Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas are Mexican pulled pork at its best. Seasoned pork is cooked low and slow for hours until fall-apart tender, then pan-seared for crispy edges. A zesty citrus marinade elevates the already juicy pork to extraordinary heights of flavor.
Served with corn or flour tortillas, pork carnitas are the classic Mexican dish you have to taste to believe.
Why We Love Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Slow Cooker Carnitas – Simmering the pork for hours tenderizes the lard for juicy, flavorful meat.
Easy prep – Most of the cooking time in this recipe is hands off.
Citrus flavor – This recipe uses both orange and lime for extra zing.
Crispy pork carnitas – A quick pan sear makes this pork crispy, tender and juicy all at once.
So many serving options – You can serve carnitas in tacos, piled onto nachos or over rice for an easy dinner that’s packed with authentic Mexican flavor.
Ingredients For Pork Carnitas
This is an overview of the ingredients you will need to make these easy pork carnitas in your slow cooker. Important notes and substitutions for certain ingredients are discussed. The full printable recipe, with amounts and specific details, can be found at the bottom of the page.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Pork Butt – Fun fact, pork butt is actually a part of the shoulder. Slow cooking a pork butt creates tender and juicy results. If needed, you could swap it for a pork shoulder, but I really don’t recommend pork loin for these slow cooker pork carnitas. Technically they work, but just don’t come out as flavorful and juicy. You can use bone in or boneless.
- Jalapeno Peppers – This dish isn’t overly spicy, but if you’d like more heat, you could add more jalapeno, where if you want no heat at all, you could omit them.
- Spices – You can always adjust the spices and seasonings up or down if you like, but as called for in this recipe you’ll get a deliciously flavorful result.
How to Make Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Let’s discuss the steps you’ll take to make these delicious pork carnitas. If you want to skip my discussion, tips, information and answers to frequently asked questions, just scroll to the bottom of this post for the printable recipe.
1. Rinse the roast and dry it well.
2. In a medium size bowl, mix together brown sugar, ground cumin, oregano, salt, garlic powder, peper, and paprika.
3. Stir in 2 Tablespoons of olive oil.
4. Rub this mixture all over the pork butt.
5. Place the seasoned pork into the slow cooker, fat on top.
6. Remove seeds from the jalapeno pepper, slice it up and place it on and around the roast. Dice the onion and place it on and around the roast. Halve the orange and squeeze the juice over the roast, add the orange halves to the slow cooker. Halve the lime and squeeze the juice over the roast, add the lime halves to the slow cooker
7. Cook the roast at high power for 8 hours.
8. Remove the roast from the pot and place it onto a cutting board. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes. Shred the meat using 2 forks.
9. Place the remaining 1 Tablespoon of olive oil into a large skillet. Heat the skillet to high heat. Caramelize the pork by frying it (in batches- don’t crowd the pan). Place about ¼ of the shredded pork and about ¼ cup of the juices from the crock pot in the skillet. Press the meat onto the bottom and allow it to sear. Continue this until all of the meat has been seared.
Finally, place the seared meat into your serving container. You may serve the meat drizzled with some of the remaining juices from the crock pot if you like.
Tips and Advice
Storage
Pork carnitas may be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Or it may be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Searing The Meat
While you could skip searing the meat after taking it out of the crock pot, I highly recommend you take a few minutes and do it. Searing the meat makes a big difference when it comes to the flavor.
Pork Carnitas Recipe FAQ
Pork butt, which actually comes from the shoulder, is the ideal cut to use for carnitas. The fat content gives it great flavor and it helps baste and tenderize the meat while it’s cooking.
I like to serve pork carnitas with Spanish Rice and Refried Beans. A Frozen Margarita on the side is definitely a plus!
You can, but due to the reduced fat content, it won’t have quite as much flavor, nor be quite as juicy. I do not recommend using a pork tenderloin though, it is simply too lean.
Either one works fine.
More Recipes You’ll Love!
If you love this recipe, make sure to try my Crockpot Fajitas!
For more delicious pork recipes try…
- Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin
- Brown Sugar Spiral Ham
- Maple Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin
- Crockpot Ranch Pork Chops
Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 pound pork butt
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 jalapeno pepper
- 1 onion
- 1 orange
- 1 lime
Instructions
- Rinse the roast and dry it well.
- In a medium size bowl, mix together brown sugar, ground cumin, oregano, salt, garlic powder, peper, and paprika. Stir in 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Rub this mixture all over the pork butt. Place the seasoned pork into the slow cooker, fat on top.
- Remove seeds from the jalapeno pepper, slice it up and place it on and around the roast. Dice the onion and place it on and around the roast.
- Halve the orange and squeeze the juice over the roast, add the orange halves to the slow cooker. Halve the lime and squeeze the juice over the roast, add the lime halves to the slow cooker
- Cook the roast at high power for 8 hours
- Remove the roast from the pot and place it onto a cutting board. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes. Shred the meat using 2 forks.
- Place the remaining 1 Tablespoon of olive oil into a large skillet. Heat the skillet to high heat.
- Caramelize the pork by frying it (in batches- don't crowd the pan). Place about ¼ of the shredded pork and about ¼ cup of the juices from the crock pot in the skillet. Press the meat onto the bottom and allow it to sear. Continue this until all of the meat has been seared.
- Place the seared meat into your serving container. You may serve the meat drizzled with some of the remaining juices from the crock pot if you like.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Melin says
Hahaha
Great answer Christi
This looks amazing and I’m gonna have to give these carnitas a try
David Nila says
First of all, “carnitas” are not pull pork, they are cooked different and what you are doing are not carnitas at all.
Carnitas in order to be called carnitas they need to be cooked in lard in a big cooper pot for at least 4 hours.
This is the reason people around the world think that Tex Mex is authentic Mexican food when is not. So please, stop calling carnitas what are not carnitas.
Christi Johnstone says
So first of all, it’s a recipe, if you don’t like it, don’t make it, and we can then mark you safe from “a carnitas recipe that David doesn’t approve of”. And second, to quote the lovely Taylor Swift… “You are somebody that I don’t know. But you’re taking shots at me like it’s Patrón and I’m just like “Damn, it’s 7 a.m.” And I’m just like, “Hey, are you okay?”. You need to calm down.”
It sounds you like you could use a cookie my friend. I have lots of recipes for them. Enjoy!