Celebrate Cinco De Mayo with some Carnitas! The best of the best Mexican food.
Carnitas are big on flavor and low on effort. The toppings are endless as are the leftovers. You can make chili, quesadillas, salads, or wraps. Or simply freeze the leftovers for another meal.
Let the celebration begin!

Slow Cooker Carnitas Tacos
Ingredients
Scale
- For The Carnitas:
- 4–5 pound pork shoulder
- 2 Tbls. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbls. kosher salt
- 1 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 Tbls. ground cumin
- 1 Tbls. dried oregano
- 2 Tbls. Chili Powder
- 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
- 1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 onion, chopped
- For Assembly:
- tortillas
- red onion
- queso fresco (shredded)
- sour cream
- guacamole
- radishes, sliced
- cilantro, minced
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine oil, salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano, chili powder, red pepper, and garlic, to make a paste. Rub paste liberally over the pork shoulder.
- Place, bay leaves, lime juice, orange juice, onion, and seasoned pork shoulder into a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours.
- Remove pork shoulder from the slow cooker and shred the meat before returning to the slow cooker with the juices. Season again with salt and pepper. Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.
- If you would like the carnitas crispy, preheat oven to broil. Place carnitas onto a baking sheet and broil until crisp and crusted, about 3-4 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
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