Delicious tender, crispy pork carnitas made easy by seasoning a pork roast or Boston butt with Mexican spices, cooking in the slow cooker then getting those famous crispy bits by placing under the broiler.
JUMP TO RECIPETrue carnitas slow-cook in melted lard like a confit but... ain’t nobody got two gallons of lard for that.
Plus, as much as I love the technique (and lard), I just can't bring myself to cook fatty meat IN fat.
The method that comes the closest? Slow cooking the pork WITHOUT WATER or other liquid, drizzling a little rendered fat over the chopped meat then popping it under the broiler to get those magical crispy bits!
This is one of my go-to recipes for entertaining. You can feed a lot of people with this recipe without going broke and with very little effort!
I typically serve carnitas two ways... Either on a plate with borracho beans, rice and guacamole salad or, if I'm feeding a crowd, I set out a stack of taco-sized flour tortillas with these taco fixin's then let everyone make their own carnitas tacos.
PS… I like to assemble my carnitas tacos with these specific ingredients: diced onion, chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice.
HOW TO MAKE CROCK POT CARNITAS
- Rub the pork roast with spices then refrigerate overnight.
- Slow-cook the pork roast in a crock pot.
- Chop the meat then spread onto a baking tray.
- Drizzle some of the rendered fat over the chopped meat.
- Broil until the pork starts to sizzle and crisp up!
Recipe for Crock Pot Carnitas
WHAT TO SERVE WITH CROCK POT CARNITAS
- Mexican Restaurant-Style Rice -A simple recipe with just a few ingredients just like the rice at our favorite Mexican restaurant and a perfect side dish to serve at home with your favorite Mexican recipes!
- Borracho Beans - Mexican Borracho Beans cooked low and slow with pintos, pork, spices and beer. The PERFECT side dish for your next Mexican feast!
- Mexican Street Corn - An easy recipe for Esquites served off the cob as a side dish or warm salad with Mexican crumbling cheese, a creamy spread, fresh cilantro and chili powder.
Crock Pot Carnitas
Ingredients
- 1 6-7 pound boston butt roast
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 limes
Instructions
- Combine salt and spices in a small bowl then mix well. Rub the roast with oil then coat with spice mixture. Cover and refrigerate roast to marinate in the spices overnight (or at least 8 hours).
- Cook roast (without adding water or other liquid) in slow cooker, covered, on high for 6-7 hours or low for 10-12 hours.
- Remove roast from cooker then let rest for at least 30 minutes (an hour or more is better). Meanwhile, pour rendered cooking liquid into a measuring pitcher then let sit until liquid and fat have separated. Spoon fat off and set aside.
- Roughly chop roast into chunks and spread onto a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Cut limes into wedges then squeeze juice all over pork. I toss the squeezed lime pieces into the pan with the pork for extra flavor.
- Drizzle 1/2 cup of the rendered fat over the pork. Place baking sheet on the top oven rack then broil on high until pork pieces begin to sizzle and crisp up. Remove from oven and serve.
- Serve carnitas as-is or assemble into soft tacos.
Looks delicious! I've never made pork carnitas. I need to fire up the slow cooker!
ReplyDeleteI just watched your cookbook presentation on QVC. I can't wait to receive mine!! Isn't David V. awesome? You made him do his happy dance LOL. I'm printing this recipe right now and have a pork shoulder in the freezer. We happily have a smoker.
ReplyDeleteThese are in the broiler now! I'm going to top them with cheese, pickled red onions and sour cream. Can't wait!
ReplyDeletefamily favorite - I often take out of the freezer before bedtime and cook slow until/for dinner the next day . . . never seems to miss any tastiness by not marinating. :)
ReplyDeleteWe made this recipe and it was delicious! Hubby really like it. The whole family did! We will definitely be making these again and again. Thanks for a great recipe!
ReplyDeleteCan you make this with pork belly instead of shoulder or butt? Or would having more fat in the meat alter the dish in some way? I have a lot of pork belly in the freezer but not a lot of shoulders, and the butt roasts I use for pulled pork instead.
ReplyDeleteI use whatever I have on hand that has that fattiest meat, since the long cooking in lard is what makes it so amazing.
DeleteAre you using a bone in roast?
ReplyDeleteEither is great
DeleteThis looks amazing! I do have two questions a) approximately how long do you broil the meat? b) Is the rendered fat the part that you skim out of the pitcher or the part that remains? Thank you for sharing with us!
ReplyDeleteThis is the absolute best, easy, delicioso!!!
ReplyDeletelooks like minced BBQ
ReplyDeleteMindblowing! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThank you for developing this recipe. It has become a huge family favorite; we make it about once a month! I really appreciate the flavors that develop from the rub.
ReplyDeleteHow hot (cayenne) is this? My wifey is a little hesitant about the heat.
ReplyDeleteI don't find this to be hot at all but you can always reduce the amount by half to play it safe ;)
DeleteSo could I use have of the meat mixture for Carnitas and put BBQ sauce on the rest of the meat mixture and have pulled pork??
ReplyDeleteSure!
Delete