Best Carnitas Tacos
Carnitas Tacos (pulled pork tacos) are THE BEST ever! The slow cooker Mexican pork is unbelievably tender and flavorful. Add a scoop of guacamole to a tortilla (or lettuce wrap!), top with a big pile of pulled pork, and dig into tacos de carnitas!
Carnitas tacos are all about the slow cooked pork they're stuffed with. And (not to brag) but I think I have the best carnitas recipe ever. The pulled pork is unbelievably tender with magical crispy bits and full of flavor. It's irresistible.
And because the meat is so tasty, these carnitas tacos need very little else to complete the meal. I like them best with guacamole, a little minced red onion, and (sometimes) a dollop of sour cream. But the options for topping your pork tacos are almost unlimited. And I've got a few ideas to share with you.
Why you want to make carnitas tacos tonight
- With a stack of these babies in front of you, you'll smile the whole way through dinner.
- They're so easy to make. Once you pull the pork out of your slow cooker, shred it with 2 forks, crisp the meat under the broiler, then toss it in the reduced cooking liquid. Now put the pulled pork on a tortilla and dig in!
- You can celebrate every Taco Tuesday like it's Cinco de Mayo.
- The carnitas recipe is a healthy one made without any sugar or unhealthy ingredients. Use corn tortillas for gluten-free carnitas tacos and paleo tortillas for paleo carnitas tacos.
- If you're doing a Whole30 or like to eat low-carb, use lettuce wraps and you're good to go. This is what I normally opt to do.
- This carnitas tacos recipe is THE BEST. ā totally worth the all-caps yelling. I've tried many different carnitas recipes as well as recipe tested this one so many times I can't count. This one is my absolute favorite. Promise me you'll make it?
How to make pork tacos
If you can press the on button on your slow cooker, you can make these tacos. Here's your game plan:
- Rub some spices on your pork roast and put it in your crockpot with some orange juice, lime juice, garlic, and bay leaves. Set the timer for as long as you have. 4 hours minimum on high or up to 10 hours on low. Now go and drink some margaritas.
- When you come back to the kitchen, take the pork out of the pot and shred it with 2 forks. Now pop it under the broiler in your oven to make it nice and crispy.
- Quickly boil the cooking liquid until it starts to get thick. Now pour this over the crispy carnitas. Go ahead, taste your creation. Just try not to eat the whole batch before you make tacos.
- Now all you have to do is assemble your tacos. Put some guac on a warmed tortilla, pile it high with carnitas, then sprinkle a little red onion over the top. And if you're like me, you'll find some room for sour cream, too. Now dig in!
The full recipe can be found in the recipe card below.
If you're a fan of all things tacos, also try our shrimp tacos!
How to make pulled pork tacos paleo + gluten-free
Luckily for us, these carnitas tacos are very easy to make for everyone at the table. The carnitas recipe is both gluten-free and paleo so you don't have to change a thing about the best part of these tacos.
To make gluten-free carnitas tacos: All you have to do is make sure that you use gluten-free tortillas. Corn tortillas are the best option. Just make sure to check the labels for sneaky gluten.
To make paleo carnitas tacos: You'll either have to make your own paleo tortillas or turn these carnitas tacos into carnitas lettuce wraps. These mushroom breakfast tacos are made with egg and flaxseed tortillas that would be delicious stuffed with carnitas.
What to serve with tacos de carnitas
This recipe is so good that I think keeping it simple is best. A batch of my Easy Guacamole Recipe and a Fizzy Lime Margarita and you'll be set.
But if you want to create a Mexican feast with these carnitas tacos as the centerpiece, here are my favorite Mexican sides:
- Spicy Mexican Rice
- Loaded Food Truck Mexican Nacho Fries
- Lightened Up Mexican Corn Dip with Avocado and JalapeƱo
- Creamy Avocado Sauce
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Favorite Taco Recipes
- Summer Veggie Grilled Steak Tacos
- Baja Fish Tacos with Southwest Slaw and Aji Guacamole
- Crockpot Pork Tacos with Crunchy Carrot Slaw
- Grilled Jerk Chicken Tacos
- Beer Battered Fish Tacos
- Chipotle Pulled Pork Tacos with Apple Slaw
Carnitas Tacos Recipe
If you love this recipe as much as we do, let us know with a 5-star rating!
Ingredients
- Mexican Pork Carnitas
- 2 large ripe avocados
- Juice from Ā½ lime
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- A pinch of salt
- 12 small tortillas, corn, flour, or paleo
- Minced red onions, to serve
- Other optional toppings: sour cream, minced cilantro, tomato salsa, a squeeze of lime juice
Instructions
- Start by making theĀ Mexican Pork Carnitas. This will take you about 8 hours to make in your slow cooker or in a pot.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mash the avocados with the lime juice, garlic, and salt.2 large ripe avocados, Juice from Ā½ lime, 1 clove garlic, A pinch of salt
- Put a scoop of carnitas in a tortilla, add a spoonful of the mashed avocados (guacamole), top with a sprinkle of minced red onions and any or all of the optional toppings.12 small tortillas, Other optional toppings: sour cream, minced cilantro, tomato salsa, a squeeze of lime juice
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Its good to cook carnitas with a whole orange or tangerine, and thinly sliced onion. It all gets cooked down before the carnitas are ready. I season the pork with black pepper cumin & adobo. Oh and cant forget the coca cola in the braising liquid. Or brown sugar, I do both.
I made this tonight and it was a winner! So delicious! Ā My 27 yr old son is a mexican food connoisseur and he has traveled all around the USA and these were great. Ā
Putting the meat under the broiler is key-thank you so much for the recipe-the marinade is amazing-I will definitely make these again!
Wow that’s amazing! So happy the recipe won over the connoisseur!