I’m a carnitas fanatic, and you will be too after you take one bite of this Mexican-style pulled pork. It will quickly become one of your favorite keto dinner recipes. If I could give you a money back guarantee on that statement, I would. It’s just that good.
I’ve been making this dish exactly the same way since 2016. My family adores it and it seems to disappear far too quickly. I worked hard to perfect my own carnitas and I wouldn’t change a thing.
How do I describe it for the uninitiated? It’s like a study in contrasts: slow braised, shredded pork that is somehow both juicy and crisp at the same time. Carnitas are mouthwateringly delicious and easy to make.
Serve it with some cilantro lime cauliflower rice for a fabulous low carb Mexican-inspired meal. Welcome to your new addiction, my friends!
Why we love this recipe
There’s so much to love about keto carnitas, I hardly know where to start.
- Easy preparation: This recipe requires only about 15 minutes prep time.
- Basic ingredients: You should be able to find all you need at your local grocery store.
- Perfectly seasoned: The flavors are balanced and not too spicy. But you can increase the spice if you like!
- Tender and juicy: Slow braising the carnitas results in melt-in-your-mouth texture.
- Crispy and caramelized: Broiling helps caramelize the meat and add crispness.
- Meal prep friendly: It’s a perfect make-ahead dish, so you can add it to your list of keto freezer recipes.
For more easy Mexican dinner recipes, check out Keto Tamale Pie and Chicken Enchilada Soup!
Reader’s Thoughts
“Oh man this was so good. I really love the idea of using the orange and the lime. I think that set this recipe apart from the rest of the recipes I’ve tried for carnitas. This is by far my favorite. Thank you again!” — Bonnie
Ingredients you need
- Pork butt: Pork shoulder, also known as pork butt, is the ideal cut of meat for carnitas. You can use bone in or bone out, it doesn’t matter. Once the pork shoulder is cooked, the bone just falls right out.
- Pure lard: Authentic carnitas are slow cooked in lard, but good pasture-raised lard can be expensive. I recommend using about 1/4 cup of lard and looking for a pork roast with a good fat cap on it, for extra juiciness. You can also use bacon grease.
- Citrus fruits: I add an orange and a lime to the pork while it cooks. The acid helps break down meat and it adds tremendous flavor. Because this recipe makes a large amount of servings, the carb count is minimal.
- Chipotle: This recipe works best with canned chipotle in adobo sauce. They are easy to find at most grocery stores in the international food aisle.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic always gives tremendous flavor compared to garlic powder. But you can use the powder if you must.
- Pantry staples: Oregano, cumin, salt and pepper
Step by Step Directions
- In a large dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the pork roast and brown well on all sides.
- Add the water to the bottom of the pan. Hand squeeze the juice of the orange sections and lime sections into the pan and add the rind as well. Add the cumin, oregano, chipotle, and garlic. Bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer the pot to the oven.
- Transfer to a 300ºF oven and let cook 5 hours, until the pork is tender and can easily be pierced with a fork. Remove from the liquids onto a foil lined cookie sheet and let stand until cool enough to shred.
- Spread the pork out over the cookie sheet and set under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to get the pork pieces nice and crisp. Watch carefully!
- Meanwhile, remove the orange and lime rinds from the liquids in the pot and discard. Set over medium high heat and bring a boil. Cook until the liquids are reduced by half.
- Add the crispy pork back into the liquids and toss to combine. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
Tips for Success
I did a lot of research into cooking carnitas before venturing out on my own. These are my best tips for a truly fantastic experience.
- Cook it whole – Don’t bother cutting the meat into chunks, as it adds unnecessary work and time to your recipe. Braising the roast at low heat with plenty of liquids results in such succulent tenderness, it practically falls apart when you touch it.
- Brown the meat first – Season with salt and pepper and brown on all sides before braising.
- Dump in the seasonings – There is also no need to rub the roast with seasonings, since it all falls off during the braising process. I find it simpler to just add it all in on top. The meat will absorb the flavors as it cooks.
- Broiling required – Don’t skip this step! Broiling the shredded pork helps crisp it up and give the carnitas their unique texture and flavor.
- Reserve the liquids – Don’t discard the wonderful juices after cooking. Bring them to a boil and reduce them, and then add the carnitas back in. It adds flavor and juiciness.
Frequently Asked Questions
Carnitas are delicious in any number of ways. Personally, I enjoy them most in a bowl with cauliflower rice and toppings like guacamole. You can also serve them as a salad or in lettuce wraps. And they are a great on Mini Pepper Nachos too.
If you want to make tacos with them, I have a few suggestions! Try the cauliflower thins from Outer Aisle or the egg white wraps from Egg Life. You could even use the crusts to make a tasty Keto Quesadilla!
