Pork Carnitas (Mexican Slow Cooker Pulled Pork)
Slow Cooker Crispy Pork Carnitas is the ultimate slow cooker meat you can prepare ahead of time, stuff into soft shell tacos with Pico De Gallo for an easy and delicious weeknight meal!
Ingredients
Pork Carnitas
- 4 pounds (2 kg) pork shoulder, boneless and skinless (see notes)
- 2 tbsp olive oil plus extra to crisp up pork
- 3 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp cumin ground
- 2 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp oregano dried
- 2 oranges juiced
- 1 lime juiced
- 1 red onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves sliced
- 2 bay leaves dried
Instructions
Pork Carnitas
- If your pork has fat on top, use a sharp knife to carefully slice as much of it off as you can. A little left on is ok. Wash your pork under tap water and pat dry with paper towels.
- Place pork on a chopping board and drizzle with half the oil on one side. Sprinkle with half the salt, cumin, pepper, and oregano. Use clean hands to rub into the meat. Turn the pork shoulder over and repeat on the other side.
- Place seasoned pork shoulder in the slow cooker. See notes for alternative cooking methods. Pour in orange juice, lime juice, red onion, garlic cloves and bay leaves. Place the lid on top and slow cook for 8 hours on low setting.
- There will be about 1 1/2 cups of juice. Lift the soft pork out of the slow cooker and place onto a baking tray or chopping board. Use tongs or forks to tear apart into shreds.
- To crisp up - drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil into a very hot skillet. Add about 1 1/2 cups of shredded pork and use a wooden spoon to stir occasionally, drizzle with some of the juice and continue stirring until the pork crisps up and becomes a dark golden color. Serve in tacos with pico de galo!
Notes
Pork Shoulder - I used pork shoulder for this recipe with no bone and the fat cap trimmed off. A little of it kept on is ok as it adds flavor.
Larger portions - This recipe is suitable for a pork shoulder ranging from 1 - 3kg in weight. If using anything larger than 3kg slow cook for 10-12 hours on low.
Slow Cooker - I used a large slow cooker for this recipe which makes making these carnitas super fuss-free
Stove top option - You can make this on the stove top in a large casserole pot. If using this option, cook on low heat.
Oven option - You can bake this in the oven. Simply place in a high sided roasting pan with an additional 2 cups of water. Cover with aluminum foil and bake on 160C / 325F for 2 hours, then bake for 90 minutes. If using the oven method, there won’t be any need to pan fry it to finish it off as it will develop a brown crust in the oven.
Storage - Carnitas can be stored in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to four days. It’s a great make ahead freezer meal and can be wrapped in freezer bag bathes in it’s shredded state for up to two weeks. Simply thaw completely and pan fry to crisp up.
Nutrition - is based on per serving. This serves 8 - 10 people.
A note on measurements - all ingredients in this recipe are offered in Australian cup measurements and weight measurements. Weight measurements are created by me, in my kitchen here in Melbourne Australia. The best way to get recipe success is to measure ingredients by weight, using kitchen scales. To access weight measurements, click on the ‘metric’ button in the recipe card located under the list of ingredients.
Nutrition
Calories:536kcal | Carbohydrates:16g | Protein:56g | Fat:27g | Saturated Fat:8g | Polyunsaturated Fat:3g | Monounsaturated Fat:14g | Cholesterol:185mg | Sodium:1960mg | Potassium:1201mg | Fiber:4g | Sugar:8g | Vitamin A:243IU | Vitamin C:45mg | Calcium:141mg | Iron:6mg
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