Street Tacos

Are these really street tacos? Nope. They’re tacos, but not made by a street vendor. Maybe street-style tacos is a better name. Either way, they’re really good.

The base of these is an outstanding batch of carnitas, in this case, made from pork butt roast cooked in a sous vide. (Quick note: this cut is from the pig’s shoulder, not hindquarters.) Add some select ingredients and you’ve got a great batch of tacos.

Please note that the carnitas sous-vide cooking time is up to 12 hours, unsupervised.

What you’ll need for the tacos

• Corn tortillas
• Carnitas
• Minced onion
• Cilantro, roughly chopped
• Tomato, chopped
• Whatever else you want on your tacos

What you’ll need for the sous vide carnitas (based on a Serious Eats recipe)

• 2 – 2.5 lbs boneless pork shoulder (pork butt), cut into 2-inch-thick slabs
• 1 medium onion, sliced into eighths
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 stick cinnamon, broken into 3 pieces
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 medium orange, quartered, with peel intact
• Kosher salt

What to do for the carnitas

Add the pork, onion, garlic, cinnamon and bay leaves to a large bowl. Squeeze the orange quarters into the bowl, then add the orange. Sprinkle salt over the ingredients and toss to combine.

Prepare a sous vide bag for the meat and aromatics. Add the entirety of the bowl and vacuum-seal the bag for cooking. Cook the meat at 165 degrees F for 8 – 12 hours in whatever water-bath system you use.

If you’re not going to use the meat right away, cool the pork at room temperature in the bag before refrigerating it for up to 5 days. You could freeze it in the bag, too, for another time.

If finishing the carnitas right away, transfer the contents of the bag to a large bowl and pick out the meat with tongs to an oiled, rimmed sheet pan. Discard the remaining aromatics and liquid. When the meat has cooled enough, shred the meat into smaller chunks with two forks. Spread the meat evenly over the sheet pan.

When it’s time to eat tacos, put the sheet pan about 3” under a hot broiler for a about 5 minutes before flipping the pieces and cooking 5 minutes more. You could also crisp up the carnitas in a hot frypan and a little oil, turning occasionally, until crispy. The carnitas are now ready for the tacos.

What to do for the tacos

Slice up all your toppings and have them ready for taco assembly. Ensure the carnitas are hot and ready to go.

Heat a heavy frypan (cast iron, if you have one) to medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add a corn tortilla to the pan and let it cook for about 30 – 60 seconds on each side, until it begins to lightly char. Repeat, as needed, keeping the hot tortillas warm, wrapped in a towel or put in a tortilla warmer.

Once everything’s ready, assemble your tacos and enjoy!