Carnitas – A Beautiful Mess

I love this carnitas recipe! In fact, it might be one of my favorites on this site. These tender pork carnitas are easy to make (in the slow cooker), full of flavor, require only a handful of ingredients, and are a super inexpensive meal. We also love that you can serve carnitas in a variety of ways: tacos, rice bowls, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, and more.

The word “carnitas” literally means “small meat.” And while I certainly consider this pork carnitas recipe to be a Mexican or Tex-Mex recipe, it also has French roots as a dish Lyon de Tours. For those of you who haven’t had it yet, I would describe it as Spanish-style pulled pork.

Related: Next, try the pozole recipe, which also uses pork shoulder.

material

• pork shoulder
• salt and black pepper
• onion
• jalapeno pepper
• garlic
• lime
• dried oregano
• cumin
• brown sugar
• canola oil – or you can use lard

Depending on how you want to serve your carnitas, you may also need things like salsa, pico de gallo, fresh cilantro, tortillas, chips, and rice.

How to make slow cooker carnitas

Lightly pound both sides of the pork cut and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Rub pork with 1 tablespoon oil, oregano, cumin, and any other spices you like. Rub it all over the meat. Add this to your slow cooker (which I often call a crockpot).

Roughly chop the onion and jalapeno and remove the inner leaves and seeds. Place this on top of the meat. Finely chop the garlic and mix this too. Next, juice all three limes and add this to the slow cooker as well.

Cook on low heat for 10 hours. Remove the meat from the slow cooker liquid, shaking off any large onion or jalapeño pieces as you do so. Shred the meat with a fork and remove the bones if it’s a bone-in cut.

Heat a few teaspoons of oil or lard in a large cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Place the meat in a pot and sprinkle brown sugar on top. Cook for a few minutes to crisp up the edges and flip. Cook for a few more minutes to make them crispier and remove to a plate.

Add chopped onions, fresh cilantro, and lime to a corn tortilla and serve with refried beans for a traditional flavor or to suit your family’s tastes.

tips for success

• Pork shoulder is also called pork butt or Boston butt, as well as picnic roast or picnic shoulder. I used bone-in pork shoulder here, but you can also use it without bones.
• If you want to swap some of the lime juice for orange/orange juice, feel free to do so. Orange pairs well with pork and beef.
• Browning the carnitas in a skillet after slow-cooking them is optional, but I think it’s worth it. This is also a great way to reheat leftovers.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for at least 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or microwave.

See more Mexican and Tex-Mex recipes