Crockpot Carnitas

I had no idea carnitas were so easy until I tried making them in a crockpot! You have to try this!

10 minutes

10 hours

Difficulty

This is our estimate based on online research.
Calories:	35
Fat:	2 g
Carbohydrates:	3 g
Protein:	0 g
Calculated per serving.

by ACleanBake

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View other recipes by ACleanBake

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 Tbsp 1 Tbsp 1 Tbsp Olive Oil, Extra Virgin, + 1 Tbsp (For the salsa)
0.5 tsp 0.5 tsp 0.5 tsp Cumin
.5 tsp .5 tsp .5 tsp Garlic Powder
1 pinch 1 pinch 1 pinch Sea Salt
.25 tsp .25 tsp .25 tsp Black Peppercorns, Ground Fresh
.25 tsp .25 tsp .25 tsp Oregano, dried
1 pinch 1 pinch 1 pinch Cayenne Pepper
1 whole 1 whole 1 whole Pork Shoulder, 2.5 lbs, bone in
1 whole 1 whole 1 whole Onion, thinly sliced
1 whole 1 whole 1 whole Orange, juice only, but reserve the rind
2 Tbsp 2 Tbsp 2 Tbsp Lime Juice, + 1 Tbsp (For the salsa)
.75 cup .75 cup .75 cup Pineapple, cut into bite-sized pieces (For the salsa)
1 whole 1 whole 1 whole Tomato, Beefsteak, washed and hulled, cut into bite sized pieces (For the salsa)
1 whole 1 whole 1 whole Red Onion, or to taste (don't use the whole onion if yours is giant) (For the salsa)
.25 cup .25 cup .25 cup Cilantro, roughly chopped (For the salsa)

Process

Note, these instructions are written assuming the standard serving size, since you have modified the number of servings, these steps may need to be modified for best results

For the carnitas, mix the olive oil, cumin, garlic powder, salt, pepper, oregano and cayenne in a small bowl. Pat the pork dry and rub the spice mixture all over it, covering evenly.
Place the pork in the bowl of the slow cooker and top with the onions, citrus juices and orange rinds. Cover and cook on low until the meat is tender and falls apart easily, about 8-10 hours.
When the pork is cooked, preheat the broiler and line a baking pan with aluminum foil.
emove the pork from the slow cooker, discarding the orange peel and about half of the onion (reserve the liquid; you'll need it in a moment). Use two forks to pull apart the meat (discarding the bone and excess fat) into bite sized pieces.
Place the meat in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and spoon about 1/4 cup of the liquid from the slow cooker evenly over the meat. Broil until browned and crispy along the edge, about 3-5 minutes. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
For the salsa, toss together all of the ingredients until thoroughly combined.
To assemble: top a tortilla or lettuce leaf with a generous scoop of hot carnitas, then another scoop of the salsa. Serve immediately.

Notes

The original recipe does not include the onions in the baking pan (under the broiler) with the carnitas, but I kept about half of them and only discarded the other half. The salsa can be made in advance and kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The original salsa recipe calls for 1 Hass avocado, peeled, pitted and cubed, instead of the tomato. You can use either or a combination of both. The recipe also does not call for olive oil, since there is plenty of fat in the avocado, but if you're not using avocado, I highly recommend including it. This recipe originally appeared in Paleo Planet and has been reprinted with the permission of the author.