Campfire Carnitas: Grilling a Flavorful Mexican Fiesta Feast Outdoors

Prepare for a vibrant culinary adventure! Join us as we transform a simple campfire into a sizzling outdoor kitchen, grilling an entire Mexican fiesta from start to finish. Our menu boasts zesty Gazpacho with crispy Tostones, incredibly tender Carnitas Caseras (Mexican Pulled Pork) Tacos served on freshly made, fire-grilled tortillas, a refreshing nopales salad, classic refried beans, and for a sweet finale, grilled tropical fruit skewers with a luscious coconut glaze. The star of the show, our pork carnitas, achieves a perfect balance of meltingly tender, juicy meat with irresistible crispy, charred edges. Every single dish is infused with that unmistakable smoky goodness from the open flame!

Our recent Campfire Cooking series theme, “Mexican Fiesta,” proved to be an absolute triumph! My cooking partner, Sabina, and I embraced the party spirit all day long as we diligently sliced, diced, grilled, tossed, and smoked our way through an ambitious yet incredibly rewarding menu. Cooking such a vibrant meal outdoors over the crackling campfire, or even a barbecue grill, adds an unparalleled dimension of flavor and experience. We meticulously planned each course and every dish to ensure it carried a distinct smoky grill flavor. A subtle yet unifying theme emerged throughout our culinary journey: oranges. A bright squeeze of orange juice or a fragrant grating of orange zest found its way into almost every creation, imparting a delightful citrusy brightness and a fruity zing that elevated the entire meal.

Crafting a Mexican Fiesta Over the Campfire: Our Full Menu

Our carefully curated menu brought together traditional Mexican flavors with the rustic charm of campfire cooking. Here’s a glimpse into the incredible feast we prepared:

Apéritif
Refreshing Jamaica Cocktail

Appetizer
Smoky Guacamole & Spicy Fruit Salsa with Crispy Plantain Chips and Blue Corn Tortilla Chips

Soup Course
Chilled Mexican Gazpacho with Flaked Grilled White Fish
Golden Tostones

Entrée
Succulent Carnitas Caseras Tacos with Homemade Fire-Grilled Tortillas
Creamy Refried Black Beans, Vibrant Nopales Salad

Dessert
Irresistible Grilled Tropical Fruit Skewers with Coconut Glaze & Vanilla Ice Cream
Warm Mexican Coffees

Apéritif: Kicking Off the Fiesta with a Jamaica Cocktail

To set the festive mood, we began our fiesta with vibrant Jamaica (pronounced huh-MY-kuh) cocktails. This popular Mexican drink is traditionally made from dried, deep-red hibiscus blossoms, creating a tea that’s wonderfully tart, subtly fruity, and incredibly thirst-quenching. It’s the perfect refreshing start to any gathering. To prepare the base tea, bring 4 cups of water and 1 cup of dried jamaica blossoms to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and allow the tea to cool completely, letting the hibiscus steep to release its full flavor and color. Once cooled, strain the liquid, sweeten it to your preference, and dilute with water (typically 1 part tea to 2-3 parts water) for serving. For our special Jamaica cocktail, we added a generous shot of tequila and a squeeze of fresh orange juice. This bright, zippy concoction instantly awakened our taste buds and perfectly primed them for the culinary delights to come!

Appetizer Extravaganza: Smoky Guacamole, Zesty Fruit Salsa, and Crispy Chips

No Mexican fiesta is complete without exceptional appetizers, and ours were truly outstanding. We prepared a creamy, rich guacamole using the classic ingredients: perfectly mashed avocados, finely chopped white onion, diced ripe tomatoes, a hint of fresh cilantro, minced garlic, and the crucial tangy kick of lime juice with a touch of salt. What made our guacamole uniquely special for this campfire feast was the subtle, tantalizing hint of smoke infused by grilling the avocados, onions, and even a jalapeño beforehand. This simple step elevated the dip significantly. To further jazz it up and align with our orange theme, we incorporated a generous squeeze of fresh orange juice and a good grating of orange zest, adding a wonderfully fruity and delicious dimension. We served this smoky, citrus-kissed guacamole alongside a spicy fruit salsa – a peach salsa, for instance, would be an excellent choice for its sweet and fiery contrast. To scoop up these fabulous dips, we offered an assortment of crunchy plantain chips and vibrant blue corn tortilla chips, providing a delightful variety of textures and flavors to begin our meal.

