The great thing about these one-pot carnitas is that you don’t have to wait all day for the perfect taco — the Instant Pot has it ready in under two hours. While it’s an extra step, crisping up the meat in a skillet right before serving adds extra flavor and creates the crunchy bits that are typical of this Mexican dish.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 40 min |
| Active: | 15 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 40 min |
| Active: | 15 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 3 pounds boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt), cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 pound pork belly, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup lager, homemade chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- Serving suggestions: Warm corn tortillas, pico de gallo, lime wedges, guacamole, chopped onion, chopped cilantro and shredded cabbage
Instructions
- Put the pork shoulder, pork belly, lager, chili powder, cumin, coriander, 1 heaping tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a 6-quart Instant Pot® and follow the manufacturer’s guide for locking the lid and preparing to cook. Set to pressure cook on high for 60 minutes (see Cook’s Note). After the pressure cook cycle is complete, follow the manufacturer’s guide for quick release and wait until the quick release cycle is complete. Be careful of any remaining steam and unlock and remove the lid. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a small bowl, cover and set aside. Set the pot to saute on high and reduce the liquid until almost completely evaporated, 10 to 15 minutes. Set the pot to off and transfer the reduced sauce to the meat, then toss to coat and serve.
- For crispy carnitas (optional): Transfer the reduced sauce and cooked carnitas to a large nonstick skillet over high heat and cook, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Toss and continue to cook for about 5 minutes more to crisp other side. Transfer to a paper towel lined platter, making sure to scrape up any browned bits from the skillet, and serve.
- Serve the carnitas with the tortillas, pico de gallo, lime wedges, guacamole, onion, cilantro and cabbage.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 1418 |
| Total Fat | 122 g |
| Saturated Fat | 43 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Sugar | 1 g |
| Protein | 70 g |
| Cholesterol | 323 mg |
| Sodium | 1152 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 1418 |
| Total Fat | 122 g |
| Saturated Fat | 43 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Sugar | 1 g |
| Protein | 70 g |
| Cholesterol | 323 mg |
| Sodium | 1152 mg |
Reviews
Spicy delicious. I preferred the out of the pot meat because wh. en I fried it in pan it seem to dry out. Love this recipe!
These are different from the carnitas we get in Texas, sure to the facts that 1. They are cubed, not shredded and 2. that they are crisped up in a frying pan. After I reduced the sauce, I wiped out the instant pot and added just a touch of Bacon grease and crisped them on saute fried about three minutes, added the reduced sauce back and stirred it in for about 30 seconds. Awesome! And they taste like the carnitas I would get when growing up in Chicago.
Very easy, came out great
We really love this one. Really recommend the crisping step, and use a nonstick pan!
DO NOT use a full tablespoon of salt. It ruined the whole meal! I would do a teaspoon or half a teaspoon. Tasted great until I put the sauce on it
This recipe is super simple and packed full of flavor especially if you reduce the jus appropriately. The crisping at the end is the cherry on top. My husband said these are the best carnitas he’s ever had. He’s lived his entire life in South Texas so that is definitely high praise.
If FCC
This is a great and easy recipe. Cooking this in the pressure cooker is not a traditional way to make carnitas but when you crisp it up in the pan it tastes exactly the way carnitas taste. I did not have coriander and it still tasted great.
We made this for dinner. Super easy and yummy! We couldn’t find pork belly in a normal serving so we substituted it with bacon. Also, doubled the seasoning. Yummy! Served with some lime rice.
So easy and delicious! I rubbed the spices all if the meat and added about 0.5 teaspoon of cinnamon to the spice mix. Really gives it an extra pop of flavor.