This easy Crock Pot Carnitas recipe takes traditional carnitas ingredients and slow cooks them to perfection for tender shredded meat. Use it to make carnitas tacos, enchiladas, tostadas, burrito bowls, and more!
Carnitas tacos lovers, you must make this authentic recipe at home!
The process is easier than you would think and the end result incredible tender shredded meat enveloped in authentic flavor.
Plus, the recipe makes a great deal of meat, perfect for serving big families or for meal prepping!
The word, carnitas translates to “little meats,” referring to the small shreds of pork.
While the traditional method is prepared in a large pot such as a Dutch oven, this slow cooker method requires very little preparation time and almost zero oversight.
This slow cooker pork carnitas recipe features seasoned pork in delicious cooking liquid comprised of fresh lime juice, orange juice, onion, and garlic. The simple cut of meat is transformed into mouth-watering delicious shredded meat! A great recipe for taco night!
Simply serve this easy carnitas recipe with warm tortillas and your choice of toppings for an amazing meal that lives up to your favorite Mexican restaurant.
If you prefer cooking in your pressure cooker, make my Instant Pot Carnitas recipe.
Let’s discuss the traditional ingredients for carnitas! The great news is you can find the full list of ingredients at any grocery store.
Ingredients for Carnitas:
Boneless Pork Roast: Pick up a boneless pork butt or pork shoulder roast. This is our main ingredient for making the best carnitas!
Avocado Oil: In order to sauté the onion and garlic and brown the meat, we need a quality cooking oil. I use avocado oil because it has a high smoke point and contains a decent source of omega-3 fatty acids.
I don’t recommend using olive oil due to its lower smoke point. Because canola oil or vegetable oil are notorious for being pro-inflammatory due to their omega-6 content, I don’t recommend using seed oils either. Ghee, tallow or coconut oil are good options.
Yellow Onion and Fresh Garlic: Fresh onion and garlic add robust flavor to this popular Mexican dish. Don’t skip them!
Fresh Orange Juice and Fresh Lime Juice: Traditional carnitas recipes always contain two ingredients: orange juice and lime juice. These two ingredients provide tangy flavor to complement the otherwise rich meat.
They also add a small amount of liquid to the crock pot, which aids in the cooking process. The rendered fat is what lubricates the meat through the cooking process.
Seasonings: Sea Salt, Ground Paprika, Dried Oregano, and Ground Cumin are the flavorful spices needed to make the best carnitas!
Be sure to use sweet paprika, not smoked paprika. Some people like to substitute chili powder for the above mentioned seasonings, which works great too.
If you use iodized salt instead of sea salt or kosher salt, use slightly less salt, as table salt tastes saltier.
Recipe Adaptations:
- Replace the paprika, oregano, and cumin with 3 tablespoons of chili powder if you’d like.
- Substitute chicken broth for the orange juice if need be.
- If using a bone-in pork roast, sear both sides of the whole roast in a large skillet or in the oven. Cook the whole roast with the bone still inside for 10 to 12 hours.
Now that we’ve covered the carnitas ingredients, let’s make them!
How to Make Carnitas in the Crock Pot:
Remove the pork roast from its packaging. Remove and discard the netting around the roast (if applicable). Use paper towels to pat the whole roast dry to remove any excess liquid.
Chop the roast into large chunks using a sharp knife on a cutting board.
In a small bowl, stir together the sea salt, paprika, dried oregano and ground cumin.
Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over both sides of the pork chunks.
Use your hands to gently pat the seasonings into the meat. Allow the pork to sit in the seasonings for a few minutes while you sauté the onion.
Heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet and add the chopped onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to soften, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add in the fresh minced garlic and continue cooking for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant.
Transfer the sauteed onion and garlic to the bottom of the slow cooker along with the lime juice and orange juice.
Place the skillet back on the stove top over medium-high to high heat. If needed, add another tablespoon or two of avocado oil.
Once the skillet is sizzling hot, carefully place the chunks of pork roast onto the hot surface in a single layer. You will likely need to perform this step in two batches unless your skillet is large enough.
Sear the pork for 2-3 minutes per side, until each side has a nice golden brown crust. There is no need to cook the pork through at this point. We are simply browning the meat.
Transfer the seared pork to the crock pot.
Secure the lid on the crock pot and cook on low heat for 8 to 10 hours or until fork tender. You can cook the meat on high heat for 5 to 6 hours, although I strongly recommend going with the low heat option for the best results if you’re going for tender pork. The longer and lower temperature the meat cooks at, the more fall-apart tender and flavorful it turns out.
Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the slow cooked pork roast pieces to a large cutting board. Use two forks to shred the meat to your desired consistency.
Transfer the shredded pork back into the crock pot with the juices until you’re ready to serve.
You can serve the carnitas at this point, or you can take one final step to make the pork meat extra crispy.
