this before? Any thoughts on this?
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Not everything need to be smoked. I know, I’m a heretic. That recipe is the bomb. -
I've used that recipe before and it's good. I say go for it with the smoke.Comment
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I smoke the shoulder until I have some nice, thick bark. This tends to take the meat up too about 175-180 F. Then I cook in a dutch with fat. It is killer!Comment
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Yep, that's the recipe I use and that's how I fo it. Roll smoke for about an hour then tightly cover for another 2 hours or so. Don't really need heavy smoke, just subtle. I use apple or pecan. You don't really taste or smell the smoke as such, but I think it makes a bit of difference.Comment
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If you don't want to fiddle around with smoking the meat and then preparing it per Kenji's recipe, here's how I do it --
I prepare the pan of cubed meat with the lard (or oil) pretty much per Kenji's recipe, but I make sure the tops of the meat cubes are exposed above the liquid. Smoke lightly for a couple of hours. I agree with mnavarre that heavy smoke isn't necessary. Notes from my recipe --
"...Leave the pan uncovered to smoke the meat for the first 2 hours or so. Gently turn the meat once or twice while smoking. After that time, cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake in the smoker or oven at 275 until meat is fork tender, about 3 1/2 hours total...."Comment
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