Yes, you absolutely can. While I prefer braising them slowly in the oven, I’ve used my Instant Pot when short on time. Don’t skip the step of browning the meat first, as it brings out better flavor. You also need to cut back on the liquids, since a pressure cooker releases a lot of liquid from the meat itself. I recommend using only 1/2 cup of water. Set the Instant Pot for about 90 minutes on the meat/stew function and let the pressure release naturally.
Store the leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate it for up to 4 days. Carnitas can easily be frozen, too. Transfer the meat into freezer safe container and freeze it for up to 4 months.
This keto carnitas recipe has 2.0g of carbs and 0.0g of fiber per serving. That comes to 2.0g net carbs per serving.
More delicious keto pork recipes
- Instant Pot Keto Pulled Pork
- Easy Air Fryer Pork Chops
- The Best Keto Ribs
- Smothered Pork Chops
- Keto Cheesy Sausage Dip
- Slow Cooker Pork Loin
Crispy Carnitas Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 lb (1.81 kg) boneless pork butt
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbs (59.15 g) avocado oil
- 1 cup (236.59 g) water
- 1/2 medium orange, cut into quarters
- 1 medium lime, cut into quarters
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Additional salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300ºF. Season the pork butt all over with salt and pepper.
- In a large dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the pork roast and brown well on all sides.
- Add the water to the bottom of the pan. Hand squeeze the juice of the orange sections and lime sections into the pan and add the rind as well. Add the cumin, oregano, chipotle, and garlic. Bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer the pot to the oven.
- Let cook 5 hours, until the pork is tender and can easily be pierced with a fork. Remove from the liquids onto a foil lined cookie sheet and let stand until cool enough to shred.
- Spread the pork out over the cookie sheet and set under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to get the pork pieces nice and crisp. Watch carefully!
- Meanwhile, remove the orange and lime rinds from the liquids in the pot and discard. Set over medium high heat and bring a boil. Cook until the liquids are reduced by half.
- Add the crispy pork back into the liquids and toss to combine. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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This pork was delicious. I did not sear it first but followed the recipe as far as seasonings. The orange and lime juice really tenderized the meat. So flavorful!!
Thanks for this recipe!!
I made this tonight. I had a larger pork shoulder than 4 lbs, more like 8 since it was ~half of a 17 lb package. It was also bone-in, so I added an extra hour of cook time, plus the juice of a full orange, not half. Everything else I kept the same.
When I took it out of the oven at the 6-hour mark, the bone slid out with no resistance. I shredded it onto two baking trays, and stuck them under the broiler until they had a good amount of browning and crispness, stirring and turning as needed. It is AMAZINGLY good.
Carolyn, I saw this comment which was not answered:
“Eve says:
Quick question…you mentioned using 1/4 c lard or bacon grease in the notes before the recipe, but the recipe itself only mentions 2 tbs Avocado Oil. Is the lard a substitute for that? “
I’d like the answer to this comment as well. Could you please respond to it?
Thank you
Carolyn, I saw this comment which was not answered:
“Eve says:
Excited to try your version of this! LOVE carnitas 🙂 Quick question…you mentioned using 1/4 c lard or bacon grease in the notes before the recipe, but the recipe itself only mentions 2 tbs Avocado Oil. Is the lard a substitute for that? “
I’d like the answer to this comment as well. Could you please respond to it?
Thank you
Super easy and super yummy.
Curious about the macros – when I search macros in 3/4 c braises pork shoulder I get about 1/2 calories, fat and protein… does the avocado oil add that much?
Thanks for another amazing recipe!!
oven too hot and not enough liquid. made as instructed and was left with nothing for sauce. I will try again but this definitely needs additional liquids. fortunately the pork was tender and I only lost some that was on the bottom of the pan.
No it doesn’t need any more liquids. I’ve made this recipe so many times I could do it in my sleep. More likely is that your dutch oven does not have a tight-fitting lid and it’s letting the liquids evaporate.
Hi, thank you for your recipes, they are great! I am getting ready to make this and I’m just curious what rack level do you use for this, is it the bottom?
I love this recipe and I have it memorized. we just did a huge batch last weekend for a family birthday party. I bagged up the leftovers in 4 oz baggies and froze them so we can just grab a lunch out of the freezer and make tacos.
I just finished making this and followed the directions except I used smoked Paprica instead of Chipotle peppers because my husband is very sensitive to spicy foods.
We haven’t eaten it yet, but I had no liquid left after taking out the pork butt. I would think it would be very flavorful, but the liquid was gone. I do live at 7300 ft, so maybe I should have put in more than a cup of water. My dutch oven is very baked on the side.
I’ll probably make again but want to know about the liquid.
Thank you, Carolyn for your good recipes.
It’s probably the altitude. Try putting in more of all the liquids, including the juices… Also make sure the lid of your pot is tight-fitting to make sure it keeps the liquid in.