Instead of going out to dinner, buy good food. Cooking at home shows such affection. In a bad economy, it’s more important to make yourself feel good. -Ina Garten
Sometimes I will be just standing in the meat isle, looking for inspiration of what to make for dinner, my eyes will lock onto something and it will hit me like a ton of bricks. Tonight, that was pork shoulder. Plus it was on sale, so: Bonus! I decided to make carnitas and literally could not get home fast enough to get started.
I’ve made carnitas many times and with several variations. For this recipe, I included some tomatillos to the pot as a little test and it added some amazing flavors so I will definitely make it like this again.
Let’s get to it!
Ingredients:
For the carnitas:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
3-4 lbs pork shoulder/pork butt
spice rub
1/4 onion, diced
1 jalapeno, diced
1 roma tomato, diced
3 garlic cloves, whole
1/2 lime, halved
3 whole tomatillos
1 cup chicken stock
Spice rub:
1 tsp cayenne
1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp pink salt
1 tsp black pepper
For the bowl:
*these are all optional ingredients--top it the way you like!
1 small head cabbage, shredded
10 oz kale, torn
8oz colby jack cheese, grated
guac
sour cream
salsa
cilantro, chopped
cauliflower rice
radishes
lime
hot sauce
To begin, cut the pork shoulder into large chunks. Remove as much of the meat from the bone as you can but do not discard the bone, it will be going in the pot too! Put the pork in a large bowl.
Make the spice rub and add to the pork, stir, covering all pieces well with the spices.
Turn your Instant Pot to saute “more”. Add olive oil and butter to pot. Once the butter melts, begin searing the chunks of pork shoulder for 2 minutes and then flip and sear the other side for another 2 minutes. Do not overcrowd the pot or the meat will begin to steam. You will probably need to do two or three batches.
Remove the pork from the pot and set aside. Add a splash of the chicken stock and use a flat wooden spatula to remove the yummy brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the onions and jalapeno to the pot and saute for a few minutes, stirring constantly until the veggies begin to soften. Add the tomatoes, cook for another minute and then add the garlic and cook again for another few minutes, stirring often.
Add the pork back into the pot, including the resting juices and the bone. Throw in the tomatillos, limes and rest of the chicken stock.
Turn off Instant Pot saute function. Place lid and make sure the venting knob is set to sealing position.
Set Instant Pot to pressure cooker on high for 45 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally or use the quick release after 15 minutes. Be careful of the steam if using the quick release.
Once the pressure is completely released, remove the top. Take out the pork and begin to shred.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can make this in a slow cooker. Just follow the same directions, searing the meat and cooking the veggies in a heavy bottomed pan and then transfer everything to a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.
I forgot to take a pic of this next part. I got very distracted because I tried a bite of the carnitas and lost my mind from the total yumminess. But what you need to do is take out the limes from the pot and then grab an immersion blender and blend together the liquids and tomatillos, creating a wonderful sauce.
Now, you might not be able to wait much longer to eat this, which I totally understand. However, if you can wait a day and let the pork sit overnight in it’s sauce, the flavors will develop beautifully. Just stick the carnitas and sauce in a large container and refrigerate. This is what it looks like the next day. Of course, upon taking the carnitas out of the fridge, I had to take another taste, just to be sure it was a amazing as I remembered it to be.
It was even better.
Set your oven to broil and put the shredded meat on a lined sheet pan.
Broil until the top gets nice and crispy, 5-8 minutes.
While the carnitas are broiling, get the ingredients for the bowl together. You can saute up some riced cauliflower, which was my original plan, but then I decided to nix that idea and instead saute some kale and cabbage. Saute the veggies in avocado oil or bacon fat until they soften. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup chopped onions, stir and continue to cook for another few minutes. Add in some minced garlic and once again, stir and cook for just another minute or so.
And then just layer up your bowl with the veggies, carnitas and your favorite toppings. Mine had guac, sour cream, cilantro, colby jack cheese and a little salsa. It was absolutely divine. And this recipe makes 4 servings so that means I get to have another helping for lunch tomorrow! Yay!!
Instant Pot Carnitas Bowl
Ingredients
Carnitas
- 3-4 lbs pork shoulder bone in
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- spice rub
- 1/4 onion diced
- 1 jalapeno diced
- 3 whole tomatillos husks removed
- 3 cloves garlic whole
- 1/2 lime halved
- 1 cup chicken stock
Spice Rub
- 1 tsp cayenne
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp pink salt
Bowl Topping Ideas
- riced cauliflower
- sauteed cabbage/kale
- guacamole
- sour cream
- salsa
- radishes
- shredded lettuce
- hot sauce
Instructions
Carnitas
- Cut pork shoulder into 2 inch chunks. Cover completely with spice rub. Turn Instant Pot to saute "more". Heat oil and butter in pot. Sear pork for 2 min on each side, working in batches so you don't over crowd the pot. Remove pork from pot and set aside. Add a couple of tbsp of chicken stock to pan and deglaze, using a flat wooden spatula to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Add jalapeno and onion to the pot, saute until veggies begin to soften, about 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute, then add in the garlic and cook for another few minutes, stirring often. Add the pork back into the pot, including the resting juices and the bone. Add in the tomatillos, limes and rest of the chicken stock. Place the lid and cook on pressure cooker setting high with the release knob on seal. Set timer to 45 minutes. Let Instant Pot release the pressure naturally or after 15 minutes, carefully turn the venting knob to quick release. Remove pork, bone and limes from pot. Using an immersion blender, blend liquids and tomatillos together. Shred the pork and return to pot, stirring together. You can serve immediately or place in fridge overnight to allow flavors to develop further. When you are ready to serve, broil pork on lined sheet pan for 8 minutes or until tops get crispy. Serve on top of sauteed veggies with your favorite toppings. If serving immediately, place pork on lined sheet pan and broil for 8 minutes until tops are crispy. Otherwise, refrigerate overnight so allow the flavors to develop further.
Sauteed Kale and Cabbage
- Heat tbsp avocado oil or bacon fat in nonstick skillet and saute kale and cabbage for 5 minutes. Add in onion and saute for three minutes, add garlic and cook for another minute, stirring constantly.
Notes
Calories 549
Total fat 36g
Protein 44g
Carbohydrate 9g
Dietary Fiber 3g
Net Carbs 6g
Sugars 3g
Potassium 228mg
Vitamin A 58%
Vitamin C 13%
Calcium 29%
Iron 20%
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