homemade carnitas

These Crispy Mexican Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas are the best, easiest carnitas you will ever make!  Tender, juicy shredded pork, filled with flavor and delicious crispy, caramelized "burnt ends" achieved by popping the shredded pork under the broiler, this is the perfect recipe for parties and large groups, and amazing in tacos, nachos, salads and burritos!

Crispy Mexican Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas with Escabeche

pork shoulder or pork butt

orange juice

Tablespoons lime juice (about 2 limes)

tomatoes

green salsa

Tablespoons brown sugar (optional)

Tablespoon cumin

Kosher salt

black pepper

oregano

chili powder

onion

jalapeno (seeds removed)

bay leaves

cinnamon

red onion (thinly sliced)

white vinegar

bay leaf

cloves

sugar

salt

black peppercorns

cumin

garlic (thinly sliced)

red pepper flakes

Place the pork in a large slow cooker.  Add in the orange juice, lime juice, diced tomatoes and salsa.

Mix together the brown sugar, cumin, salt, pepper, oregano, and chili powder in a small bowl and rub it into the meat.  Add the chopped onion, jalapeno, bay leaves and cinnamon sticks, then cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.

At the 8 hour mark (or the 5 hour mark if cooking on high), remove the meat from the crock pot (do NOT discard all of the juices from the slow cooker) and place it in a large baking dish (so juices don't run all over your counter).  Remove any fat from the meat and then shred the meat into bite-size pieces with a fork.  Return the pork to the slow cooker with all of the juices from cooking and let it cook an additional 30 minutes while you prep garnishes and all the things you want to serve with your pork carnitas.

Turn on the oven to broil.

Transfer the shredded pork to a large baking sheet covered in tinfoil and spread into an even, single layer.  Broil in the oven for 5-8 minutes, then give the meat a good toss with some tongs so other parts can get hit by the broiler and return to the oven for another 5-8 minutes under the broiler.  This will give some of the pork a bit of char and create the crispy texture that really makes amazing carnitas even more amazing (and authentic).  Serve in corn or flour tortillas with cilantro, fresh avocado, maybe some thinly sliced radishes or chopped white onion and cotija cheese, and homemade escabeche.  Or add it to salads, nachos, soups, etc.

Carnitas

In a small saucepan, combine all of the escabeche ingredients except the sliced onion and bring to a boil.  Add the red onion and stir for about 30 seconds to combine and for the onion to be coated in the vinegar brine.  Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Store in a container and refrigerate for up to two weeks.

Escabeche

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Top 1 homemade carnitas recipes from across the web

The most viewed homemade carnitas recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

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Crispy Mexican Slow Cooker Pork Car...

The most viewed homemade carnitas recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine