Carnitas Breakfast Tacos

There is something about a taco filled with slow-braised juicy pork mixed with black beans, fresh cilantro and lime, and a spicy tomatillo sauce that just makes sense to me for breakfast. I love starting my day with a rich breakfast like this that is packed with bright and vibrant flavors, even if it’s not the healthiest thing in the world.

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Carnitas Breakfast Tacos

There is something about a taco filled with slow-braised juicy pork mixed with black beans, fresh cilantro and lime, and a spicy tomatillo sauce that just makes sense to me for breakfast. I love starting my day with a rich breakfast like this that is packed with bright and vibrant flavors, even if it’s not the healthiest thing in the world.

Ingredients

For the Carnitas:

• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 tsp Kosher salt
• 32 oz (2 lbs) pork shoulder
• 5 cups pork stock
• 1 large onion (quartered)
• 4 cloves garlic (minced)
• 2 oranges (juiced)
• Zest of 1 lime
• Juice of 2 limes
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the Spicy Black Beans:

• 1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)
• ¼ can chipotles in adobo (finely chopped)
• ½ tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• Kosher salt & freshly-ground black pepper (to taste)

For the Tomatillo Sauce:

• 8 tomatillos (husks removed and discarded)
• 2 fresh jalapeños (included if you want more spice)
• 1 large onion
• quartered
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro
• Zest of 1 lime
• Juice of 1 lime
• Kosher salt & freshly-squeezed black pepper (to taste)

For the Remaining Taco Components:

• 8-10 small tortillas corn or flour based on your preference
• 3 whole eggs (soft-scrambled in whole butter)
• ½ cup sour cream (for serving)
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro (roughly chopped, as garnish)
• 1 lime ( cut into wedges, for serving)

Instructions 

• Before braising the carnitas, add the vegetable oil to a large saute pan.
• Pat the pork dry with paper towels, and salt the pork on all sides.
• Turn the heat to high, and wait until the oil is almost smoking.
• Sear the pork shoulder on all sides, until it is browned all over.
• Remove the meat from the pan, and deglaze the pan with a bit of the pork stock.
• *To deglaze the pan, simply use a wooden spatula to stir the stock around in the saute pan, removing any browned bits from the bottom of the pan and combining them with the stock.
• Add this liquid to the bottom of a soup pot that is large enough to accommodate the pork and vegetables.
• Add the browned pork shoulder, the remainder of the pork stock, and the onion, garlic, orange juice, lime zest, lime juice, chili powder, salt, and pepper in a large pot or Dutch oven.
• Bring to a simmer, and then reduce the heat to low.
• Cover, and let cook for roughly 3 hours, or until the pork is fork-tender and can easily be pulled apart.
• *Cook the meat at a temperature slightly below a simmer. This slow-cooking process can take up to 4 or 5 hours.
• Once the pork is cooked, allow it cool in the liquid for roughly 45 minutes.
• Once the pork has slightly cooled, remove it from the liquid and place it in a large bowl.
• Use two forks to shred the pork, then set it aside and keep warm.
• For the spicy black beans, combine the rinsed and drained black beans, chipotles in adobo, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and Kosher salt in a medium-sized pot or saute pan.
• Heat over medium heat until warmed through, and remove from the heat.
• Taste, and season with Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper.
• To make the tomatillo sauce, preheat the oven to 525F.
• Combine the tomatillos, jalapeños, onion, and garlic on a baking sheet and broil in the oven until the tomatillos and jalapeños are lightly charred, about ten minutes.
• Remove from the oven, and let cool before blending with the cilantro, lime juice, and Kosher salt in a blender or food processor until smooth.
• Cook your scrambled eggs and set aside.
• To assemble the tacos, heat the tortillas and then layer with the braised carnitas, scrambled eggs, and spicy black beans.
• Drizzle with the tomatillo sauce and add a scoop of sour cream.
• Serve the breakfast tacos with fresh cilantro and lime wedges, and enjoy warm.

Notes

The braised pork can be kept in the fridge for five days. For best results, try to store the large pieces of meat in the broth they braised in while they are cooling down—this will help the finished braised pork product retain more moisture.

With the tomatillo sauce, feel free to use fresh green serrano chiles instead of fresh jalapenos—serrano chiles are generally 4-5X spicier than jalapenos on the Scoville scale.