This is an America’s Test Kitchen recipe.  I love those guys.  This is the second time I’ve made it.  It’s not too labor-intensive, especially if you skip the frying-the-tostadas part (but they’re good, so I did it).  One thing I did differently was to cook the pork all day in the crockpot.  That significantly reduces the active cooking time.

Ingredients

Tinga

• 2 pounds boneless pork butt, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1-inch pieces (see note)
• 2 medium onions, 1 quartered and 1 chopped fine
• 5 medium garlic cloves, 3 peeled and smashed and 2 minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme (I used a generous shake of dried because the store never has thyme and it failed in my garden this year)
•  kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 of a 14.5-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon ground chipotle powder (I ordered it from Penzey‘s)
• 2 bay leaves

Tostadas

• 3/4cup vegetable oil
• 12(6-inch) corn tortillas (see note)
•   Table salt

Garnishes

•   Queso fresco or feta cheese
•   Fresh cilantro leaves
•   Sour cream
•   Diced avocado
•   Lime wedges

Instructions

• 1. FOR THE TINGA: Place pork, quartered onion, smashed garlic cloves, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 6 cups water in a slow cooker.  Cook on low for 8 hours or so.  When ready to move on, remove pork and discard remaining slow cooker contents except one cup of cooking liquid.  Set reserved cooking liquid aside.  Trim visible fat from pork and shred it into smallish pieces.
• 2. Heat olive oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add shredded pork, chopped onion, and oregano; cook, stirring often, until pork is well browned and crisp, 7 to 10 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• 3. Stir in tomato sauce, chipotle powder, reserved pork cooking liquid, and bay leaves; simmer until almost all liquid has evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves and season with salt to taste.
• 4. TO FRY TOSTADAS: Heat vegetable oil in 8-inch heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat to 350 degrees. Using fork, poke center of each tortilla 3 or 4 times (to prevent puffing and allow for even cooking). Fry 1 at a time, holding metal potato masher in upright position on top of tortilla to keep it submerged, until crisp and lightly browned, 45 to 60 seconds (no flipping is necessary). Drain on paper towel-lined plate and season with salt to taste. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
• 5. TO SERVE: Spoon small amount of shredded pork onto center of each tostada and serve, passing garnishes separately.