Instant Pot Carnitas (Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork)

Tacos de Pescado (Beer-battered Mahi-Mahi fillet with shredded cabbage, light mayo + chipotle sauce), with a yummy Mangorita!

Every time Jacky & I have Mexican food, the sweet memories from our Honeymoon would bring a smile to our faces. Mexican food is our Happy Food. 🙂

So, we’re more than thrilled to share this Mexican Carnitas Recipe – a delicious Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork with you.

The savory browned crisp edges with juicy & tender pork meat is so irresistible to eat!! 

Manners don’t really matter anymore as we couldn’t help but fight over the crispy bits…hehe~

Wrap the crispy & juicy pork with warm crisped tortilla, with a scoop of refreshing Salsa with a squeeze of lime. A mouthful sensation full of exciting & satisfying bites! 😀

Carnitas are normally made by simmering pork in lard for hours until tender & juicy.

And what’s amazing with Instant Pot Carnitas is it’s so simple & much quicker to make!! 🙂

5 Simple Steps to Make Pressure Cooker Carnitas:

1. Cube Pork Shoulder Meat
2. Marinate Cubed Pork
3. Pressure Cook Marinated Pork
4. Crisp Pressure Cooked Pork
5. Shred & Eat!! 😀 😀

You’ll Enjoy Instant Pot Carnitas (Pressure Cooker Carnitas) Because:

• Simple & easy to make, yet addictive to eat!
• Great texture & flavor – crisped browned edges + juicy & tender meat
• Shorter cooking time comparing to the traditional or slow cooker methods
• Versatile dish – can be made into tacos, burritos, tamales, or eat with rice…
• Made with mostly whole, real ingredients

Instant Pot Carnitas (Pressure Cooker Carnitas) are Great for:

• Mexican fiesta celebrations (e.g. Cinco de Mayo)
• Outings, Picnics, Potlucks…
• Holidays, Dinner Parties, Gatherings…
• Game Days, Football Parties, Men’s/Ladies’ Night, Taco Bar Parties…

Ingredients for Instant Pot Carnitas (Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork)

• 3 ¼ pounds (~1475g) pork shoulder meat (pork butt meat), cut into 2 – 2 1/4 inches cubes
• 200ml (~4/5 cup) unsalted chicken stock

Marinade

• 4 (13g) garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 (200g) medium onion, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon (2g) cumin seed, ground
• 1 teaspoon (2g) cinnamon powder or 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) light soy sauce (not low sodium soy sauce)
• 55ml juice from 1 fresh orange
• Kosher salt
• Ground black pepper

Optional

• 8 – 12 corn tortillas
• Salsa (pico de gallo)
• 1 lime

Tools for Instant Pot Carnitas (Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork)

• Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
• baking tray
• Broiler

Instructions for Instant Pot Carnitas (Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork)

Preparation

4 (13g) garlic cloves, crushed
1 (200g) medium onion, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon (2g) cumin seed, ground

First prepare the above ingredients.

Step 1
Prepare Pork Shoulder Meat

3 ¼ pounds (~1475g) pork shoulder meat (pork butt meat)

Remove rind and bone from the pork shoulder meat. Cut pork shoulder meat into cubes (~2 – 2 1/4 inches cubes)

*Pro Tip: Don’t throw away the excess fat!

Step 2
Marinate Pork Shoulder Cubes

Cubed pork shoulder + fat
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
Crushed garlic cloves
Chopped onion
Ground cumin
1 teaspoon (2g) cinnamon powder or 1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon (15ml) light soy sauce (not low sodium soy sauce)
55ml juice from 1 fresh orange

Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker

Inactive Time (for Marinating): 20 mins

Place pork shoulder cubes & fat into the Instant Pot’s inner pot.

Season very generously with kosher salt and ground black pepper.

Add 4 crushed garlic cloves, chopped onion, 1 tsp (2g) ground cumin, 1 tsp (2g) cinnamon powder, 2 bay leaves, 1 tbsp (15ml) light soy sauce, and juice (55ml) from 1 orange to the inner pot.

Mix well and let the meat marinate for 20 minutes.

Step 3
Pressure Cook Pork Shoulder Cubes

200ml (~4/5 cup) unsalted chicken stock

Pour ~4/5 cup (200ml) unsalted chicken stock in the inner pot.

Close lid and pressure cook at

• Pressure Cooking Method: High Pressure for 30 minutes
• Pressure Release Method: 15 minutes Natural Release

Release the remaining pressure after 15 minutes and open the lid carefully.

Step 4
Crisp Pork Shoulder Cubes

Pressure cooked pork shoulder cubes
Kosher salt
Cooking liquid (optional: 2 tbsp (30ml) vegetable oil)

Baking tray
Broiler

Transfer the pork shoulder cubes onto a baking tray.

*Pro Tip 1: Now is a good time to take a bite and see if the pork cubes are salty enough. If the pork cubes are not salty enough, add more kosher salt into the cooking liquid. Taste & adjust accordingly.

Drizzle some of the cooking liquid on to each piece.

*Pro Tip 2: The cooking liquid should be mostly fat. If not, mix ¼ cup (63ml) cooking liquid with 2 tbsp (30ml) of vegetable oil and drizzle over each piece of pork. The fat & oil will protect the meat from drying out and the surface will crisp faster.

Place pork shoulder cubes under a broiler or the top rack of a preheated 450°F toaster oven until the surface is crisped. Roughly 8 – 10 minutes.

Flip the pork shoulder cubes, drizzle each piece with more cooking liquid and place in the oven again until the surface is crisped.

Step 5
(Optional) Heat Corn Tortillas

8 – 12 corn tortillas
Salsa (pico de gallo)

If you are serving the Carnitas with corned tortillas, you can heat up the corn tortillas when the pork is browning in the oven.

Our Pico de Gallo Recipe: Homemade Salsa Recipe

Step 6
Serve Pressure Cooker Carnitas & Enjoy

Optional: 1 lime

You can shred the Pressure Cooker Carnitas with forks or leave them as chunks.

Place piping hot Instant Pot Carnitas on top of the warmed corn tortillas with a spoonful of salsa (Pico De Gallo). Finish off with a squeeze of a lime.

Ta da! Serve immediately & eat!!! 🙂

*Pro Tip: After crisping the carnitas in the oven, try to eat immediately or else the meat will dry out if you let it sit for too long.

Cooking Tips for Instant Pot Carnitas (Crispy Mexican Pulled Pork)

What is Pork Shoulder (Pork Butt) Meat?

Pork Butt Meat or Boston Butt is one of our favorite cuts of pork. It’s the upper part of the pig’s shoulder, above the picnic shoulder cut in the front legs.

It’s marbled with enough fat to keep the meat moist while cooking. So, remember to pick a piece of pork butt with some nice marble and fat.

*Caution: What we aim for is crisp on the outside and moist & tender on the inside. Don’t overcook the pork shoulder meat in both the Instant Pot & oven, or they will be dry inside!

*Little Shopping Tip: Pork Shoulder Meat (already a cheap cut) is usually quite a bit cheaper in Asian markets marked as Pork Butt Meat or Char Siu Meat. So if you have Asian market near you that sells fresh meat, go check it out. 😉

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