BBQ Carnitas Nachos

Right now in Northern California and pretty much everywhere in American its grilling season. This is the time of the year Hasani loves to grill. He grills, ribs (pork & beef) hot links, hot dogs, burgers. I love when he grills too :) He's gotten so so good over the past couple of years. just in case your curious his grill is charcoal. The other weekend we thinking about dinner early, when I suggested we grill nachos on the grill. i'm not a big steak person, so I suggested we make the nachos with pork, and turn the pork into Carnitas ( I love Carnitas!!) For all you newbies out that haven't had Carnitas before, here's the definition of 'Carnitas, literally "little meats," is a type of braised or roasted (often after first being fried) pork in Mexican cuisine' 

BBQ Carnitas Nachos

Slow Cooker Carnitas

I wanted the Carnitas to be tender and tasty, I looked online and found a great slow cooker Carnitas Recipe of Epicurious, click here for the recipe. 

2 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs or pork shoulder (Boston butt)

2 teaspoons salt { I used Kosher }

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried oregano (preferably Mexican)

1/2 large onion, cut into 4 pieces

Fresh cilantro sprigs

1/2 Cup of Water or Chicken Broth

Place the meat in the slower cooker, and then add all ingredients and cover. Fully cooker between 4-6 hours on high. It took about 4 hours on high to cook the Carnitas in our slow cooker. After the pork is cooked, shred the meat. The meat should shred really easy. I like mine a little crispy. So we fried them lightly in Extra Virgin Olive Oil { a little oil on the bottom of the pan } until a little crispy. 

Making Nachos

I prefer using restaurant style tortilla chips, they just taste better. At our local International Market, you can buy a huge bag of freshly made tortilla chips for $1.99. We used our metal BBQ grill basket similar to this one to grill our Nachos in. 

1 Bag of Tortilla Chips

1 Cup of Cheddar Cheese

1 Cup of Monterrey Jack

Fresh Cilantro Sprigs

1 Large Tomato

1 Large Avacado

1 Cup of Sour Cream

1 Can of Re-fried Beans or Black Beans (cook on stove top)

Your Favorite Salsa 

Layer the bottom of the your grill pan with chips, beans, then Carnitas and cheese. Keep layering the chips, beans, meat and cheese. Finally top your nachos with Cilantro. Next carry your precious cargo outside to your already hot grill, place inside your hot grill until the cheese is melted and they tortilla chips looked crisp { about 10-15 mins } Resist the urge to start eating the nachos while still on the grill. 

These Nachos are perfect for parties and sharing with a group. Top with your favorite toppings. our are Avocado, Sour Cream, Southwestern Style Salsa & diced tomato. These nachos were freaking amazing!!! Like super Yumm!!! I loved the smokey flavor the BBQ gave the meat...yumm

Have you even BBQ nachos? What's your favorite food to eat grilled? Do you prefer Gas or Charcoal?