Making Tuesday Tasty-Carnitas

I found a wonderful recipe for Carnitas. I love carnitas, the tenderness of the pork and juiciness. I love that the flavors are subtle enough to let the meat not be overpowered. If you haven't had carnitas, you're missing out!

Ingredients

4 pounds fatty pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch pieces
3 cups water
1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
1/2 orange, cut into 2 pieces
1/4 cup pork lard or vegetable oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Mexican, crumbled
2 teaspoons fine salt, or 4 teaspoons kosher salt

preparation

Put all the ingredients in a wide 6-to 7-quart heavy pot (don't worry if the pork is not completely covered) and bring the water to a boil, skimming the surface as necessary. Lower the heat and simmer vigorously, stirring occasionally, until the pork is fork-tender and the liquid has completely evaporated, 1½ to 2 hours. Discard the orange pieces and bay leaves. If the liquid hasn't evaporated after 2 hours, transfer the pork pieces to a bowl and let the liquid continue to bubble away, stirring often, until it has.
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Transfer the pork and fat to an ovenproof dish, if necessary, and brown the pork, uncovered, in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes. There's no need to stir.
Carnitas keeps in the refrigerator for up to three days.


Recipe courtesy of Roberto Santibanez-Truly Mexican Photo courtesy of epicurious.com

Making Tuesday Tasty-Classic Flan

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo, I am posting this recipe I found on Epicurious.com. I LOVE flan, I guess I love custards and puddings because there's few I will turn away. :) This is a sweet, creamy treat to finish off a meal, or have by itself.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar, divided

1/4 cup water

2 cups whole milk

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Stir 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water in heavy small saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat; boil without stirring until syrup is deep amber color, brushing down sides of pan with wet pastry brush and swirling pan occasionally, about 10 minutes. Divide caramel among six 3/4-cup custard cups. Working quickly, tilt cups, coating bottoms and part of sides.
Stir milk and 1/2 cup sugar in medium saucepan over low heat just until sugar dissolves (milk will be lukewarm). Whisk eggs in medium bowl until blended. Slowly whisk in milk mixture. Whisk in vanilla and salt. Strain custard into prepared cups.
Arrange cups in 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan. Pour enough hot water into baking pan to come halfway up sides of cups. Bake flans until just set in center, about 50 minutes. Remove cups from water and let stand 30 minutes. Chill until cold, at least 4 hours and up to 1 day. Cut around sides of each cup to loosen flan; turn out onto plate.

*recipe and photo courtesy of epicurious.com*

Making Tuesday Tasty-Tomatillo Salsa Shredded Beef

2lb Chuck roast or other beef roast that you prefer

2/3 jar of your favorite tomatillo(green salsa). I used Herdez salsa verde(16 oz jar)

Season with garlic powder, onion powder, pinch black pepper

1 tbsp. of canola or olive oil

2 garlic cloves

This is a guesstimate but, wanted to put this down because it was tasty and ridiculously easy! I cut up a 2 lb. chuck roast into a few large chunks. I put a tablespoon of canola oil into the bottom of a large pan(deep enough to hold the roast and juice on stove top). I seasoned it with garlic powder, a pinch of black pepper, and onion powder. I would advise not to add your own salt as mine came out a tad salty adding some of my own in. I seared the meat in the pan on about medium high and turned the heat down to low when finished. I poured salsa over the top and two coarsely chopped garlic cloves in the pan. Slow cooked the roast on low for about 3 1/2 hours. You can do it to your liking. The meat was very soft and tender and had a wonderful bite from the tomatillo's.

Serve with tortilla's, rice, beans, whatever you like! Makes an excellent chimichanga, or taco filling too!

*photo courtesy of mexicanfood about.com*

Making Tuesday Tasty-Cinco De Mayo Celebration

I live in AZ and that means that I get some of the best Mexican food there is! I LOVE me some Mexican food. In honor of Cinco de Mayo and my Birthday coming up, I'm gonna put up a yummy Mexican dish. I love chilaquiles, and found out that they were originally created to use up leftovers. I love the verde sauces and the red sauces, the taste of chiles and tomatillos. This is perfect.

Chicken Chilaquiles

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds fresh tomatillos—husked, rinsed and halved
2 large garlic cloves
1 large jalapeño—halved lengthwise, stemmed and seeded
1/4 cup packed cilantro
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound shredded cooked chicken (3 cups), at room temperature
1 1/2 cups shredded pepper Jack cheese (6 ounces)
1/2 cup farmer cheese (4 ounces)
1 scallion, sliced
One 6-ounce bag tortilla chips (8 cups)
1/4 cup sour cream

Directions
1.Preheat the oven to 450°. In a blender or food processor, puree the tomatillos, garlic, jalapeño and cilantro until smooth. In a large saucepan, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the cumin and coriander and cook over high heat until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the tomatillo puree, bring to a boil and cook until the sauce loses its bright green color, 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

2.In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with 3/4 cup of the pepper Jack, the farmer cheese, scallion and half of the tomatillo sauce; season with salt and pepper. In another bowl, toss the tortilla chips with the remaining sauce.

3.Spread half of the chips in an 8-by-11-inch baking dish; top with the chicken and cover with the remaining tortilla chips. Don't pack the chips down. Dollop the sour cream over the chips and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 cup of pepper Jack. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is browned. Serve at once

Recipe courtesy of Food & Wine cookbook