1Cut the pork shoulder into small cubes, pat dry, and season with salt and black pepper.
2Coat the seasoned meat with all-purpose flour, mixing until well coated.
3Set the coated meat aside.
4Clean the chile pods by removing the stem and seeds, then rinse them.
5Cover the cleaned chile pods with water in a saucepan.
6Bring the water with chiles to a boil over high heat.
7Once the chiles come to a full boil, turn off the heat and transfer them to a blender cup.
8Add onion, garlic cloves, chipotles in adobo sauce, white vinegar, honey, ground cumin, whole cloves, oregano, and salt to the blender cup with the chiles.
9Add 4 cups of water to the blender cup.
10Blend the ingredients until smooth to make the adobo sauce.
11Set the adobo sauce aside.
12Set a Dutch oven over high heat and melt a little baking grease.
13Layer the meat in batches and sear until nicely browned on all sides.
14Return all seared meat to the pot.
15Add the adobo sauce to the pot, straining if needed, and scrape the bottom of the pot to incorporate any burnt bits.
16Add a little more water to the blender cup and then to the pot.
17Add two bay leaves to the pot and bring the sauce to a simmer.
18Once it simmers, turn off the heat, cover the pot, and transfer it to an oven preheated to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
19Braise in the oven for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
20After 1 hour and 40 minutes, check the meat for tenderness.
21Allow the carne adobada to rest for a few minutes before serving.
Ingredients
3 lbs pork shoulder; cubed 1/2 inch
1.5 tbsp coarse salt
1 tbsp black pepper
0.25 cup all-purpose flour
8 New Mexico or guajillo chile pods
2 Chile anchos
2 Chile chipotles in adobo sauce
0.5 onion
8 garlic cloves
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp oregano
4 whole cloves
2 tsp salt
2 bay leaves
4 cups water or broth
Equipment
saucepanblender cupDutch ovenoven
Tips
Make sure to pat the meat dry before seasoning.
Sear the meat in batches to get a nice sear.
Scrape the bottom of the pot to get all the burnt bits for flavor.