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Craving the real deal when it comes to pork carnitas? This crispy, juicy pulled pork is slow-cooked to absolute perfection—fall-apart tender on the inside, with golden, caramelized edges that are impossible to resist.
No lard needed, no shortcuts taken—just bold, authentic flavor made simple. These Crispy Pork Carnitas bring the magic of Mexican street food straight to your kitchen. Perfect for taco nights, game days, or when you just need a dish that never disappoints.
The Secret to That Perfect Golden Crisp
Juicy, slow-cooked pork with crispy, caramelized edges? Yes, please. The beauty of this carnitas recipe is how simple it is to pull off—no deep fryer, no lard, just real ingredients and all the flavor.
By cooking low and slow, the pork becomes so tender that it falls apart. Then a quick roast crisps up the edges until golden and irresistible. It’s the kind of recipe you’ll come back to every time tacos are on the menu.
Similarly, our Pork Roast With Perfect Crackling achieves that tender, juicy meat underneath a perfectly crispy and golden rind.
What You’ll Need To Get Started
Before the slow cooking magic begins, let’s talk ingredients. These are the simple pantry staples and fresh essentials that come together to create the most juicy, tender, and flavorful pork carnitas all without the need for lard!
- Boneless Pork Butt (Pork Shoulder): My favorite cut for carnitas! It’s perfectly marbled, slow cooks like a dream, and pulls apart effortlessly.
- Mexican Coke: Trust me on this one — it adds a deep, subtle sweetness and helps caramelize those crispy edges.
- Fresh Orange Juice: For that hint of citrus that brightens every bite.
- Lime Juice: Just a splash brings all the flavors to life.
- Onion & Garlic: Classic aromatics that melt right into the pork, layering in rich, savory goodness.
- Dried Oregano & Ground Cumin: A must for that warm, earthy depth we all love in Mexican cooking.
- Bay Leaves: Tossed in whole to gently infuse their magic while everything simmers low and slow.
Note: Please see Recipe Card at the bottom for full list of ingredients and measurements.
Let’s Cook Some Carnitas!
Here’s exactly how to make these mouthwatering pork carnitas, crispy on the outside, melt in your mouth tender on the inside. Just follow the steps below and let your slow cooker or oven! do most of the work. If you love this pork flavor you must try my authentic Colombian Tamales too.
- Pat It Dry. Rinse the pork and pat it dry with paper towels. Dry meat means better flavor and crispier edges.
- Flavor Load. Place pork in the slow cooker with salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, onion, garlic, lime juice, orange juice, Coke, and bay leaves.
- Let It Cook. Cover and cook on low for 8–10 hours or high for 5–6 hours. It’s ready when it falls apart with a fork.
- Shred It. Shred the pork with two forks. Keep the liquid! You’ll need it for crisping.
- Crisp in the Oven. Spread pork on a lined tray. Pour 1 cup of liquid over it. Broil 5–10 mins until golden and crisp.
- Serve It Up. Season to taste. Drizzle with more juice and serve in tacos, burritos, or a bowl!
Tips!
- We used 4 teaspoons of salt. Use less if desired.
- Coke with cane sugar instead of corn syrup (check the ingredients list) is ideal, however, you can use any Coke. Alternatively, substitute with chicken broth (chicken stock).
- If you don’t like the sound of this particular carnitas recipe, try my Tomato Based Crispy Pulled Pork or my Crispy Slow Cooked Carnitas recipe.
Make It a Full Fiesta
Carnitas are endlessly versatile—whether you’re stuffing burritos, tacos, or quesadillas, or piling them high on nachos, they bring the party every time. Add them to a fresh salad like this Chipotle Carnitas Salad, or serve them the classic way with chopped onions and cilantro, just like your favorite Mexican food truck. Want the perfect side? Go with Guacamole or Pico De Gallo or a generous scoop of Avocado and Salsa.
Do you crave some tacos? To make them into tacos, simply stuff the crisped meat into a corn or a fresh Flour Tortilla and add in chopped onion, cilantro, salsa, avocado, and top with sour cream or crema fresca!
FAQs
Yes! You can use a Dutch oven or heavy pot in the oven at 325°F (160°C) for 3–4 hours. Just make sure to keep the pork covered and check occasionally to ensure it stays nice and juicy.
Pork shoulder (also called pork butt) is the best cut for juicy, fall-apart carnitas. It has the right balance of fat and meat to stay tender while crisping up perfectly.
Absolutely! These carnitas reheat beautifully. Store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. Just reheat in the oven or on a skillet to bring back the crispy edges!
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Pork Carnitas (Mexican Slow Cooker Pulled Pork)
Ingredients
Carnitas
- 4 pounds boneless pork butt skinless, or shoulder
- 3-4 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano or Mexican oregano
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 large brown or white onion, cut into wedges
- 8 cloves garlic smashed
- 2 limes juiced
- 2 large oranges juiced, or 3/4 cup natural orange juice
- 3/4 cup coke original or Mexican coke is ideal
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Rinse and pat dry pork with a paper towel.
- In the bowl of a 6-quart slow cooker, add pork, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, onion, garlic, lime juice, orange juice, coke, and bay leaves.
- Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8-10 hours, or high heat for 5-6 hours (until the meat falls apart).
- Remove pork and shred with two forks (DO NOT DISCARD THE LIQUID!)
TO CRISP IN THE OVEN:
- Transfer the pork to a baking sheet lightly sprayed with cooking oil spray (or lined with aluminium foil or parchment paper).
