Pork Carnitas {Instant Pot or Slow Cooker}

Published March 6, 2018. Updated March 21, 2020

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Carnitas are the best!  These are easily just as good as what you’d find in any Mexican restaurant but you get to enjoy them at a fraction of the price in the comfort of your own home!


They’re brimming with those rich, authentic flavors we all love from the classic pork carnitas tacos and they’re much easier to make than you’d think.

Pork Carnitas

Carnitas

This recipe gives you both options of cooking in either the Slow Cooker or Instant Pot so use whichever you own for incredible results either way!

As a matter of fact the slow cooker or pressure cooker does most of the work. You just add everything to the slow cooker or Instant Pot then cook for 8 hours in the slow cooker, or 1 hour in the Instant Pot.

Then once the pork is nice and tender you shred it up and broil it on a baking sheet with some of the juices and a little oil. And you’ll end up with these delicious crispy little pieces of pork that you won’t be able to stop “taste testing.”

Easy as that. Throw the carnitas into tortilla’s, add some cilantro and diced onions and tada. Such a satisfying dinner! All your friends/siblings/boss/grandma/dog will want this recipe!

Carnitas shown here after broiling on a baking sheet

What are Carnitas Anyway?

If you haven’t had Carnitas you are probably trying to figure out exactly what “Carnitas” means. It’s a spanish word meaning “little meats.”  It’s a Mexican dish and generally it’s made by braising or roasting pork then shredding it and simmering in lard or vegetable oil until crispy.

But here we switch that up and use the slow cooker/pressure cooker, and broil the pork it instead of sautéing it in oil to get that same crispy effect. Broiling it takes less time, creates less mess, and requires less oil.

And I go for semi-crispy. I like the ends of the meat to be nice and crispy but I recommend that you don’t overdue it. You don’t want to dry the meat.

Carnitas shown here after broiling on a dark baking sheet garnished with cilantro

How to Make Carnitas in the Slow Cooker

  • Place pork in slow cooker. Pour in chicken broth, orange juice and lime juice.
  • Sprinkle in salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, coriander, chili powder and cayenne pepper, onions and garlic.
  • Cover and cook on low heat 8 hours.
  • Leave liquid in slow cooker, remove pork and shred with two forks.
  • Spray a rimmed 18 by 13-inch baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Place pork on baking sheet, pour over 1 cup reserved broth (try and strain out onions when ladling broth out), drizzle with oil and toss and spread into an even layer.
  • Position oven rack near broiler and preheat broiler to high.
  • Broil until pork is browned and crispy in places about 3 – 6 minutes.
  • Serve warm in tortillas with desired toppings.

How to Make Carnitas in the Instant Pot

  • Cut pork into 4 chunks and place pork in Instant Pot, pour over chicken broth, orange juice and lime juice.
  • Sprinkle in salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, coriander, chili powder and cayenne pepper, onions and garlic.
  • Cover and seal lid (make sure valve is set to “sealing” position), press “manual” (or high pressure) and select 60 minutes.
  • Once cooking is done, let pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes then use quick release method to release any remaining pressure.
  • Once steaming has stopped remove pork from pressure cooker while leaving broth in pressure cooker.
  • Shred pork and proceed with broiling method starting at step 5 above.

Carnitas shown here are the charred corn tortillas for serving carnitas on

What About an Oven Option for Carnitas?

If you don’t have a slow cooker or pressure cooker I’ve also made these in the oven.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut pork into 4 portions place in a large pot and cover, then and roast with the broth, juices and spices until it easily shreds with a fork, about 3 1/2 – 4 hours. Then proceed with the broiling method as noted.

And why didn’t I brown the pork first in the recipe? Because you brown it at the end after shedding so why brown it twice?

I’ve made these carnitas all three ways, slow cooker, instant pot, and oven roasted. Each of them works great so use what you have and what’s convenient for you.

Three carnitas tacos shown here on black a plate in corn tortillas

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Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Carnitas
5 from 13 votes

Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas

These Carnitas are just as good as what you'd find in any Mexican restaurant! They have the best flavor and that crispy texture will have you reaching for piece after piece. This is one of those recipes that everyone in the family can agree on, they're just too good!
Servings: 7
Prep10 minutes
Cook8 hours
Ready in: 8 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

Slow cooker method:

  • Place pork in slow cooker. Pour in chicken broth, orange juice and lime juice. 
  • Sprinkle in salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, coriander, chili powder and cayenne pepper, onions and garlic.
  • Cover and cook on low heat 8 hours.
  • Leave liquid in slow cooker, remove pork and shred with two forks.
  • Spray a rimmed 18 by 13-inch baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Place pork on baking sheet, pour over 1 cup reserved broth (try and strain out onions when ladling broth out), drizzle with oil and toss and spread into an even layer.
  • Position oven rack near broiler and preheat broiler to high.
  • Broil until pork is browned and crispy in places about 3 - 6 minutes.
  • Serve warm in tortillas with desired toppings.

Instant Pot method:

  • Cut pork into 4 chunks and place pork in Instant Pot, pour over chicken broth, orange juice and lime juice.
  • Sprinkle in salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, coriander, chili powder and cayenne pepper, onions and garlic.
  • Cover and seal lid (make sure valve is set to "sealing" position), press "manual" (or high pressure) and select 60 minutes.
  • Once cooking is done, let pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes then use quick release method to release any remaining pressure.
  • Once steaming has stopped remove pork from pressure cooker while leaving broth in pressure cooker. 
  • Shred pork and proceed with broiling method starting at step 5 above.
  • Instant Pot method will take approx. 80 minutes + 10 minutes prep.
  • Recipe source: Cooking Classy, recipe updated from archives originally shared July 2013.

