Slow cooker carnitas combine perfectly-cooked, tender pork roast with classic Mexican spices to create a rich pork dish perfect for tacos, burritos, and more. These easy crock pot carnitas make this authentic Mexican dish even easier to make!
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This easy, delicious carnitas recipe is perfect for classic Mexican dishes like tacos, quesadillas, or nachos. It's one of the most delicious, versatile pork recipes you'll ever make. And it doesn't hurt that it's so easy!
Slow Cooker Carnitas
Using the slow cooker makes it so easy to create classic carnitas with minimal effort. The traditional simmer method requires that you babysit the meat to ensure it doesn't stick to the pot. This easy crock pot carnitas recipe is just a matter of adding all the ingredients to your slow cooker and coming back later for delicious shredded Mexican pork.
Why You'll Love These Slow Cooker Carnitas
- Simple Ingredients: This recipe uses just a few simple, basic ingredients.
- Easy: Simply set and forget this recipe. The slow cooker does all the work.
- Versatile: Use this meat in tacos, burritos, nachos, quesadillas, and more. You can even make delicious Mexican pulled pork sandwiches.
- Great for Meal Prep: This pork freezes well, so it's a great option for storing for future meals.
Slow Cooker Carnitas Ingredients
It just takes a few ingredients and some patience to make this easy recipe. All the ingredients you need are listed right here, but you can find their exact amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
- Pork Shoulder Roast - Shoulder roast is the classic cut of pork for carnitas. Its fan content and connective tissues break down over the long cooking process to create super tender meat.
- Olive Oil - Creates a crispy exterior on the pork during the broiling process.
- White Onion and Minced Garlic - This classic combination adds a subtly sweet earthiness and bite.
- Orange Juice - Adds bright, citrus flavor, sweetness, and acidity that helps make the meat even more tender.
- Dry Rub - A combination of cinnamon, dried oregano, cumin, onion powder, salt, and pepper, the spices work together to create classic Mexican carnitas flavor.
How To Make Crock Pot Carnitas
This recipe takes almost no effort at all. Just season the rost, let the slow cooker do its thing, and broil at the end. That's it!
The recipe highlights are listed here, but you can find the exact instructions in the recipe card at the end of the post.
- Season the Roast: Coat the roast in olive oil, then thoroughly coat it in the dry rub.
- Cook: Place the roast in the crock pot with the fat cap up, then add the onion and orange juice. Cook on low until the roast is fork tender.
- Shred: Let the cooked roast stand until safe enough to handle and shred with two forks.
- Broil: Broil the shredded pork until it's just a little crisp on the edges.
Frequently Asked Questions
Pork butt roast is best for carnitas. This bone-in cut of pork is loaded with fat and connective tissue that breaks down as it cooks over a long period of time to create super tender meat.
Both classic pulled pork and carnitas are pulled pork. The main difference is the flavor and cooking method. Pulled pork tends to be sweet and smokier and is cooked with smoke or wet heat. On the other hand, carnitas have a more savory flavor with added citrus and are cooked with a dry heat source.
That depends on the kind of pork roast recipe you're making. Pulled pork creates its own juice, so liquid isn't required. However, if you're making BBQ pulled pork, you'll add BBQ sauce and liquid, while recipes like these carnitas are made without added liquid.
Carnitas can be used in tacos, fajitas, burritos, quesadillas, on nachos, or even as sandwich meat.
Serve With
Carnitas can be used in a variety of recipes, and they pair well with an equally varied list of sides. Try it with:
Storage
It's important to refrigerate this pork as soon as it's cool enough to do so for maximum freshness and safety. Never leave it out for extended periods at parties, for example.
To reheat the pork, bake it covered with a bit of added liquid at 350 until hated through. You can also reheat it in a skillet over medium heat.
Refrigerator: Store for up to four days in an air-tight, freezer-safe container.
Freezer: Store for up to three months in an air-tight, freezer-safe container or heavy-duty freezer bag with as much air removed as possible. Defrost before reheating.
More Pork Recipes
If you love pork, then check out these other delicious recipes.
Slow Cooker Carnitas Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 lb bone-in pork shoulder roast
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup white onion (diced)
- ½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 3 tsp garlic (minced)
Rub
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Pat pork roast dry with a paper towel and rub olive oil on all sides.
- Add cinnamon, oregano, cumin, onion powder, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl. Mix until well combined. Coat pork with dry rub on all sides and place in the slow cooker with the fat cap up.
- Add onion, orange juice, and jalapeno to the crock pot.
- Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
- Remove the pork roast from the slow cooker and place it on a foil-lined baking sheet. Let rest for 5 minutes. Then shred with two forks.
- Pour ½ cup of drippings from the slow cooker over the shredded pork.
- Broil for 3-5 minutes, just long enough to crisp up the edges.
- Serve with your preferred toppings on flour or corn tortillas, and enjoy!
Nutrition
*Nutrition information is an estimate. It may vary based on ingredients, brands, and changes in cooking methods listed in the recipe. If you need exact ingredient numbers, I recommend calculating them with your preferred nutrition calculator.
Cheri says
What a great recipe, so easy to follow and full of flavor. Thanks for sharing!
Ryan Allen says
That makes my day! So glad the recipe worked well for you.