What are Carnitas?
Carnitas is a Mexican dish that literally means “little meats”. It’s made by slow cooking pork until soft and tender, it’s traditionally cooked in oil or lard with some spices and tastes incredible.
It’s so easy to make this dish at home using a slow cooker and the best part about it is that you can pretty much set it and forget it. There’s minimal prep work involved and always more than enough leftovers to be made into quick and easy meals throughout the week.
What cut of meat is carnitas?
I used a Boston Butt pork cut which is the upper part of the pork shoulder. It’s the most common cut for making pulled pork because it has a lot of marbled fat which means tons of flavor and juicy tender meat when it’s slow cooked.
Choosing Seasonings
When making pork carnitas it’s important to season the meat and not just the cooking liquid. You want the flavor to really sink into the meat and a great way to do this is by dry rubbing the pork with delicious herbs and spices.
Canned chipotle chiles in adobe are available in most markets on the international foods aisle. These smoked jalapeño peppers pack a lot of heat; puree them in a food processor, and save leftovers by dropping dollops on a cookie sheet, and freezing for later use. Chile para naranja, a mixture of chili powder, lemon, and sugar, can be found a Hispanic markets.
To make your own, stir together 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, ½ teaspoon sugar, and ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper.
I also made small incisions all over the pork and added some garlic cloves for extra flavor. Another important step to sealing in a lot of flavor is to brown the meat in a hot skillet before adding it to the slow cooker. It doesn’t take long but makes a huge difference ensuring the meat has locked in a ton of flavor and has a caramelized flavor on the outside.
How to Make Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
- In a small bowl, stir together salt, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, coffee, cinnamon, and orange zest.
- Sprinkle half of mixture over pork roast. Using a paring knife, make 1-inch-deep incisions all over pork roast.
- Using your fingers, insert garlic cloves into pork.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook on all sides until browned.
- Transfer pork to slow cooker. Pour beer around pork; add chopped orange, chipotle-adobo puree, and remaining seasoning mix.
- Cover and cook on low for 10 hours. Shred meat using two forks; discard fat and bones.
- Let meat marinate in slow cooker for 30 minutes.
- Transfer desired amount of meat to a colander; let drain (reserve liquid in slow cooker).
- Transfer meat to rimmed sheet pans; scatter in an even layer. Squeeze one orange over pork; tuck other orange half onto sheet pan.
- Sprinkle pork and orange with chili para naraja. Broil meat on high until crispy.
- Serve crispy pork with toasted tortillas, salsa, diced avocado, Lime-Cilantro Slaw, and Quick Black Beans.
What to Serve with Pork Carnitas?
I love to serve these carnitas with a simple cabbage slaw and quick black beans. They are both so simple to make and add a freshness to the carnitas as well as textures. You could also serve them with slices of avocado, freshly made salsa, toasted tortillas and even rice.
To make the lime cilantro slaw – Thinly slice red cabbage and place in a bowl with lime juice, cilantro, salt, and pepper. Stir everything together and let sit until you are ready to serve.
To make the quick black beans – Drain and rinse black beans and place them in a bowl with a little reserved slow cooker liquid. Stir and let sit until ready to serve.
How to Store Leftover Slow Cooker Carnitas?
Leftover pork carnitas can be stored in the fridge for around 3 days and can either be eaten cold in salads or sandwiches or reheated in the oven (covered) until piping hot all the way through.
You can also freeze leftover pork in a suitable container or ziploc bag for months. Just simply defrost before reheating in the oven and add to soups, stews, casseroles, pasta, pizza and so much more.
Top Tips for Making Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
- Make sure to seal the meat by browning it on all sides before adding to the slow cooker, this adds a ton of flavor.
- To check the pork is tender enough try shredding part of it with two forks. If the pork shreds easily it’s done.
- Once the meat has been shredded add it back into the slow cooker to marinate in the cooking liquid.
- I love to crisp the pork up under the broiler for a couple of minutes to add a crispy texture.
If you’ve tried this slow cooker carnitas recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Chipotle-Orange Slow Cooker Carnitas
Ingredients
For the Chipotle-Orange Carnitas
- 2 tbsp kosher salt 34g
- 1 tbsp chili powder 8g
- 1 tbsp ground cumin 6g
- 1 tsp cocoa powder 2g
- ½ tsp ground coffee 500mg
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon 1g
- 1 tbsp orange zest 6g
- 1 6 to 7 lb. Boston butt pork roast
- 6 garlic cloves halved
- 3 tbsp olive oil 45mL
- 1 cup lager beer 236mL, such as Corona
- 2 cups peeled and chopped orange 450g
- 3 tbsp pureed chipotle chiles in adobo
- 1 orange halved
- 1 tbsp chile para naranja
- Lime-Cilantro Cabbage Slaw and Quick Black Beans to serve
- Toasted tortillas salsa, and diced avocado, to serve
For the Lime-Cilantro Cabbage Slaw
- ½ head red cabbage 25g, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp lime zest 4g
- 2 tbsp lime juice 30mL
- ½ tsp kosher salt 3g
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 25g
Instructions
For the Chipotle-Orange Carnitas
- In a small bowl, stir together salt, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, coffee, cinnamon, and orange zest.
- Sprinkle half of mixture over pork roast. Using a paring knife, make 1-inch-deep incisions all over pork roast.
- Using your fingers, insert garlic cloves into pork. Refrigerate overnight, if desired, or proceed with recipe.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook 2 to 3 minutes per side until browned.
- Transfer pork to a 5 to 6 quart slow cooker. Pour beer around pork; add chopped orange, chipotle-adobo puree, and remaining seasoning mix.
- Cover and cook on low for 10 hours. Shred meat using two forks; discard fat and bones.
- Let meat marinate in slow cooker for 30 minutes.
- Transfer desired amount of meat to a colander; let drain (reserve liquid in slow cooker).
- Transfer meat to rimmed sheet pans; scatter in an even layer. Squeeze one orange over pork; tuck other orange half onto sheet pan.
- Sprinkle pork and orange with chili para naraja. Broil meat on high until crispy, 4 to 6 minutes.
- Serve crispy pork with toasted tortillas, salsa, diced avocado, Lime-Cilantro Slaw, and Quick Black Beans.
For the Lime-Cilantro Cabbage Slaw
- In a medium bowl, stir together all ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the Quick Black Beans
- In a medium bowl, stir together 1 can of rinsed and drained black beans with ¼ cup reserved liquid from slow cooker and 1 teaspoon kosher salt.
- Microwave on high for 1 minute, if desired.
Notes
- Make sure to seal the meat by browning it on all sides before adding to the slow cooker, this adds a ton of flavor.
- To check the pork is tender enough try shredding part of it with two forks. If the pork shreds easily it's done.
- Once the meat has been shredded add it back into the slow cooker to marinate in the cooking liquid.
- I love to crisp the pork up under the broiler for a couple of minutes to add a crispy texture.
- Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days or frozen.
Nutrition
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