Soup Course: Refreshing Mexican Gazpacho with Flaked Grilled Whitefish and Tostones

Our Mexican gazpacho was a standout dish – so incredibly delicious, we were tempted to lick our bowls clean! Initially, we followed a recipe from a cookbook, but despite a promising list of ingredients, it turned out surprisingly bland. Undeterred, we embarked on a mission to “doctor it up” with our signature touches, transforming it into something truly spectacular. We grilled key components like the onions and even some bread, infusing them with an invaluable smoky flavor before blending. Then, we generously added more flavor-enhancing ingredients: a good splash of vinegar, extra lime juice for brightness, additional salt to balance, and a cheeky shot of tequila for depth and warmth. By the time we finished our adjustments, this gazpacho was an astonishingly flavorful chilled soup – bright, complex, and incredibly refreshing. Flaked pieces of expertly grilled white fish, specifically haddock, garnished the top, offering a delectable contrast in both flavor and texture to the smooth, cold soup.

To provide that essential satisfying crunch, we served the gazpacho with crispy tostones. While not originally from Mexico, these delightful twice-fried plantain slices are a beloved staple throughout the Caribbean, including certain coastal regions of Mexico. We started by frying thick slices of plantain in a skillet indoors until tender, then flattened them. We then brought them outside to the campfire for their crucial second fry, crisping them up to golden perfection in sizzling oil over the open flames. Served piping hot directly from the grill, these crunchy tostones offered a sensational textural counterpoint to the cool, zesty gazpacho. This fantastic first-course combination elicited numerous “wows” for its mouthwatering flavor, vibrant zest, and exciting variety of textures. A cold Mexican beer, sipped alongside, perfectly complemented this course, making it an amazing kick-off to the main dishes yet to come.

Entrée: The Star of the Show – Carnitas Caseras Tacos with Homemade Tortillas and Authentic Sides

The centerpiece of our Mexican fiesta was undoubtedly the Carnitas Caseras, which translates to “Home-Cooked Carnitas.” This Mexican rendition of pulled pork is revered for its meltingly tender, incredibly juicy texture. It involves slowly braising pork shoulder with a medley of aromatic flavorings, then shredding it into succulent, large chunks. These exquisite pieces of pork are then destined to become the star filling for tacos, tostadas, burritos, and more. We slightly adapted a recipe from Diana Kennedy’s seminal work, ‘The Art of Mexican Cooking’, and the results were simply sensational. Our process began by browning the pork shoulder chunks in a robust cast-iron Dutch oven directly over the campfire’s intense heat. Once beautifully seared, we added milk, a generous splash of orange juice, and a blend of seasonings. The pot was then covered, and the meat was allowed to braise slowly over the gentler heat of the fire for approximately an hour. This seemingly simple combination of ingredients transformed into a rich, complex braising liquid that deeply flavored the pork shoulder as it simmered to an unparalleled luscious tenderness.

The final, magical step for the carnitas involved removing the tender meat chunks from the rich braising liquid and then crisping them up. We transferred them to a hot skillet over the fire, allowing the edges to develop a deep, crackly char and a wonderfully crispy texture. This process is key to achieving the signature carnitas experience: a harmonious blend of buttery, tender shredded meat and irresistible crunchy, caramelized bits. These lip-smacking pieces were then carefully shredded, creating the perfect filling for our tacos – a true testament to the art of campfire cooking.

And there it was – the exquisitely tender, richly flavored carnitas meat, perfectly shredded into mouthwatering morsels, ready to be generously piled onto our freshly made tacos. The preparation of the tortillas themselves was another highlight. We prepared a simple dough using masa harina and warm water, then used a traditional tortilla press outdoors to flatten small balls of dough into perfect circles. These were then cooked on a griddle directly over the campfire’s flames, resulting in warm, soft, and incredibly fresh tortillas, far superior to any store-bought variety. These warm canvases were then eager to be filled with the wonderful, crispy-edged carnitas.

For the essential adornments in our tacos, we offered a vibrant array of toppings. This included more of our smoky, citrus-infused guacamole, a fresh and zesty pico de gallo salsa bursting with garden-fresh flavors, a bright green tomatillo salsa for an extra tangy kick, a delightful tangle of tangy pickled red onions, and a dollop of cool, creamy sour cream (or Mexican crema for a more authentic touch). Each guest could customize their perfect taco, creating a personalized explosion of taste and texture.

