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Plate of shredded pork carnitas ready to serve.
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5 from 13 votes

Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas

Adapted from The Kitchn Cookbook: Recipes, Kitchens & Tips to Inspire Your Cooking with a few changes to tone down the spice.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time8 hours
Total Time8 hours 15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: Cinco de Mayo, crockpot, easy, keto, low carb, party food
Servings: 15 people
Author: Marissa Stevens

Ingredients

  • 1 boneless pork shoulder (6 to 8 pounds; also called pork butt and boston butt)
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
  • 8 cloves garlic smashed
  • 1 cup tomato juice
  • 1 cup orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons chipotle hot sauce such as Tabasco or Cholula brands

Instructions

  • Place trimmed pork shoulder in a large slow cooker.
  • In a small bowl, stir together salt, cumin, pepper, oregano, cinnamon, and cayenne; rub mixture over pork on all sides. Sprinkle on garlic cloves.
  • Whisk tomato juice, orange juice and chipotle hot sauce in a medium bowl and pour over meat. Cook 8 hours on low, or until pork is pull apart tender.
  • Let meat cool slightly in cooking liquid before carefully transferring to a large bowl. Shred meat into bite size pieces using two forks.
  • Skim fat off of cooking juices and discard (recipe note #3). Stir 1 cup or more of the cooking juices to the meat to moisten. Refrigerate remaining juices for reheating the pork (see note #1) or freeze for another use (see note #2).
  • Serve pork immediately or reheated in tacos, on tostadas, in burritos, on salads, and more! (See post for links to my favorite recipes.)

Video

Notes

  1. My favorite way to reheat pork carnitas is in a slick of hot oil in a non-stick or cast iron skillet until the meat is heated through and the edges are crisp, adding a little bit of the cooking liquid for flavor and moisture. 
  2. Don't throw the cooking liquid away! If you have some left over when your pork carnitas is gone, you can freeze it. It makes a great start for chili or other savory soup.
  3. Or save the fat and use to fry tortillas for decadent delicious pork carnitas tacos!

Nutrition

Calories: 286kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 1114mg | Potassium: 903mg | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 240IU | Vitamin C: 12.2mg | Calcium: 36mg | Iron: 2.5mg

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