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–+ servings
Easy Carnitas

Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas

Pork shoulder rubbed with cumin, oregano, and smoked paprika, slow cooked with orange juice, lime, and garlic until fall-apart tender, then shredded and broiled until the edges crisp and caramelize. Set it before work, shred it when you get home, run it under the broiler for five minutes. That's carnitas.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 10 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, Mexican
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

Meat & Protein

  • 3 lbs pork shoulder bone-in or boneless, also sold as pork butt — trimmed of excess fat

Produce

  • 1 yellow onion quartered
  • 5 garlic cloves smashed
  • 1 orange juiced — about 0.5 cup
  • 2 lime juiced, plus wedges for serving
  • 0.25 cup fresh cilantro roughly chopped, for serving

Pantry & Canned Goods

  • 0.5 cup chicken broth low sodium
  • 16 flour tortillas small, or hard taco shells — warmed, for serving

Seasonings & Spices

  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1.5 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 0.5 tsp black pepper
  • 0.5 tsp chili powder
  • 0.25 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 bay leaf

Instructions
 

  • Mix together the cumin, salt, smoked paprika, oregano, black pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over the pork shoulder on all sides.
  • Place the quartered onion, smashed garlic, orange juice, lime juice, chicken broth, and bay leaf in the bottom of the slow cooker. Set the seasoned pork shoulder on top.
  • Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 to 5 hours, until the pork shreds easily when pulled with a fork.
  • Remove the pork to a cutting board. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid from the slow cooker — do not discard it. Shred the pork using two forks, discarding any large pieces of fat or bone.
  • Preheat the broiler to high. Spread the shredded pork in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Ladle about half a cup of the reserved cooking liquid over the pork. Broil for 5 minutes until the edges start to crisp and caramelize. Pull the pan out, toss the pork, ladle over another quarter cup of liquid, and broil for another 3 to 5 minutes until deeply golden and crispy in spots.
  • Serve immediately in warm tortillas topped with fresh cilantro, a squeeze of lime, and your choice of salsa, sour cream, diced white onion, or sliced avocado.

Notes

Do not use pork loin for this recipe. Loin is too lean — it will dry out over eight hours in the slow cooker. Pork shoulder or pork butt has the fat and connective tissue that breaks down during slow cooking into the juicy, tender texture carnitas need.
The broiler step is not optional. Without it you have pulled pork — good, but not carnitas. The crisped, caramelized edges are the defining characteristic of the dish and they only happen under high, direct heat. Five minutes under the broiler is all it takes.
This recipe makes enough for 8 generous servings. Leftovers freeze well — store shredded pork with some of the cooking liquid in a zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Reheat in a skillet and re-broil to restore the crisp.
Keyword carnitas recipe, carnitas tacos, crockpot carnitas, easy carnitas, pork carnitas, slow cooker pork carnitas, slow cooker pulled pork
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