Instant Pot Carnitas – straightforward!

At a glance

What stands out: Meltingly tender, Instant Pot carnitas are ready in a fraction of the time it normally takes to make this traditional braised pork. So flavorful and rich, carnitas will become an Instant Pot favorite!

How long it takes: 1 hour, 35 minutes (mostly hands-off time)
Equipment you’ll need: Instant Pot pressure cooker, sheet pan
Servings: 8

What Are Carnitas?

You could say that carnitas are Mexican pulled pork. Literally translated “little meats,” pork carnitas are traditionally braised in lard or oil for three to four hours until the pork is fall-apart tender, with crispy bits. Served in charred corn tortillas and topped with pico de gallo, carnitas are so finger-licking good and it’s not surprising how popular they are.

Straightforward Instant Pot Carnitas

Pressure cooking greatly reduces cooking time. Instead of braising pork for half a day, these Instant Pot carnitas are well-done and so unbelievably tender in an hour! (Disclaimer: that doesn’t include marinating time.)

Healthier than traditional methods. While braising the pork in lard undoubtedly makes rich carnitas, it adds a lot of fat to an already fatty meat. When you use an Instant Pot, the pressurized heat tenderizes the meat without sacrificing flavor.

A flavorful marinade. We love that the meat is marinated right in the Instant Pot, and then cooked in the marinade so you end up with such flavorful pork. The marinade is made with orange and lime juice, lots of garlic, along with herbs and seasonings.

Can be made ahead. Make the pork ahead and reheat it under the broiler when you’re ready to serve it with your favorite taco toppings. Serve Instant Pot carnitas at your next get-together.

What Kind Of Pork To Buy

We usually use boneless pork shoulder or Boston butt (or pork butt) to make carnitas. They’re similar cuts but pork butt is generally a little more tender. Since the pork is cubed before it’s cooked, it’s much easier if the pork is boneless. You’ll need four to five pounds.

How it comes together

How much time you’ll need: The total cooking time, including prep time, marinating, time to pressurize, cooking, natural release, and broiling is approximately 1 hour and 35 minutes. Most of the time is hands-off which allows you time to prep the toppings and side dishes you’ll need.

Mix up a simple marinade of orange juice, lime juice, fresh garlic, dried bay leaves, and seasoning. The seasoning is a mixture of salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, oregano, and coriander, all simple pantry items. If you intend to make carnitas on a regular basis, you could mix up a big batch of the seasoning and keep a jar of it on hand. We like to do that with taco seasoning and salmon seasoning. So convenient!

Marinate the pork. Cut the meat into two inch chunks, more or less. Trim off excess fat and put the pork right into your Instant Pot. Pour the marinade over the pork, stir it up, and let it marinate for 30 minutes. You don’t need to refrigerate it while it’s marinating. It’s actually better to let the meat warm up a little so it cooks more evenly. However, if you want to marinate it longer than 30 minutes, definitely refrigerate it.

Pressure cook. Cover the Instant Pot, and set it to Pressure Cook for 15 minutes. (Some models will be Manual, High Pressure). It takes about twenty additional minutes to come to pressure. Allow the pressure to natural release for fifteen minutes, then release any remaining pressure.

Broil the cooked pork. You may be wondering about the “crispy bits.” Aren’t they what make carnitas so good? That’s why we add one final step!

When the pork is cool enough to handle, remove it from the Instant Pot and spread it out on a sheet pan. Shred the pork chunks with a couple of forks, sprinkle on some of the cooking liquid, and broil the carnitas for five to ten minutes until the pork browns just a bit. You decide how brown and crispy you want it.

Stovetop method: If you don’t want to turn your oven on, you can brown carnitas in a large skillet over high heat. Heat for about five minutes without stirring so the shredded pork browns on the bottom, stir well, and continue until it’s browned and lightly crisped.

Ways to serve it

You’ll find that there are many ways to serve carnitas!

