Tender and juicy pork carnitas are slowly simmered in sweet pineapple and lime juice, then crisped to perfection. Ready in just over 3 hours, these carnitas are a flavor-packed favorite for taco night topped with herby cilantro and onions!
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Test Kitchen Review
Why I Love This Juicy and Crispy Pork
Jorge and I love hosting taco nights, and these pork carnitas are a staple at our gatherings. Juicy and tender pork is infused with flavor from the pineapple, jalapeños, and lime juice as they are slow cooked on the stove top. Once the liquid cooks away, we fry them in the rendered fat until they have perfectly crisp edges. Here’s why I love this carnitas recipe:
- So Flavorful: The pineapple juice adds a subtle sweetness that complements the savory pork, while the garlic, lime juice, fresh jalapeño and cumin bring more authentic Mexican flavor.
- Effortless: Don’t let the longer cook time fool you! I let everything simmer away for 2 hours, only stirring at the very end to make the carnitas crispy!
- Versatile: Serve the carnitas in tacos, burritos, rice bowls, hearty Mexican sandwiches and so much more.
- Make Ahead: Make a big batch and enjoy leftovers throughout the week, or freeze and reheat on days when you don’t feel like cooking!
What Are Pork Carnitas?
Carnitas is a traditional Mexican dish from the state of Michoacan. It’s cubed or pulled pork that’s slowly-simmered with broth or lard until incredibly tender. To enhance the tenderness and add brightness, orange juice, lime juice, and/or pineapple juice are often added to the braising liquid.
Spices and other ingredients can include onions, jalapeños, cumin, garlic, and oregano. Once chopped or shredded, pork carnitas are often served in tacos, burritos, rice bowls, or even Bolillos to make Mexican sandwiches.
Key Ingredients
Below you will find helpful notes for key ingredients used to make this carnitas recipe. Scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and exact amounts!
- Pork: Use a pork shoulder or pork butt, leaving the fat on the pork when you cut it into cubes. The fat is needed to help fry and crisp the pork!
- Pineapple Juice: I prefer pineapple juice as it is lighter and helps break down and tenderize the meat more, but freshly squeezed orange juice can be used instead.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic is best, but garlic paste is a good swap. I do not recommend using granulated garlic, it won’t give your pork that same pungent taste.
- Jalapeños: Leave the seeds in the pepper for more heat, or remove for milder heat. If you really want to increase the level of spice, swap the jalapeños for Serrano peppers.
- Cumin: Ground cumin adds a lot of depth, but taco seasoning can be used instead.
How To Make Carnitas
Letting the pork slowly cook in the garlicky pineapple juice mixture is the secret to these carnitas’ tenderness. Below is a quick recipe overview, but please scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full instructions and to watch the step-by-step video.
- Slowly simmer: Add all of the carnitas ingredients to a large heavy bottomed pot, like a dutch oven. Bring it to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 2 hours without stirring. No need to babysit the pot.
- Evaporate the liquid: Increase the heat and cook until all of the liquid has evaporated, leaving only the pork fat. Stirring the meat occasionally.
- Brown the pork: Fry the pork in its own fat, until slightly charred and crispy on all sides. Remove it from the heat.
- Serve and enjoy: Serve the hot and crispy carnitas as desired, in tacos, rice bowls, nachos, burritos, quesadillas, etc!
Chef’s Tips and Variations
- Marinate: For even more flavor, add the pork to a large bowl or zip-top bag. Pour in 2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice, 3/4 cup water, 2 teaspoons oregano, 2 tablespoons lime juice and 10 cloves smashed garlic. Seal the bag, shake well, and marinate it overnight in the fridge. Discard the excess marinade before cooking.
- Spice it up: Add 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 1/2 tablespoon onion powder, 3 teaspoons smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper to the recipe for a more complex flavor profile.
- Add more aromatics: Cut a large white or yellow onion into quarters and place it in the pot. Add a bay leaf. Cook as usual, stirring occasionally as the meat simmers so they release all their flavor.
- Add beer: Swap half of the water in the recipe for a lager beer. It’ll add some malty goodness to each bite, giving the carnitas a good depth of flavor.
- Crockpot: I have a recipe for slow cooker carnitas and instant pot carnitas if you prefer to use these kitchen appliances instead!
- Shred it: Use two forks and pull them in opposite directions to shred the meat as thinly as you want.
Ways To Serve With Pork Carnitas
These juicy pork carnitas are a great taco night dinner with warm corn tortillas. You can also roll them up in flour tortillas with rice and refried beans for an easy burrito. Here are some more tasty pairing ideas:
- Appetizers: Try some authentic guacamole or this addictive taco beer cheese dip with tortilla chips!
- Taco Toppings: Besides all the traditional toppings, I love topping my carnitas with this fresh corn salsa. Regular salsa or this refreshing mango slaw are also great options.
