Carnitas from Mexico.

Carnitas is my new go-to at my favorite Mexican restaurant.
In the spirit of "How Hard Could It Be?", I went in search of a recipe to tackle.
Yeahhhhh, so the reason they are so good authentically is because they are cooked - for 90 minutes - in pork lard.
Rick Bayless said to go to your butcher and ask for it. . . .
Yeah - not going to happen.
A couple other reliable sources used a crock pot to get them tender then to the broiler to crisp up.
I went Insta Pot, 'cause why wouldn't I?
And next time, I suppose I could deep fry them at the end or even sauté in oil, but I was out of oil after the popcorn shrimp and Alligator Pear last week. (More on the Alligator Pear later.)
This recipe did just fine for a Sunday afternoon, and they are now on the docket for the Spring Break guests.
Disclaimer: There were shoulder ribs on sale Friday, so I had been brining them since Friday till I decided what to do:
Pork Brine:
1/4 cup Kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 qt. water
Carnitas Rub:
2 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
Pork Whatever - Could be a Boston Butt, Country Style boneless ribs, I used shoulder blade ribs. . . .
1/2 cup broth* (Whatever you have or want. I wished I had some orange juice to add.)
1 jalapeño
Whatever Fajita/Taco/Salad stuff you want. You know what you like. . .

~ I did brine the shoulder ribs overnight. With the rub, I don't think this is necessary.
~ I patted the shoulders dry first.
~ Then mixed the spices above and rubbed generously over every part of the meat.
~ Let sit for 6 hours to overnight.
~ InstaPot magic: Left the ribs WHOLE, Seared on Sautè, Added 1/2 cup of broth* (more on that later), Dropped in jalapeño, then 35 minutes on High.
~ Quick released once finished.
~ Pulled apart meat with a fork it was so tender. Left them in three inch chunks.
~ Then to the oven under the broiler for about five minutes on each side.
* - I had spicy Oxtail broth which had a touch of Korean chili flake - probably what gave these a kick.
Wish I had an avocado, but. . . Alligator Pear. . .