Slow Cooked Carnitas Tacos

Slow Cooked Carnitas Tacos

My family loves these tacos. We put them together with low carb tortillas, avocado, green chile salsa, light sour cream, cilantro and red bell pepper. Mango salsa is also a great combination with the pork.  Add some juicy slices of watermelon and you’ve got yourself a nice, summery easy Mexican meal made in your slow cooker.

🛒 Ingredients Needed:

• boneless country-style pork ribs or pork shoulder (Boston butt)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• dried oregano
• onion
• avocado
• fresh cilantro
• red bell pepper
• corn or flour tortillas
• green chile salsa

✏️ How to make Slow Cooked Carnitas Tacos:

*The complete, printable recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post.

1. Toss the pork in the slow cooker insert with salt, pepper, and oregano to coat. Place the onion pieces on top of the pork. Cover the slow cooker and cook the pork on the low setting until the meat is very tender and falling apart, about 6 hours.
2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork to a cutting board. Discard the onion pieces. Using your (clean) fingers (or two forks), shred the pork; transfer the carnitas to a platter. Place avocado slices, cilantro sprigs, and sliced red bell peppers, if desired, alongside.
3. Wrap corn or flour tortillas in damp kitchen towel; microwave until warm, about 1 minute. Serve carnitas with warm tortillas and green salsa.

➡️ Tips and Substitutions:

• I’ve left the pork in the slow cooker for up to 10 hours, and it’s been perfect (so don’t worry too much about perfect timing).
• I don’t really notice a difference between making these with the boneless pork country ribs vs. the pork shoulder. The result is the same!
• You can certainly serve these slow cooked carnitas tacos with any condiments that you like. We love to serve them with pico de gallo and guacamole.

✔️ Make Ahead Tip:

You can definitely cook the pork, shred it, and save it to make tacos later. If the pork seems dried out at all, just add a little water to it before re-heating. Re-heat in the microwave, or put the pork under the broiler for a bit to create some crusty pieces!