Carnitas experiment

Today I intend to buy two pork roasts, because I want at least 5 lbs. of meat in the crockpot.

I'm also planning to throw in
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp of garlic powder, or more
a chopped-up onion
between 2 tsp and 2 TB of cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, or chili powder
1/2 tsp Lawry's seasoning salt
1 TB cumin
1 tsp cilantro or coriander -- I think I have the coriander on hand
2 to 4 cups of water

I'm actually hoping to do this on my lunch break, so by the time I get home later it'll be ready for testing.

Carnitas experiment today

I went home on my lunch break and put this into a standard crockpot on high. It just about filled it up.

5.8 lb pork shoulder blade roast, boneless, cut into stewing size chunks
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp dry "roasted garlic"
1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp Lawry's seasoning salt
1 TB cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
3 cups of water

I forgot to pick up an onion, so I'll get one on the way home from work to chop up and add to the mix when I take the pork out, shred it with a fork, and put it back in after it's been cooking for 6 hours.

Taco Party

So in preparation for Matthew Lewis's Taco Party, I'm trying to cook the meat ahead of time. Everything I cook between now and Wednesday night, I'll freeze, and Thursday's work will go into the ice chest along with everything from the freezer. Friday morning, everything goes into the crockpots. Any cooking or other prep I can do at home pre-con means less workload Friday at the con.

In the past, Matt's collected the money to pay for the tacos ahead of time. This time, it'll be a matter of collecting the money at the party, which means instant gratification for everyone. I'm thinking of putting up a sign at the buffet line that says "Tacos $1-$2 each" and let people decide for themselves if they've got a taco worth putting in extra money for.