Go porkin' in Pilsen

carnitas as far as the eyes can see

Hello, everybody!

I hope you’re feeling carnivorous, because we’re going to be eating a lot of meat today.

Before we get started, today’s edition of the newsletter is on the free schedule, so everyone can join in on the fun—feel free to share away. Just a reminder, though, every other newsletter drop is for paid subscribers, so now’s as good a time as any to upgrade your subscription:

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In this edition of the newsletter, we’re heading just southwest of the Loop for some really terrific Mexican pork and some bonus beef. A little-known fact about me is that “Bonus Beef” was my college nickname.

Today we’re going all-in on meat at Carnitas Don Pedro on 18th Street, in Pilsen.

There’s a limited amount of places in Chicago that specialize in carnitas, but Carnitas Don Pedro is easily one of my favorites.

Another well-known carnitas specialist in Pilsen is Carnitas Uruapan, which is also a really incredible spot. Thanks to the magic of being in the same neighborhood, if one’s too busy, you’ve got the option of hopping over to the other.

Carnitas Don Pedro opens incredibly early every day (5 or 6 a.m. depending on the day of the week), and closes in the late afternoon (3:30 or 4 p.m., again, depending on the day of the week), so keep that in mind if you’re aiming to visit. If you want to get the full experience, however, I really recommend you pop in on the weekend.

It’s the busiest then, which makes this seem like weird advice, but there’s weekend-only items on the menu that you don’t want to miss. Plus a packed house is more fun than a quiet one, if you ask me.

When you first walk into Carnitas Don Pedro, you’ll be greeted with the marvelous sight of chicharrónes, aka fried pork skin.

You can practically hear it crackling behind the counter. I love looking at the whole pieces because it’s like admiring an unbroken yard of meat.

Carnitas Don Pedro is one of those places that specializes in a very few things, and in this case, it’s almost all meat dishes.

During the week, you can buy just a handful, like the namesake carnitas, but there’s also the aforementioned chicharrónes, ensalada nopales (cactus salad), guisado de chicharrón (pork skin stew), and guisado de puerco con nopales (pork stew with cactus). But on the weekend, there’s also birria de chivo (goat meat stew), barbacoa (slow-cooked beef), and menudo (tripe soup). It’s meat city!

Carnitas Don Pedro also used to sell tacos de sesos, which are deep-fried pork brain tacos, but they don’t do that anymore. I know the idea of eating brain anything is somewhat scary-sounding to a lot of people, but I promise it’s actually inoffensive, sort of like a silky custard with a slightly offal, mildly metallic flavor to it.

I’m…not selling that well, am I? Either way, doesn’t matter, they’re gone now. I know because I asked about them.

And before I get into the eating part, I’m going to let you know that the servers I ordered from didn’t speak a ton of English, but don’t let that deter you from visiting. There’s some staff members who do, if you need some help. But ordering food is a universal language, and with a little back and forth along with some laughter, I have complete faith that you’ll make it happen.

The main star of the show is, of course, the carnitas ($11.99 per pound). The term “carnitas” means “little meats” in Spanish, and it’s all sorts of pork that has been slow-cooked in lard for hours until it becomes both crisp and tender. This includes the skin, ribs, shoulder, all that good stuff.

At Carnitas Don Pedro, you order them by the pound, with the smallest serving available being a half pound, good for a solo lunch. The server will ask if you if you have a preference in cut—I just ask for a mix of everything, which includes both light and dark meat.

As soon as the carnitas arrive at your table, you’ll be bathed in the glorious scent of rendered pork fat. Shortly after the meat shows up, you’ll get steamed tortillas, onions, cilantro, and limes for squeezing on top, along with a small cup of escabeche, which is the pickled veggie mix with the whole jalapeños in it.

Before you assemble yourself a taco, do yourself a favor and eat a few huge forkfuls of meat as-is. Go on, dig into the fatty pieces while they’re still hot, they won’t get any better than that—and revel in the salty, fatty, porky bliss.

There’s really nothing like that first bite of taco.

Carnitas Don Pedro has two salsas at each table. One of them is a lively green avocado version, which has a fun level of tangy kick to it. The avocado lends creaminess to each bite, and you’ll probably find yourself reaching for it quite a bit.

I was eating alone that day, so I had some game-time decisions to make with what I was ordering. I ultimately decided to get some barbacoa ($12.99 per pound), which is something I don’t get often enough.

I’m glad I did, because Don Pedro’s version is luxuriously silky, tender, and beefy, and comes swimming in a plate of its own cooking juices. The barbacoa’s worth the visit alone, if you can tear your attention away from the carnitas for two seconds.

The red salsa at Carnitas Don Pedro is great too—it’s got that earthy, slightly bitter flavor you expect with dried red chiles.

By the time I tried it, I’d already nuked my taste buds with embarrassing amounts of green salsa, but if I had to really go deep, the red seemed slightly less spicy. It’s your life, be free! Enjoy as much or as little salsa as you please. I like overdoing it.

In my feverish haze of jealousy that sank in after watching others eat their tacos, I totally forgot to order the cactus salad, which would have been nice to have on the side—but really, the place is called Carnitas Don Pedro. You’re there to lose yourself in mounds of lard-braised pig parts and bonus beef, and listen to the families chatting happily in Spanish around you. And hey, it’s the weekend, everyone’s in a good mood. The beautiful carnitas make a pretty delicious excuse to all be together.

Carnitas Don Pedro
1113 W 18th St.
Chicago, IL 60608
(312) 829-4757

Hours:
Monday - Thursday: 6 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Friday: 5 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: 5 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
(Mmm, 5 a.m. carnitas.)

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Okay, everyone! If you haven’t been to Pilsen in a while, might as well go now. Unless you live there, in which case, lucky you. Stop by Pleasant House Pub while you’re at it.

If you found today’s edition of The Party Cut useful, do me and yourself a favor by sharing it with everyone you know. Maybe this’ll be the best excuse to go get carnitas with someone you haven’t seen in ages:

And last poke, don’t forget to upgrade your subscription:

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Okay, that wraps it up for today. Enjoy the snap of warmer weather. I love you guys.