Carnitas Carnitas Carnitas, literally meaning "little meats", is a dish of Mexican cuisine originating from the state of Michoacán. Carnitas are made by braising or simmering pork in oil or preferably lard until tender. The process takes three to four hours, and the result is very tender and juicy meat, which is then typically served with chopped coriander leaves (cilantro) and diced onion, salsa, guacamole, tortillas, and refried beans ("frijoles refritos"). Pork carnitas are traditionally made using the heavily marbled, rich boston butt or picnic ham cuts of pork. The 6–16 lb (3–7 kg) sections are usually cut down to a
Tex-Mex U.S. side. A 1968 "Los Angeles Times" feature wrote "[i]f the dish is a combination of Old World cooking, hush-my-mouth Southern cuisine and Tex-Mex, it's from the Texas Hill Country." In France, Paris's first Tex-Mex restaurant opened in March 1983. After the 1986 release of the film "Betty Blue", Tex-Mex cuisine's popularity in Paris increased. The "Oxford English Dictionary" supplies the first-known uses in print of "Tex-Mex" in reference to food, from a 1963 article in "The New York Times Magazine", and a 1966 item in the "Great Bend" (Kansas) "Tribune". Diana Kennedy, an influential food authority, explained the distinctions