Cilantro

Chile- and Whole Orange-Braised Pork Shoulder

by:
April 27, 2017
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Photo by Shannon
  • Serves 6-8
Author Notes

Adding whole pureed oranges to the braising liquid gives this braise a bright, springy flavor - especially when counterbalanced by smoky Anaheim chiles and succulent pork shoulder.

I like to serve this pork over hominy or with corn tortillas, but I think it would also be great over scrambled eggs for a breakfast to remember. —Shannon

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2.5 pounds boneless pork shoulder, fat trimmed and cut into 1.5"-2" cubes
  • 3 sweet oranges, peeled and seeded
  • 3 dried Anaheim chiles
  • 1/2 dried chipotle chile
  • 1 cup chile soaking water
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon each ground black pepper, cumin, coriander, and paprika
  • 3 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
  • 1-1.5 cups water
  • 1/4 cup medium-spicy vinegar-based hot sauce
  • half a lime, juiced
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
  • 2 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced cross-wise
Directions
  1. Toast Anaheim and chipotle chiles in a dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant and starting to crisp up (about 4 minutes per side). Transfer to a bowl of just-boiling water. Soak chiles for 30 minutes to one hour, and then remove from water (keep water for later).
  2. Remove stems and seeds from chiles. This is easy to do under running water. Transfer stemmed and seeded chiles to a blender or food processor. Add oranges to blender along with 1 cup chile soaking water. Blend until mixture is smooth. Set aside.
  3. Preheat oven to 300°F.
  4. Heat a large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add oil. When oil is hot but not smoking, add pork in a single layer. You’ll probably have to brown the pork in batches to avoid overcrowding the pot).
  5. Brown pork on all sides, and transfer completed batches to a plate until ready to use. When all pork has been browned (and your entire stove is covered in pork fat splatters), drain off all but one tablespoon of the residual fat and add the onions.
  6. Turn heat down to medium and sauté onions until soft and browning, about 8-10 minutes. Add ½ cup white wine and cook, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pot, unless wine has mostly evaporated.
  7. Add salt, pepper, garlic, spices, and oregano. Stir to coat onions and sauté for an additional 2-3 minutes. Deglaze pan with remaining ½ cup white wine. Add reserved pork, chile-orange mixture and water. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.
  8. When sauce is boiling, transfer pot to oven and cook, covered, until pork is falling apart and sauce is thick. This will probably take a couple hours. Depending on your oven, you made need to add a little water. Check your pork after 1 hour, and then again after 1.5 hours, to make sure things don’t get too hot and heavy in there.
  9. When pork is tender, remove pot from oven and roughly shred pork with two forks. Stir in hot sauce, lime juice and scallions. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

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