Crock Pot Carnitas

A quick and easy dinner using your slow cooker! These Crock Pot Carnitas are perfectly crispy, yet tender and juicy with so much flavor from the blend of spices. Pile seasoned pork in a soft tortilla with your favorite toppings for an easy weeknight dinner recipe.

Taco night will get a big upgrade when you try crock pot carnitas! Tender, fall-apart pork simmered in flavorful citrus and spices is a recipe that is destined to be a new favorite at your house.

Carnitas are a Mexican dish made with pork shoulder and spices. It’s similar to pulled pork but with all of the bold Mexican-inspired flavors you know and love. Carnitas actually translates to “little meats”, since the pork is shredded into bite-sized pieces once cooked.

Traditional carnitas are usually cooked on the stove or in the oven, resulting in really tender meat that has some crispy edges. You can create this same result using your slow cooker and broiler. It’s really easy. The best part is that once it’s in the crock pot you can leave it all day and let it do its thing. You don’t have to fuss over it and can treat yourself to a margarita while it cooks!

Why You’ll Love these Crock Pot Carnitas

• This is a fabulous recipe for meal prep. Just allow the meat to cool and then transfer to container. Store in the fridge or freezer until needed!
• You can serve slow cooker carnitas in many different ways. It’s a versatile meat and is oh so tasty!
• There is so much flavor in a recipe like crock pot carnitas. You’ll love an easy dish like this that produces maximum flavor with minimal effort!

Ingredients for Crock Pot Carnitas

• Pork shoulder – Grab a pork should that is betwen 3.5-5 lbs. This will yield about 8-10 servings!
• Minced garlic – Add loads of flavor to your carnitas with some freshly minced garlic.
• Yellow onion – Sliced yellow onion will infused flavor into every bite of this slow cooker carnitas recipe.
• Orange juice – I prefer fresh-squeezed orange juice for this recipe. Pre-prepared orange juice has too much sugar, and you’ll definitely want the tartness from the fresh juice.
• Lime juice – I highly recommend using fresh squeezed lime juice instead of bottled. The fresh has a much better flavor.
• Diced green chilis – Add a little kick to this recipe with a can of diced green chilis.
• Seasonings –
  • cumin
  • oregano
  • salt
  • black pepper
  • smoked paprika

What is the best cut of pork for carnitas?

The key to the best carnitas is using the right cut of pork. Pork shoulder is a tougher cut of meat that has a high-fat content. When it’s cooked low and slow for hours, all of that fat melts into the meat making it super tender and delicious. You can use boneless or bone-in for this recipe.

You can also use pork butt which is a similar cut. Whichever you use, you will need one that is three to five pounds.

How to Make Crock Pot Carnitas

1. Mix the spices for the rub in a small bowl, then rub the mixture all over the pork shoulder and then place the pork fat-side-up in the crock pot.
2. Top the pork with the onions, garlic, and green chiles. Pour the citrus juice over the top.
3. Place the lid on the crock pot and cook the carnitas for 10 hours on low or 7 hours on high.
4. Once cooked, transfer the pork to a large cutting board and shred it using two forks. Place it back in the crock pot and simmer it for 30 minutes.
5. Spread the shredded meat on a lined sheet pan. If needed, use two pans so the meat isn’t crowded onto one. In order to get it crispy, it needs to be in a mostly single layer.
6. Broil the carnitas for a few minutes or until parts of the meat crispy up and turn brown. Take it out of the oven and it’s ready to serve!

How to Serve Crock Pot Carnitas

Our favorite way to serve this delicious, fall-apart tender meat is as a filling for tacos! But you don’t have to stick to tacos! Use this shredded pork to make quesadillas, nachos, taco bowls, burritos, burrito bowls, or enchiladas. I also use it salads!

If you go with the classic taco option, warm up flour tortillas or corn tortillas and add some carnitas. Then top them with your favorite toppings — here are some we love:

• Classic Salsa, creamy avocado salsa, or pico de gallo.
• Homemade guacamole or sliced avocados.
• Shredded cheese, like cheddar or Monterey Jack. Cotjita, which is a Mexican crumbling cheese, is amazing with this slow cooker pork carnitas recipe too.
• Some chopped fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice over the top is so tasty!

Don’t forget the side dishes like Spanish rice and refried beans. Taco dip and queso are always great sides too!

How to Store Leftover Carnitas

Transfer leftover carnitas to an airtight container and allow to cool completely.

FRIDGE: Store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

FREEZER: Leftovers will freeze well for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw before reheating.

How to Reheat Carnitas

You can reheat carnitas in the oven, the microwave, or in a skillet on the stove top with a bit of oil. Feel free to add a splash of orange juice or lime juice if you find the meat is a bit too dry when reheating.

I know you’re going to love making homemade carnitas! The hardest part of this recipe is waiting for that delicious meat to simmer and tenderize. I hope you love it!

More Mexican-Inspired Crock Pot Recipes

I LOVE my crock pot! Here are more ways to make life easy in the kitchen. Or browse all of my crock pot recipes for even more ideas!

• You only need three ingredients to make the best Chicken Tacos in your slow cooker. We make this easy dinner on repeat!
• Fiesta Chicken is an easy recipe with rice, chicken, and pico de gallo that is light and delicious.
• Make Steak Fajitas in your crock pot for the best taco Tuesday dinner!
• Mexican Quinoa Bake cooks in the slow cooker for a hearty and filling meal. It’s great for weeknights!