Name: Instant Pot Pork Carnitas Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 5 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 14 tacos
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 3-4 lbs pork shoulder or butt roast; 1 orange, juice of or 1/2 cup orange juice; 2 limes, juice of or 1/4 cup lime juice; 4 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 medium onion, quartered; 1 can of any beer; 1 tsp chili powder; 1 tsp oregano, dried; 1 tsp cumin, ground; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp black pepper; 14 corn tortillas; 1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced; 1 small bunch cilantro, chopped; 1/2 cup water; 1/4 cup white or apple cider vinegar

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas Recipe

Over the last few years I have tested pork carnitas recipe a few times. I tried others’ recipes in slow cooker and pressure cooker. And later taste tested them in Mexico city.

Traditionally pork carnitas are cooked in a large amount of lard. In Americas, Instant Pot pork carnitas with Coke are all the rage. Which is no good. We need healthy carnitas!

Or how healthy pork is might be questionable. It is hard to find organic. Also there is lots of controversy how pork is fed and raised. I get it. I agree. For me, it’s a treat.

Pressure cooker carnitas are super convenient to serve a crowd. Hands off cooking method for you. Custom tacos for everyone. Or when you just have that craving for Mexican food. And my quick pickled onions recipe is to die for!

So, let’s dive in into Instant Pot pork carnitas 101. I tried it all. Trust me.

What Is Pork Carnitas?

Pork carnitas is a pork roast heavily coated in spices. Then cooked in large amount of lard on low heat until tender. Then shredded into crispy strands of meat and served in tacos with pickled onions, guacamole etc. For all “carnitas dummies” like me, it’s just Mexican pulled pork tacos. Carnitas is a type of meat for tacos. That’s it. So that’s how it’s traditionally done in Mexico.

We, in Canada and America, usually cook Mexican shredded pork in slow cooker and now genius Instant Pot. Until tender and then broil for crispiness.

I have my own methods I will share with you today though.

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas Ingredients

Pork roast
Orange
Lime
Garlic
Onion
Beer
Spices: chili powder, oregano, cumin, salt and pepper.

Pork Carnitas FAQs & Tips

What cut of meat is the best for carnitas?

Pork shoulder aka pork butt roast. It’s same thing. It is part of the pig’s shoulder. It is not part of a butt. “Butt” goes back to the days when butchers in Boston area packed the pork shoulder unto barrels called “butts”.

It also can have other names: picnic shoulder, shoulder roast, Boston butt roast.

Should meat be bone in or boneless?

It doesn’t matter. I often find mostly boneless cuts of pork these days.

Can you make carnitas with pork loin?

Short answer is “No”. Carnitas is cooked slow while melting fat moisturizes the meat. Also long cooking time makes it more flavorful with spices. That’s when crock pot comes in handy. Or pressure cooking in Instant Pot. Still takes an hour. So imagine how long pork should be cooked to be good. And it has to be a cut of meat with fat strands in it.

If you use pork loin, it cooks fast, comes out dry and you won’t be able to shred it like a pork shoulder.

Can I make ahead Instant Pot pork carnitas?

Yes! Shredded pork reheats so well. In fact in Ukraine we didn’t have a microwave. We would pan fry any leftover meat to reheat. And it always came out crispy.

Shred cooked pork shoulder.
Let it cool.
Refrigerate in an airtight container.
Pan fry until crispy.

Follow the order in the instructions.

I think it is important to pour the flavorful liquids like beer, orange and lime juice over the meat before rubbing with spices. This way meat gets a portion of flavor of every ingredient vs. if you just added liquids to the bottom of Instant Pot and sprinkled spices on top. Meat has to cook with flavors sticking to it.

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas Substitutions

Beer: If you absolutely want to make carnitas and don’t have beer use chicken stock. It is not the end of the world but beer makes carnitas a bit extra good. But it’s OK.:)
Orange: Orange juice from a carton works great. About 1 /2 cup.
Lime: 1 large or 2 medium lemons can substitute 2 regular limes. Please try not to use bottled juice. It’s not the same taste. And it contains preservatives.

How to Cook Instant Pot Pork Carnitas

1. Season the Meat

In Instant Pot, place trivet and meat on top.
Pour beer, orange and lime juice all over the meat.
In a small bowl, add chili powder, oregano, cumin, salt and pepper; stir to combine.
Rub pork roast with garlic and then sprinkle with a mixture of spices all around. Top with onions and citrus skins.

2. Pressure Cook for 1 Hour

Place the lid on top.
Make sure pressure release valve is set to Sealing.
How long to cook pork in pressure cooker? Cook for 1 hour on High pressure. I tried to cook Instant Pot pork shoulder roast for 45 minutes and that wasn’t enough. Meat wouldn’t shred.

3. Make Quick Pickled Onions

While pork is cooking, make quick pickled onions by combining red onion, cilantro, water and vinegar in a medium bowl. Stir and let marinate. During that time you can stir a few times if you are walking by. Can be kept on a counter or in the fridge. If it’s summer cold would be nice.

I know photo shows tomatoes. I actually like pickled onions without them more. Just pictures that day didn’t work out haha.

4. Do Quick Release and Shred the Meat

After 1 hour, your meat is ready.
Release pressure using Quick Release method: turn the valve to Venting position right after display says Off and cooking has finished. Usually Quick release method pulls moisture from the meat but it doesn’t matter with carnitas. Because pork is fatty and we will pour cooking liquids on top in next step.
Remove pork roast from the pot on a board or large platter.
Shred with 2 forks.

5. Pan Fry Pork Carnitas Until Crispy

This is the step where I differ from everyone else. Many recipes call to broil shredded pulled pork until crispy. I found cooking it in a ceramic non-stick skillet works much better. Pork comes out truly crispy, faster and not burnt.

Preheat non-stick large skillet on medium heat and add shredded pork in batches.
Cook for a few minutes or until crispy without disturbing.
Stir and cook more until crispy more.
Ladle some juices from the pot on top.

6. What to Serve Carnitas With?

Serve Instant Pot crispy carnitas in corn tortillas with pickled onions. You can make guacamole too. I’m usually “lazy” and pickled onions add enough flavor anyways.

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