Complementing our delicious tacos were two essential side dishes: creamy refried black beans and a refreshing nopales (cactus) salad. We had prepared a batch of perfectly cooked and seasoned black beans (conveniently in the Instant Pot) indoors. These were then mashed and lovingly reheated over the campfire, developing a rich, comforting texture and serving as a hearty accompaniment to our tacos. For the unique nopales salad, we sourced fresh cactus paddles from a local Latin import store. With the aid of gloves and a sharp paring knife, we carefully trimmed off all the spines, then cut the paddles into finger-sized strips. These strips were then grilled until they achieved a beautiful char and tender-crisp texture. Finally, we diced the grilled nopales and tossed them with some of our fresh pico de gallo, a bright squeeze of lime juice, and a delicate drizzle of oil. The result was a fresh, vibrant side salad with tantalizingly smoky overtones, offering an unexpected and delightful counterpoint to the rich carnitas.

Dessert: Sweet Ending with Grilled Tropical Fruit Skewers and Coconut Glaze

To provide a perfectly sweet and satisfying conclusion to our incredible Mexican meal, we prepared exquisite grilled tropical fruit skewers. Chunks of ripe mango, succulent pineapple, and our ever-present theme-fruit, orange, were threaded onto bamboo skewers. These vibrant skewers were then brushed generously with a luscious coconut glaze as they grilled over the embers, allowing the fruits to caramelize slightly and absorb the sweet, tropical flavors. We crafted this delightful glaze by gently boiling together ½ cup of rich coconut sugar, ½ cup of refreshing coconut water, thin strips of zest from one orange, and ¼ cup of shredded coconut for 2 to 3 minutes, then letting it cool to a syrupy consistency. To add an extra layer of texture and flavor, we toasted unsweetened coconut shreds in a separate skillet directly over the fire until golden and fragrant, ready to be sprinkled generously onto the warm, grilled fruit. Each skewer was served alongside a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream, creating a harmonious blend of warm and cold, sweet and tangy, soft and crunchy.

As the sun gracefully dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows and painting the sky with fiery hues, we settled back in the warm, comforting glow of the campfire. We sipped on our steaming hot Mexican coffees, thoughtfully prepared with a hint of cinnamon and, for those inclined, a warming shot of tequila to keep us cozy from the inside out. It was a truly idyllic ending to a spectacular day of cooking and feasting.

This entire experience was a wonderful little taste of the vibrant tropics, right here in the sunny north of Canada. What an unforgettable celebration of flavors, friendship, and outdoor culinary magic. Fiesta Olé!!!!!

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Guten Appetit!

Recipe adapted from Diana Kennedy’s renowned book, ‘The Art of Mexican Cooking’

Carnitas Caseras (Home-Cooked Mexican Pulled Pork) Tacos

Margaret Bose Johnson

It’s fiesta time! Dive into the authentic flavors of Mexico by cooking Carnitas Caseras – our signature home-cooked Mexican Pulled Pork – perfect for filling delicious tacos. This versatile recipe can be prepared over a roaring campfire, on a trusty barbecue grill, or even conveniently on your stovetop. The resulting carnitas are melt-in-your-mouth tender and incredibly juicy, boasting those irresistible crispy, charred bits and flavorful edges that make them truly exceptional. So good, you’ll want to make them again and again!

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 8

Ingredients

 

for the carnitas:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons lard or oil
• ▢ 3 pounds (1.4kg) boneless, skinless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch cubes
• ▢ ½ medium white onion, coarsely chopped (~1 cup)
• ▢ 4-5 fresh marjoram sprigs (or ½ teaspoon dried marjoram or oregano)
• ▢ 4-5 fresh thyme sprigs (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
• ▢ 3 bay leaves
• ▢ 1 medium orange, cut into 8 pieces (preferably organic)
• ▢ 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
• ▢ 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

for the homemade tortillas:

• ▢ 2 cups (250gms) masa harina (instant corn masa flour, e.g., Maseca brand)
• ▢ 1½ cups (360ml) warm water
• ▢ 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• ▢ a pinch of salt

Instructions

 

for the carnitas:

