Traditional

Chamorro Braised

Name: Chamorro Braised
Prep time: 1 h 24 min
Cook time: 2 h 36 min
Total time: 4 h
Yield: 10 tacos
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 2 (about 3.5 lb total) Pork shanks (chamorro); 4 Guajillo chiles, seeded; 2 Ancho chiles, seeded; 3 Roma tomatoes; 1 White onion, quartered; 5 Garlic cloves; 2 Bay leaves; 1 tsp Mexican oregano; 3 cups Chicken stock; 1 tbsp Kosher salt; 10 Corn tortillas; 1/2 White onion, diced; 1/2 bunch Cilantro, chopped; 2 Limes, in wedges

Whole pork shank braised for hours in a guajillo-ancho adobo until the meat slips off the bone, then folded back into its own reduced, glossy sauce. This is CDMX fonda cooking at its most patient and rewarding.

Time: 4 hr
Heat
Yield: 10 tacos
Region: CDMX

Ingredients

Braise

To build

Per-100g nutrition (9 ingredients verified)

Ingredient	kcal	Protein	Fat	Carbs
Roma tomatoes	24	0.7 g	0.3 g	4.7 g
Garlic cloves	100	0 g	0 g	20 g
Bay leaves	0	0 g	0 g	0 g
Mexican oregano	0	0 g	0 g	0 g
Chicken stock	8	1.6 g	0 g	0.4 g
Kosher salt	0	0 g	0 g	0 g
Corn tortillas	188	3.1 g	1.6 g	40.6 g
White onion, diced	29	1.2 g	0 g	7.1 g
Cilantro, chopped	23	2.1 g	0.5 g	3.7 g

Values are per 100 g of the listed ingredient. Nutrition data: USDA FoodData Central (snapshot 2026-09-11). Ingredients without a verified match are omitted.

Method

Toast the guajillos and anchos on a dry comal until fragrant, then soak them in hot water until soft.
Char the tomatoes, onion, and garlic on the comal, then blend with the soaked chiles, oregano, salt, and a splash of stock into a smooth adobo.
Brown the shanks on all sides in a Dutch oven with a little oil, working patiently to build a deep crust.
Advertisementslot: recipe-midsteps
Pour the adobo and remaining stock over the shanks, tuck in the bay leaves, cover, and braise at 325°F until the meat pulls easily from the bone, about 3 hours.
Lift out the shanks, shred the meat off the bones, and discard the bay; skim the fat and simmer the sauce until it coats a spoon.
Fold the shredded chamorro back into the reduced sauce and taste for salt.
Warm the tortillas on a comal and build each taco with saucy chamorro, onion, cilantro, and lime.