Tender, flavorful, and irresistibly juicy, these Slow Cooker Carnitas are the ultimate hands-off recipe for a delicious meal with minimal effort. Simply season your pork, let it simmer low and slow in the slow cooker, and in a few hours, you’ll have succulent, melt-in-your-mouth carnitas that are perfect for tacos, burritos, or even a hearty salad. The slow cooking process allows the flavors to fully develop, creating a rich, savory base with a hint of citrus and spices. Whether you’re feeding a crowd or meal prepping for the week, these carnitas are sure to become a family favorite. Serve them with your favorite toppings, and you’ve got a quick, flavorful feast that’s ready to enjoy
6 servings, 4 hours and 15 minutes, 225 calories and 32g protein per carnitas
Ingredients
- 2lbs pork tenderloin
- half one onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 medium jalapeno
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 4-5 tablespoons fresh navel orange juice
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon avocado
You'll Need
- Small bowl
- Whisk
- Cutting board
- Slow cooker
- Internal meat thermometer
- Medium skillet
- Add 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, and 1 tablespoon avocado oil to small bowl. Whisk or stir ingredients together until well combined. Set bowl aside.
- Place 2 pounds pork tenderloin or pork loin on cutting board. Pat pork completely dry with paper towels on all sides.
- Coat pork in carnitas rub, gently massaging spice rub into tenderloin until fully coated on all sides. Place seasoned tenderloin in slow cooker.
- Add half of one onion, 3 cloves garlic, 1 medium jalapeño, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, and 4-5 tablespoons fresh navel orange juice to slow cooker.
- Cover slow cooker with lid. Cook on HIGH 4 to 6 hours, or LOW 6 to 8 hours. Check pork occasionally – when fully cooked, internal temperature will read 145° Fahrenheit on meat thermometer and meat will be easy to separate with fork.
- When pork is ready, carefully shred tenderloin in slow cooker using 2 forks. Alternately, remove meat from slow cooker and shred on cutting board, but do not discard any juices.
If serving carnitas immediately, continue to next section of instructions. If not serving immediately, transfer shredded pork and juices to airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve, then continue with next section of instructions.
To Serve The Carnitas
- Heat medium skillet over medium heat. When skillet is warm, add drizzle of avocado oil and continue heating skillet until oil is hot and shimmering.
- When oil is hot, add just enough shredded pork to cover bottom of skillet without crowding. Ladle small amount of carnitas juice over meat in skillet and cook until liquid has evaporated and bottom of meat is browned and crispy.
- Flip meat over and briefly cook other side until lightly browned. Transfer seared carnitas to large bowl.
- Repeat process with any remaining carnitas. Once all carnitas has been seared and transferred to bowl, drizzle small amount of carnitas juice over meat and serve immediately as desired.