- Pour 1 ladle full (about 1 cup) of the liquid from the slow cooker over the pork to season. Broil for 5-10 minutes on high heat until the meat becomes golden browned and crispy on the edges.
TO CRISP ON STOVE:
- Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in a non stick pan or cast iron skillet over high heat. When pan is hot, add pork in batches of two or three, and sear until just beginning to crisp. Ladle over about 1/2 cup of left over liquid, and continue cooking until the juices begin to reduce down and the meat is nice and crispy!
TO SERVE:
- Season with a little extra salt and pepper if desired. Pour over more of the slow cooker juices once the meat has crisped for added flavour, just before serving! Serve in Tacos, Burritos, or in a salad!
Notes
*If you don’t like the sound of this particular carnitas recipe, try my tomato based crispy pulled pork!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
If I dont have a slow cooker, can you make this in the oven? If so, how do you alter?
Yes, you can cook this in the over in a “Dutch oven” if you have one, at 350F. Make sure you don’t run out of liquid during the process.
It’s funny I came here because I don’t want to use my oven. My recipe is very similar to this one.
Salt/Pepper the pork. Insert slivered garlic in slits all around. Slice half an orange and squeezed the other half over the pork. Lay the slices all over the pork. Cover and bake at 325 for an hour and a half. Open and pour some
Mexican Coca Cola in, drizzle all over. Replace lid and continue baking. Checking everyone once in a while. At about 4 hours o take the kid off and baste with the juices and at this point I can start pulling the pork part wit tongs. Continue cooking until it completely falls apart with ease. Cooking with the lid off helps crisp it up, maybe another 45 minutes
Are you trying to one-up the author? Nice!
My thoughts exactly, some people just literally have no manners. No sense of respect whatsoever for the person who works VERY HARD to provide a beautiful website, with incredible recipes for the rest of us to enjoy, not just the recipe but gorgeous photographs of the amazing dishes she’s sharing with us. In addition to that she always does a wonderful job of connecting with her followers through her stories and sweet little anecdotes, etc., that she adds to her recipes, Karina DESERVES the success that she has earned in the Blog World,” SHE DOES”, not others who would prefer to ride her coat tails instead of doing their own hard work.
A successful blog, such as Karina’s is NOT FREE, she pays to put this content out for us (yes, she may earn money NOW, but it TOOK A GREAT DEAL OF WORK to begin reaping the rewards).
So if you would like to share a recipe that you feel is deserving of its place on the internet then you should start a blog for yourself, put in the time and investment required, cultivate the followers and build a place that you can call your own, because THAT’S where YOUR recipes belong…
Just my $.02…
THESE WERE AMAZING!! My husband rarely raves about food, and he LOVED these! The only thing I changed was add black garlic powder to the recipe, but it came out so so so good!! This recipe is definitely a keeper! Thanks for sharing!!
Could this recipe be done in a Pressure Cooker? Then after crisp in the oven as stated?
Yes I did that today, high pressure on Meat/Stew option, time down to 2hours for a pork shoulder at 2.8 lbs…. all same ingredients
Just made it last night in the pressure cooker and it turned out great!! Set it for 60 mins and let it cool for another 20 then into the oven for crisping.
I’ve made this multiple times and it always comes out delicious! I only substitute a can of beer (ale or lager) for the cola. I use the broiler method to crisp it up and oh boy!!! So delicious!
I don’t leave reviews often, but this one was a hit with my family. My husband and three teenage boys all loved it and my 14 yr old told me I need to make this again! It was so tender and just fell apart. Crisping it added a great texture. Because my family doesn’t all like the same types of things I gave them options. It was great as a sandwich with some BBQ sauce for a couple of them and we also use it in tacos with a red cabbage slaw, pico de gallo and guacamole on corn tortillas! This is a great versatile recipe and there weren’t any leftovers and that is how I judge a successful recipe in my house! Thank you!
Probably a dumb question but will Coke Zero work for this?
In my opinion, it’s the sugar, real sugar for a caramelizarían.
No. It doesn’t have cane sugar
I couldn’t find cane sugar coke. I found cane sugar cola. Is that ok??
Did the broil option to crisp it up. Also, I used a bone-in 6-7lb shoulder and it was perfect after 10hrs on low.
What an amazing recipe. Thank you!
Hi Karina!
Thanks for all the amazing recipes.
I don’t have a slow cooker. Can I use a Dutch oven and my oven on low temperature?
Thanks a lot!
Julie
Weird question— my family doesn’t eat pork but i used to live carnitas—do you think this could be done with chicken?
Absolutely! I’d suggest chicken thighs for a better flavour and texture.
How can I make this recipe in my Insta Pot? (setting, timing, release?)
I just made this recipe using Venison and it worked great and tasted amazing! I can only imagine how good the port would taste!! I have quite a bit left over and I just wondered if anyone had a good idea for a second way to use it. We just did street tacos last night.
use it in a fried rice recipe for the meat
Can leftovers be frozen?
I’m currently making this, and my plan for my family of 3 is to half the 3lb pork shoulder before the browning step, and then freeze whole the remaining meat in the leftover defatted braising liquid. I’m hoping this will keep the meat from drying out in the freezer. Then when I’m ready to use the other half I’ll defrost, heat slowly in a pan with the liquid, then shred and proceed to brown/crisp the meat as directed.
It freezes VERY well!