Notes

1.*Italian oregano can be substituted if you can't find Mexican oregano.
2. For an oven option see notes in post above.
3.Tortillas and toppings not included in nutritional value.
 
Nutrition Facts
Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Amount Per Serving
Calories 294 Calories from Fat 117
% Daily Value*
Fat 13g20%
Saturated Fat 6g38%
Cholesterol 108mg36%
Sodium 797mg35%
Potassium 738mg21%
Carbohydrates 6g2%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 30g60%
Vitamin A 145IU3%
Vitamin C 17.2mg21%
Calcium 45mg5%
Iron 2.9mg16%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.

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69 Comments

  • Jennifer

    My family loves this recipe. I’m having a large group over for dinner and was thinking about doubling the recipe. Do I need to adjust the cooking time if I’m using my instant pot?

      • Al May

        We tried this recipe for a family gathering. Note that we have a few picky eaters. I must say there were no complaints. Everyone truly loved it. Many Thanks!

  • Patrick

    UNNNNREAL!!!! Made this tonight for New Years dinner and have to say this might be the best thing I’ve ever made. Used the recipe at the top of the page, added a cinnamon stick (from old recipe) and followed the oven instructions. Garnished with cogita, cilantro and pickled red onions. Black beans on the side. Absolutely ridiculous! Thanks for another great recipe & Happy 2020!!!

  • Jennifer Stewart

    Delicious! How do you scale up the recipe to cook for a bigger crowd?

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      For the slow cooker I’d just do a larger pork (depending on what will fit in the slow cooker for you), then add more of the spices.

  • Emily

    I’ve made this recipe (the original one, the slow cooker version) probably 50 times since you first posted it. I’ve brought it to Easter dinners. I’ve brought it to Friendsgivings. It’s enotmously popular and honestly one of my all time favorite recipes. Haven’t had the chance to really look at the updated recipe but I just wanted to thank you for bringing so much joy into my life (and my family & friends’ lives) with this recipe!

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      I’m so glad and others have enjoyed the recipe Emily! Thanks so much for the great review! Happy New Year!

    • Brooke

      Do you have the original? I make it often and would love the original version.

  • Katie C

    This was delicious! We made some pickled onions and served with hot sauce, cilantro and the onions! We will make again! Thank you!

  • Mia

    This recipe was so delicious that I made it for my friends and they all asked for the recipe and made it themselves. It is crispy while still juicy and is so easy to make!

  • Sharon Bond

    It’s five years after your post, so I have no clue if you’ll see my question.

    However, I can but try!

    I will need to use the oven method for the carnitas, but your recipe doesn’t specify a temperature that I can find.

    Help!

    Thank you!

  • Brooke Bolton

    Was there a different version of this? I remember using a cinnamon stick, and zesting the limes/oranges. And more oregano.

    • Heather Beard

      I was thinking the same thing. Jaclyn, can you repost the old version? It was my go to recipe for carnitas!

      • Jaclyn

        Jaclyn Bell

        Here’s that older version:

        3 lbs boneless pork shoulder , trimmed of excess fat and cut into 4 chunks
        1 1/2 tsp salt , then more to taste as desired
        1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
        3 Tbsp olive oil
        1 yellow onion , peeled and sliced into 4 thick rings
        4 cloves garlic , minced
        1 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
        Juice of 2 large oranges and zest of 1 1/2 oranges (1/2 cup juice)
        Juice and zest of 1 lime (2 Tbsp juice)
        1 tsp chili powder
        1 tsp ground cumin
        1/2 tsp paprika
        1/4 tsp ground coriander
        1/4 – 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper , to taste
        2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
        1 cinnamon stick
        Corn tortillas , avocados, cilantro and lime juice, for serving
        Instructions
        Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sprinkle pieces of pork evenly with salt and pepper and rub into pork. Heat olive oil in a large cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add in two of the pork pieces and brown on all sides until well browned, while moving pork as little as possible while browning. Remove pieces and repeat with remaining two pieces of pork, then remove pork and add in onions. Saute onions until golden about 2 minutes per side and adding in garlic during last 30 seconds of sauteing. Reduce heat to medium-low, add in chicken broth, orange juice and lime juice and scrape bottom of pan to loosen browned bits. Return pork to pot, sprinkle evenly with orange and lime zest, chili powder, cumin, paprika, coriander and cayenne pepper and fresh oregano (you want half of the zest/spices to go over the tops of the pork and the other half to go into the broth). Add cinnamon stick to broth in center of pot. Transfer to oven and bake, uncovered in preheated oven 3 – 3 1/2 hours rotating pork once during baking and covering pot at about 2 1/2 hours as needed to prevent excessive browning and to reserve a small amount of broth (you want about 1/2-inch of broth when it’s done cooking to toss the shredded pork into).
        Remove from oven and shred or dice pork into bite size pieces, while removing any pieces of fat. Return to broth in pot and toss to evenly coat. (Optional step) Heat oven to broil and return pot to lower half oven and broil 4 – 5 minutes, then remove from oven and toss. Return to oven and broil 4 – 5 minutes longer. Remove from oven, serve warm over corn tortillas with diced avocados, chopped cilantro and lime juice. Optionally you can also serve with lettuce, Monterey Jack, pico or salsa, hot sauce or sour cream.
        Slow Cooker Method: Cut roast into 2 halves. Brown roast and other ingredients as listed above, then add all ingredients to a slow cooker, cover and cook on low heat 6 – 7 hours, until tender. Shred roast into bite size pieces. Line a baking sheet with foil. Transfer pork to baking sheet and align in a single layer, pour about 1 cup broth evenly over pork and broil in oven 4 – 7 minutes then toss and broil 4 – 7 minutes longer (I actually ended up pouring more broth over them after broiling for more flavor).