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carnitas taco with sweet corn salsa and cilantro garnish

Instant Pot Carnitas Recipe

Instant Pot Carnitas make pork shoulder tender fast with beer, citrus, and warm spices, then crisp beautifully for tacos, bowls, nachos, and more.
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Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 313kcal
Author: Ruth Truett

Equipment

  • instant pot
  • chef's knife
  • cutting board
  • baking sheet
  • mixing bowl
  • tongs

Ingredients

Carnitas

  • 4-5 lb pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch chunks pork butt would also be great
  • 2 tablespoon avocado oil
  • 1½ tablespoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
  • 2 chili powder
  • 2 smoked paprika
  • 2 onion powder
  • 2 cumin
  • 2 oregano
  • 1 teaspoon coriander
  • 6-7 cloves garlic
  • 1 12 oz Mexican beer of choice I used a Modelo
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • ¼ cup lime juice

Sweet Corn Salsa

  • 4 ears sweet corn, kernels removed about 2 cups of corn
  • ½ medium red onion, finely diced
  • ½ cup cilantro, chopped
  • juice of 2 limes
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ tsp fresh ground pepper

Assembly and Garnishes

  • corn tortillas
  • diced avocado and Cotija cheese for topping

Instructions

Carnitas

  • Mix the spices and salt together. Toss spice mix with the pork .
  • Using the high sauté function on the instant pot, sear the sides of each piece of pork in the avocado oil. Work in batches. Remove pork and set aside.
  • Deglaze the instant pot with the beer and citrus juices.
  • Add the chicken broth and garlic cloves.
  • Return pork to the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 1 hour. Allow the pressure to release naturally.
  • After the pork has cooked, remove from the instant pot and shred the meat.
  • Turn the Instant Pot back onto the high sauté function to reduce the cooking liquid. Let this reduce while you crisp up the carnitas and prep the assembly.
  • Put the shredded meat onto a baking sheet and broil on high for just a few minutes to crisp up the edges of the pork.

Sweet Corn Salsa

  • Toss the corn, onion, cilantro, lime juice, salt, and jalapeño pepper in a bowl.
  • Test for salt. Add more if you would like.
  • Let the salsa hang out in the fridge while the pork cooks.

Assembly

  • Add crisped pork onto warmed corn tortillas. Top with corn salsa. Garnish with the Cotija and avocado. Dip into the reduced cooking liquid. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 313kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.004g | Cholesterol: 93mg | Sodium: 1715mg | Potassium: 692mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 269IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 2mg
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