- Sides: Serve them over Mexican rice or cilantro lime rice for a bowl-style meal. Don’t forget the beans, try my charro beans or Mexican beans.
Stovetop Pork Carnitas Recipe
Ingredients
For the carnitas:
- 3 lb boneless pork shoulder, or pork butt, cut into 2-inch cubes
- 1 cup pineapple juice, or freshly squeezed orange juice
- ½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 jalapeños, seeded and diced
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- About 2 1/2 cups hot water, broth, or beer
For serving as tacos:
- corn tortillas
- cilantro
- onion
- lime wedges
- salsa, or hot sauce
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Instructions
- Place the pork in a large heavy bottomed pot. Add the pineapple juice, lime juice, garlic, jalapeños, cumin, salt and enough water to just barely cover the meat.
- Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer uncovered for two hours. Don’t touch the meat.
- After two hours, increase the heat to medium-high heat. Continue to cook for about 45 minutes, until all of the liquid has evaporated, leaving only the pork fat. Occasionally stir and turn the pork during this process.
- Once all the cooking liquid has evaporated, let the pork cook and sizzle in the fat long enough to brown at the edges, turning pieces gently, as needed. The more you stir, the more the meat will fall apart and shred.
- Once the pork has browned and most of the fat has cooked off, it’s ready! Adjust seasonings to taste and serve as desired!
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These are so delicious and cooked to perfection!!! My whole family loved them
Roxanne you might be infected with a virus, spyware, or other malware.
Hi
I pinned this recipe to try when I brought it up a very triple xxx rated page came up over and over….. Not very happy about that and not sure why it would happen but thought someone better know—I would be extremely angry if my child had been looking up the recipe for me and that came up. When I tried to go back the xxx rated page just kept reloading until finally I hit the back button over and over after about 3 full mins of hitting the back button it finally went away. How do I prevent this from happening again?
okay, this made me laugh so much. I am from Minnesota and my boyfriend is from Pennsylvania and we are now both displaced northerners in Oklahoma…
1) I’m the same way in that I have largely lost my “Minne-sooo-ta” accent but I still use words/phrases that result in no one here knowing what the hell I’m talking about (“parking ramp,” anyone??), and,
2) the “CE-ment” thing makes my bf and I laugh all the time, especially because in OK (not sure if it’s the same in TX) the “emphasize the first syllable” thing gets transferred to other words (“IN-surance”… or the other day when I honestly heard an older man at work say “they got CON-flicting RE-ports…”)
but the great thing about being down here really is the abundant Tex Mex food… and these look delicious!!!
Haha! It’s fun to hear it from the other side! 🙂
These look awesome. This will be the first pork carnitas recipe for me — it looks like a winner!
I adapted these carnitas for ground pork and let me say: BEST THING EVER. I was running around telling everyone – family, friends, the walls – how fantastic these are. Thank you. Especially for the pineapple juice tip.
Love the pineapple juice in here, bet it is delicious!
Texas is one of the states I have never been too. Really trying to make it to Blogher Food in June!
These look so, so delicious 🙂
mouth. is. watering. You & Me + these + margaritas… girls weekend!!!! 🙂
So you’re able to make it to BHFood now!? Can’t wait to see you again!
Awww! I remember the Papasito days! 🙂 I also remember our Failed sugar cookies lol. Oh where we started.
I still blame my friend Jan from Texas for my pronunciation of: GAY-Raj (Garage) – and the refrigerator will always and forever be the Frigidator! Also, when she saw all the deer in the fields around our house, she commented “oh my, what a lot of derrr” (dur). I miss her! I will make these divine sounding carnitas and then call Jan and have a good chat!
I’m seeing carnitas everywhere lately and it is unleashing a craving!! Fitting since we just planned a trip to Austin for April, too!
I am drooling over these girl. Great flavors!!
Jessica, this looks so good!! Love me some carnitas 🙂
Oh Jessica these are DIVINE!!!
This recipes sounds so good and your Texan preparation for Blogher Food is just too darn funny. I can’t wait to get to Austin! I’ve been once before and ate like a mad women and plan to do the same thing in June!
Don’t get me started with my Scottish accent and word differences, oy! I love Lisa’s book and used it for a bunch of meals!
Who doesn’t know what a conniption fit is? Me and my mom say that all the time! I love pork… all kinds just sayin. The meat looks melt in your mouth ‘mazing!
Hey, I’m going to BlogHer Food this year too! I’d really love to get together for some dinner or drinks and meet you. I live in Austin already, so I’m so excited to have my blogging buddies coming to my city. Let me know if you’d like to meet up! Great carnitas recipe, too.
Awesome! Of course we have to get together, between all the parities and what not, I’m sure we will have time to meet! 🙂