Delicious Slow Cooker Carnitas

I believe I have shared only one recipe on my blog in the eight years I have writing.  You know this has to be one of my families favorite dishes for me to share it here.  I  found this delicious carnita recipe on Platings And Pairings and I’ve now made them twice and everyone absolutely loved them.  I have tried numerous carnita recipes and this one is hands down the best!

Slow Cooker Carnitas Street Tacos

Prep time
1 hour
Cook time
10 mins
Total time
1 hour 10 mins
Author: Platings & Pairings
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 1 cup
Ingredients
  • Tortillas (I used a corn-flour blend)
  • 1 avocado, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup cilantro, chopped
  • 1 lime, cut
  • Carnitas
  • 4-6 lbs. pork shoulder, slightly trimmed of excess fat
  • 1 tbsp. garlic salt
  • 1 tbsp. cumin
  • 2 tsp. dried oregano
  • 2 tsp. brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. dried basil
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 2 oranges, sliced in half
  • 1 lime, sliced in half
  • Pickled Onions
  • 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
  • ½ cup apple cider vinegar
  • ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
  • ⅛ – ¼ cup sugar
  • ½ tablespoon kosher salt
  • Pinch crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

Carnitas
  1. Combine garlic salt, chili powder, dried oregano, dried basil, cumin, ground coriander, brown sugar, and sweet paprika.
  2. Rub the spice mixture evenly over the pork. Place pork in the bottom of a slow cooker.
  3. Squeeze the juice from the oranges and limes over the pork. Place rinds pulp side down in slow cooker over the meat.
  4. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours, or until pork is tender and falling off the bone. Use a fork to pull away from bone and discard it.
  5. Preheat oven broiler. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper and arrange pork in a single layer.
  6. Taste the pork for saltiness. You may want to sprinkle some additional salt on top. (I especially like using my homemade citrus salts at this stage of the recipe!)
  7. Place underneath broiler until tips of pork are browned and slightly crisp, about 3-5 minutes. (Don’t walk away from it. Keep an eye on meat to make sure it doesn’t burn or become overly browned).
Pickled Onions
  1. Add sliced onions to a medium bowl. Pour enough boiling water over them to fully cover and count to 10. Drain onions and place in jar or bow.
  2. Heat vinegar, lime juice, ⅛ cup sugar, chili flakes and salt in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar has dissolved, about 3 minutes.
  3. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar as needed.
  4. Pour vinegar mixture over onions.
  5. Allow to stand at room temperature, until fully cooled. Cover and refrigerate up to 2 weeks.
Assembly
  1. Place carnitas in tortillas and serve topped with sliced avocado and cilantro. Pass around extra limes for garnish.
*We also add a little salsa and sour cream to our tacos…delicious.Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you at the Share The Style Party starting this evening.

Lucia
Author

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