• Traditional: Serve carnitas with lightly charred corn tortillas, from-scratch pico de gallo, lime wedges, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded cabbage, guacamole, pickled onions, and sour cream or crema.
• Burritos: Serve carnitas wrapped in flour tortillas with toppings to make burritos.
• Meal bowls: Serve carnitas with rice or another grain in a bowl, with desired toppings.
• Nachos: Like loaded chips and cheese? Carnitas are reliable to make nachos. Add carnitas to these cauliflower nachos, replacing the chicken with pork.
• Side dishes: Mexican corn dip, refried beans, and cilantro lime rice are reliable choices to serve with your carnitas. Don’t forget tortilla chips with salsa and a frosty Dos Equis beer.

Slow Cooker Carnitas

Looking for a carnitas recipe you can make in your crockpot? Try slow cooker carnitas. They have the same flavor, are incredibly tender, and are just as straightforward to mix. For another twist on “Mexican pulled pork”, try slow cooker pork tacos, with a zesty tomatillo sauce.

Get The Recipe

Make Ahead Tips

Make carnitas a day or two ahead, but skip the crisping step (broiler or frying pan). Gently reheat the meat in a slow cooker or Dutch oven and then crisp it up under the broiler before serving.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate/Freeze: Pork carnitas are great leftover. In fact, they taste a little better the next day. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for three to four days, or up to three months in the freezer.

Free Meal Plan

Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at Meal Plan #79. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. We add a new meal plan weekly.

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• Yield: 8
• Prep: 10 minutes
• Cook: 35 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 to 5 pounds boneless pork shoulder or pork butt (see note)
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• ½ cup fresh orange juice (from 1 large orange)
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander (optional)
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

For Serving (your choice):

• charred corn tortillas, pico de gallo, lime wedges, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded cabbage, guacamole, pickled onions, sour cream or crema

Method

1. Trim the excess fat from the pork, and cut it into roughly 2-inch cubes. Put the pork into the Instant Pot.
2. Combine chicken broth, orange juice, lime juice, garlic, bay leaves, salt, cumin, oregano, paprika, coriander, and pepper in small bowl or measuring cup.
3. Pour marinade over the pork, stir to coat well. Marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes. Note: If you want to marinate the pork longer, refrigerate it. Bring to room temperature before cooking.
4. Cover Instant Pot, turn valve to seal, and set for Pressure Cook for 15 minutes (or Manual, High Pressure, depending on your model). Pork will take approximately 20 minutes to come to full pressure before the cooking time starts.
5. When the timer goes off, allow pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes before turning valve to vent any remaining pressure.
6. Allow the meat to cool enough to handle. Use a slotted spoon to remove pork to a large sheet pan. Using two forks, shred the pork on the sheet pan, arranging it in a single layer.
7. Drizzle the shredded pork with a small amount of the cooking liquid (½ to 1 cup). Broil for 5 minutes until tips of pork are slightly crisp. (Skillet method: Heat the pork in a large heavy skillet over high heat, stirring only once or twice).
8. Serve with charred corn tortillas, pico de gallo, and desired toppings. You can also use carnitas in burritos, bowls, salads, nachos, or quesadillas.

Notes

Pork: Boneless country-style ribs, cut into 2 inch chunks, can be substituted for a boneless pork shoulder. If you can’t find boneless pork, bone-in pork shoulder is fine, too. Cut around the bone and discard it. Avoid using a boneless pork loin roast because they are too lean and tend to be more tough and dry.

To char corn tortillas: Put a small corn tortilla directly on a gas burner over medium low heat. When lightly charred (about 2 minutes), use tongs to flip the tortilla over and char the other side (about 1 minute). Repeat for each tortilla.

Storage: Refrigerate leftover pork in an airtight container for three to four days, or up to three months in the freezer.

Make ahead tip: Make carnitas a day or two ahead, but skip the crisping step. Gently reheat in a slow cooker or Dutch oven, and then crisp them up under the broiler.

Slow cooker: If you prefer to use your crockpot to make carnitas, try our slow cooker carnitas.