Dutch Oven Carnitas (Authentic Mexican Carnitas)
These authentic Mexican dutch oven carnitas are slow cooked until juicy and fall apart tender, with crispy caramelized edges. This recipe is just mouth watering! These pork carnitas are perfect for tacos, enchiladas, bowls, or burritos. Plus, they freeze really well so you can make a big batch for meal prep. Serves 8-12
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 241kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3.5 pounds pork shoulder, boneless or 5-6 pounds bone-in
- 2 oranges, juiced
- 2 limes, juiced
- 2.5 cups water
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 tablespoon garlic
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 300ºF.
- Remove the thick cut of fat on the meat down to ⅛” thick. If using pork shoulder from the bone, remove the meat from the bone. Then cut pork shoulder into large 2” cubes.3.5 pounds pork shoulder, boneless
- Add all ingredients into a large dutch oven (6.5 QT or larger).2 oranges, juiced, 2 limes, juiced, 2.5 cups water, 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon garlic salt, 1 tablespoon garlic
- Place the dutch oven with lid on, in preheated oven. Let braise until meat falls apart when prodded with a fork, about 2.5 hours.
- Remove the pot from the oven.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the carnitas from the dutch oven and liquid and onto an unlined baking sheet.
- Place pot on stove at medium high heat. Boil mixture until the sauce thickens and reduced in half, about 25-30 minutes.
- While the liquid reduces, use two forks to pull apart the meat from the cubed pork into slim pieces. Spread the shredded pork carnitas over the whole sheet pan. Remove any large pieces of fat that didn't cook down.
- After the liquid finishes reducing, pour about 1 cup of the liquid over the shredded carnitas and spread evenly.
- Turn on the broiler and place the sheet pan on the middle-rack of the oven. Broil for 3-5 minutes, until meat is browned and edges are crispy. Remove from oven, flip the pieces of meat to the other side, and then broil again for 3-5 minutes.
- Serve immediately over rice, in corn tortillas, or in buns.
Video
Notes
Removing fat from the pork shoulder: You should remove some of the fat from the pork shoulder when initially cutting it into larger chunks. Keep some of the fat to render and help tenderize the meat while it cooks, avoiding dried out meat. If there are any large pieces of fat leftover after cooking, remove when you shred the carnitas.
Making the shredding easier: Use two forks or two pairs of tongs to carefully shred the pork once cooked. Go with the pork allowing it to fall apart easily. If you can't shred the pieces easily, try approaching from a different angle. Don't use aluminum foil to line the baking sheet as you may shred the aluminum foil.
Storage directions: Store any leftovers of the pork with remaining liquid in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. To reheat, just microwave for 1 minute 30 seconds!
Freezing directions: This crispy carnitas recipe is the perfect dish for freezing! Add to a freezer safe container and freeze for a few months.
Spices - There is a difference between Mexican oregano and regular oregano, but you can use either in this recipe!
Boneless or bone in pork shoulder - You can use either cut for this recipe, but we will be removing the bone. You can always ask your butcher to remove the bone for you!
Nutrition
Serving: 4ounces | Calories: 241kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 391mg | Potassium: 741mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 170IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 2mg