• Begin by cutting the boneless, skinless pork shoulder into manageable 2-inch (5cm) cubes. This size allows for even browning and tender braising.
• Heat the lard or vegetable oil in a large, heavy skillet or a Dutch oven (ideal for campfire cooking) over medium-high heat until shimmering.
• Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pan, fry the pork cubes, turning occasionally, until they are lightly browned on all sides. This usually takes about 10 minutes per batch.
• Once all the pork is lightly browned, add the coarsely chopped white onion to the pan (if you browned the meat in batches, return all the meat to the pan now). Continue to fry for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pork is deeply browned and the onions are softened and slightly caramelized.
• Introduce the fresh marjoram and thyme sprigs (or dried herbs), bay leaves, the 8 orange chunks, milk, sea salt, and black pepper to the pot. Stir to combine.
• Cover the pot tightly with a lid. If cooking over a campfire, carefully move the pot to a cooler section of the fire or adjust the coals so that the liquid maintains a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil. Simmer for 30 minutes, or until the pork begins to become tender. You will observe a significant amount of flavorful liquid in the pot at this stage.
• Remove the lid and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the braising liquid has evaporated. This step can take an additional 30 minutes or more, allowing the flavors to concentrate.
• Once the liquid has mostly reduced, carefully remove and discard the herb stems, bay leaves, and the spent orange pieces. Using a ladle or spoon, scoop out or drain off any excess accumulated fat from the surface of the liquid.
• Increase the heat (or return the pot to a hotter part of the campfire) and fry the meat, stirring frequently, until the edges of the pork chunks become wonderfully dark, crispy, and caramelized.

  Tip: If there is still too much liquid preventing the meat from crisping effectively, you can remove the pork chunks to a separate, preheated skillet or drain off the remaining liquid, then crisp the meat in batches. This ensures maximum crispiness.

• Using two forks, gently pull the pork chunks apart into thick, succulent, rope-like shreds. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt and pepper if desired. Keep the finished carnitas warm and covered to prevent them from drying out. Serve immediately in warm tortilla shells with your favorite Mexican toppings.
• This recipe generously serves 8 people, making it perfect for a festive gathering.

to make the homemade tortillas:

• In a large bowl, combine the masa harina (instant corn masa flour), warm water, oil, and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly to form a soft, pliable dough. If it’s too sticky, add a little more masa harina; if too dry, add a tiny bit more water.
• Divide the dough into 16 equal-sized balls. It’s crucial to keep them covered with plastic wrap or a damp cloth to prevent them from drying out while you work.
• Line a tortilla press with two sheets of sturdy plastic (cut from a ziptop freezer bag, for example). Place one dough ball between the plastic sheets on the press and firmly press down to flatten it into a tortilla, measuring approximately 5½ inches (14 cm) in diameter.
• Preheat a griddle or a heavy skillet over medium-high heat on your campfire or stovetop. Ensure it’s hot but not smoking.
• Gently peel the plastic wrap off the freshly pressed tortilla. Quickly and evenly, flip the tortilla onto the hot griddle. Cook for about 1 minute on each side, or until a few inviting brown specks appear and the tortilla begins to puff slightly.
• Immediately upon cooking, wrap the stack of warm tortillas in a clean, damp cotton towel or napkin. Place them in a covered container to keep them warm and soft until you are ready to serve. This prevents them from drying out and becoming stiff.
• This recipe yields approximately 16 small, fresh, and incredibly delicious homemade tortillas.

Notes

The combination of acids found in the milk and especially the orange pieces plays a crucial role in tenderizing the pork, breaking down tough fibers to create an incredibly succulent result. Furthermore, the natural sugars present in both ingredients significantly contribute to the beautiful crisping and deep browning of the meat during the final cooking stage, enhancing its flavor and texture.

Carnitas Caseras are absolutely ideal for making sensational tacos. To serve, simply spoon the warm, shredded meat into freshly heated corn tortillas. Offer an array of traditional and vibrant toppings alongside, such as creamy homemade guacamole, fresh and zesty pico de gallo, tangy pickled red onions, and a dollop of cooling sour cream (or authentic Mexican crema or crumbled queso fresco). Guests can then customize their tacos to their liking, creating a personalized and delicious experience.

Planning ahead for homemade tortillas: If you are opting to make the tortillas from scratch, a smart approach is to prepare and cook them while the carnitas meat is simmering and tenderizing. This way, you can keep the stack of freshly made tortillas warm in a covered container until the carnitas are ready to be served, ensuring everything is perfectly timed for your feast.

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