Pork Carnitas

Step 1

Place the pork in the slow cooker, fat side up.

Step 2

Add the onion and garlic around the sides of the pork, then pour over the orange juice. It doesn’t seem like a lot of liquid, but the pork will release liquid as it’s cooking.

Step 3

Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, chilli flakes, oregano, and cumin.

Step 4

Cook on low for 9-10 hours or high for 7-8 hours.

Step 5

Remove the pork from the slow cooker and place on a chopping board (I use two sets of tongs).

Step 6

Shred the pork into pieces, discarding any large chunks of fat.

Step 7

Heat the oil in a large frying pan, over a medium-high heat.

Step 8

Add the shredded pork (use tongs and try to leave as much liquid behind as possible).

Step 9

Fry for 8-10 minutes, moving around the pan occasionally, until you get some nice crispy bits (don’t move it around too much or it won’t crisp).

Step 10

Once the pork is browned and crispy, add in a good ladleful (about 240ml/1 cup) of pork cooking juices to the pan and allow it to bubble for a few minutes. This adds extra flavour and juiciness to the pork.

Step 11

Turn off the heat and serve the pork alongside a jug of the remaining liquid from the slow cooker for drizzling. Go easy at first, as it’s quite salty.

Step 12

If you’re making carnitas tacos, then load them up with the pork, coriander (cilantro), avocado, and chopped onion (see notes for more topping ideas).