How to Make Crispy Carnitas:
Turn your oven on the high broil setting. Use tongs to transfer the carnitas to a large rimmed baking sheet in a single layer, allowing as much of the liquid to drip off as possible before placing the pork on the sheet.
Place the baking sheet on the rack that’s second to the top and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the shredded pork reaches your desired level of crisp.
As an alternative, you can perform this process in a cast iron skillet. To do so, heat a large cast iron skillet over high heat on the stove top.
Transfer a small amount of the shredded meat to the large cast iron, allowing much of the liquid to drip off first. Ideally, there will be one thin layer of meat on the skillet at a time for the crispiest result.
If need be, you can add oil to the skillet prior to starting this process, but you won’t need to as long as the pork has enough fat.
How to Make Carnitas Tacos:
Heat corn tortillas, grain-free tortillas, low-carb tortillas, or flour tortillas using your preferred method. I usually heat each one over the open flame on my stove top or heat them over medium heat in a skillet on the stove top.
Load up the tortillas with your choice of toppings. Chopped white onion and cilantro are customary for pork carnitas tacos. However, you can add other extra toppings such as sliced avocado, guacamole, sour cream, grated cheese, etc.
Serve tacos with fresh lime wedges and your choice of salsas. I recommend my Mango Avocado Salsa, Red Chili Tomato Salsa, or my Easy Salsa Verde. Pico de gallo is great too!
You can serve carnitas tacos with side dishes such as black beans, pinto beans, refried beans, Cilantro Lime Rice, or Mexican Rice.
Storage Tips:
Store leftover carnitas in the refrigerator for up to 7 days in an airtight container. You can also freeze carnitas in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.
And that’s a wrap! This authentic carnitas recipe is here to impress your friends and family and feeds a crowd.
The best part about this crockpot pork carnitas is you can set it up in the morning and have incredibly juicy pork carnitas when you get home from work.
Plus, the shredded carnitas tastes even better the next day and the 2-3 days following preparation! For this reason, feel free to make it well in advance of when you need it.
If you enjoy Mexican recipes like this easy pork carnitas recipe, also try out these reader favorites!
More Mexican Food Favorites:
- 5-Ingredient Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken
- Crock Pot Chipotle Chicken
- Ground Turkey Taco Casserole
- Carne Asada
- Crock Pot Al Pastor
Enjoy this slow cooker carnitas recipe the next time the craving for tacos strikes!
Crock Pot Carnitas
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (4 to 5-pound) boneless pork roast pork butt or pork shoulder roast
- 1 Tbsp sea salt*
- 1 Tbsp paprika
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 1 Tbsp ground cumin
- 2 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup fresh orange juice
- ¼ cup lime juice
Instructions
- Remove the pork roast from its packaging. Remove and discard the netting around the roast (if applicable). Use paper towels to pat the whole roast dry to remove any excess liquid.
- Chop the roast into large chunks using a sharp knife on a cutting board.
- In a small bowl, stir together the sea salt, paprika, dried oregano and ground cumin. Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over both sides of the pork chunks. Use your hands to gently pat the seasonings into the meat. Allow the pork to sit in the seasonings for a few minutes while you sauté the onion.
- Heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet and add the chopped onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to soften, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add in the fresh minced garlic and continue cooking for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant.
- Transfer the sauteed onion and garlic to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Place the skillet back on the stove top over medium-high to high heat. If needed, add another tablespoon or two of avocado oil.
- Once the skillet is sizzling hot, carefully place the chunks of pork roast onto the hot surface in a single layer. You will likely need to perform this step in two batches unless your skillet is large enough.
- Sear the pork for 2-3 minutes per side, until each side has a nice golden brown crust. There is no need to cook the pork through at this point. We are simply browning the meat.
- Transfer the seared pork to the crock pot with the rest of the ingredients. Secure the lid on the crock pot and cook on low heat for 8 to 10 hours or until fork tender. You can cook the meat on high heat for 5 to 6 hours, although I strongly recommend going with the low heat option for the best results if you’re going for tender pork. The longer and lower temperature the meat cooks at, the more fall-apart tender and flavorful it turns out.
- Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the slow cooked pork roast pieces to a large cutting board. Use two forks to shred the meat to your desired consistency. Transfer the shredded pork back into the crock pot with the juices until you’re ready to serve.
- You can serve the carnitas at this point, or you can take one final step to make the pork meat extra crispy.
How to Make Crispy Carnitas:
- Turn your oven on the high broil setting. Use tongs to transfer the carnitas to a large rimmed baking sheet in a single layer, allowing as much of the liquid to drip off as possible before placing the pork on the sheet. Place the baking sheet on the rack that’s second to the top and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the shredded pork reaches your desired level of crisp.
Make Carnitas Tacos:
- Load up warm tortillas with your desired amount of shredded pork. Top tacos with chopped white onion, cilantro, and/or any other toppings you enjoy. This recipe makes about 20 tacos.
Notes
Nutrition
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