You can honestly find us making carnitas all year round. They are such a crowd pleaser! Everyone loves a good ‘ole roasted pork taco, right. You can be sure we will have a pork roast cooking in honor of Cinco de Mayo. There really is just no better way to celebrate the day, right? Another thing – carnitas are about the easiest meal to make. Season and cook your roast, slice up your veggies, pile everything high in a tortilla, and you’re done! Slow-roasted, well-seasoned pork? There is no substitute. Make sure to have plenty of cheese, avocado and jalapeno. You will have people begging you for more! Our recipe works well with any flour or corn tortilla. But, the day we discovered corn and wheat tortillas is the day we took my carnitas to the next level. We don’t know what it is about these tortillas, but they are amazing! They don’t fall apart when you fill them like traditional corn tortillas often do. Rather, they holding filling very well and when baked, they are a crispy chewy masterpiece. Give them a try!
Printroasted pork carnitas
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: approx. 20 tacos
- Category: Main dishes
- Method: Slow roast
- Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients
- 1 – 4 lb bone-in pork shoulder
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 12–24 oz Dr Pepper or Coke
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
For assembling carnitas:
- 1 red onion, sliced into spirals
- 2 avocados, peeled and sliced
- 3 jalapenos, sliced into rings, seeds removed
- 2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded
- 4 limes
- ½ cup parsley sprigs
- Approx 20 6” soft tortillas
- Olive oil spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Mix brown sugar and all spices in a small bowl. Pat pork roast dry and rub seasoning mixture all over pork, pressing down so it will adhere. This can be done up to 12 hours prior to cooking.
- On stove top, heat olive oil in oven proof pan (check to be sure roast fits in pan with lid on). Add yellow onion and cook 2-3 minutes.
- Carefully add the roast and sear 3-5 minutes per side. Remove pan from heat. Add 12 oz Dr. Pepper or Coke. Cover and place in oven. Check after 1 ½ hours and add more Dr. Pepper or Coke if needed. Cook an additional 1 ½ -2 hours or until meat pulls apart easily with fork. Remove from oven and let cool. Remove meat and shred.
- Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil. Lightly spray outside of tortillas with olive oil spray. Place tortillas on foil or in oven proof taco holders placed directly on baking sheet. Fill each tortilla with 3-4 T of meat, depending on how large you want to make them. Bake in oven 10-15 minutes until tortillas start to brown slightly around edges.
- Remove from oven. Sprinkle with desired amount of cheese. Add red onion, jalapenos and avocados. Squeeze fresh limes over them. Garnish with parsley.