Have a Party with Slow Cooker Keto Pork Carnitas (Comida Fiesta!)
Slow-cooked Mexican pork that’s juicy and fall-apart tender, then oven-crisped to absolute perfection!
Impress a crowd with this flavorful & authentic slow cooker keto pork carnitas recipe!
Put a twist on Taco Tuesday with these slow cooker pork carnitas! The meat is roasted in the slow cooker until juicy and fall-apart tender, then oven-crisped to absolute perfection!
Invite your loved ones to feast on this luscious, citrusy pork that cultivates friendship and warmth. There’s just something about carnitas that says, “Let’s celebrate life together!”
The flavor is out of this world!
One notable characteristic of traditional carnitas is the use of citrus, often from a juiced orange and lime. This recipe includes freshly squeezed lime juice. To help maintain a low carb count for this slow cooker keto pork carnitas recipe, we omitted the addition of orange juice. In its place, we added fresh orange zest to provide the equivalent flavor of orange juice minus the high carbohydrate and sugar count.
To keep the meal keto, we used butter leaf lettuce and a cheese tortilla in place of corn or flour tortillas. You could also use the carnitas and toppings to make a carnitas taco salad! YUM!
Tips for making the best slow cooker keto pork carnitas:
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- Strain any leftover stock and use it as a killer soup base! It’d be amazing in our Keto Taco Soup!
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- Get your shred on with these sleek and wonderfully functional metal meat claws! They make shredding meat so easy!
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- Planning on having a party? Serve these slow cooker keto pork carnitas with our keto guacamole and keto jicama pico de gallo. Yum!
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- Make your own keto cheese taco shells. Topping ideas include sour cream, shredded Monterey jack cheese, cotija cheese, and your favorite hot sauce.
Slow Cooker Keto Pork Carnitas
yield: 14 SERVINGS
prep time: 20 MINUTES
cook time: 8 HOURS
total time: 8 HOURS 20 MINUTES
Slow-cooked Mexican pork that's juicy and fall-apart tender, then oven-crisped to absolute perfection!
Ingredients
- 6 pounds no-bone pork shoulder or butt
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons erythritol
- 2/3 cup yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 large jalapeño, cored, seeded, finely diced
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 14.5 oz can chicken broth
- 2 limes
- 1 tablespoon orange zest, packed (zest from about 1 medium orange)
- 1/2 cup salsa, restaurant style
Directions
1
In a small bowl, mix together cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, erythritol, and orange rind. Set aside.
2
Place the onion and garlic in the bottom of a slow cooker followed by the chicken broth.
3
Remove any string or netting from your pork roast. Coat the pork with the softened butter followed by the premixed seasonings. Place it in the slow cooker, fatty side up to allow the fat to drip down during the cooking process.
4
Pour salsa over the roast along with the juice of two limes and the jalapeño. Secure lid on slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or until pork is fall-apart tender.
5
Remove pork from the slow cooker. Shred meat with two forks or meat claws. It should fall apart easily.
6
Preheat broiler. Place the shredded meat on a rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan. Ladle stock from slow cooker over pork. Toss it gently as you add the stock. Continue doing so until the meat no longer absorbs the extra juice. Broil for 5-15 minutes, or until the edges of the pork begin to brown. Check frequently to avoid burning and toss once halfway through.
7
Serve on butter lettuce, toasted cheese tortillas, or your favorite low-carb taco-style wrap. Suggested toppings include homemade pico de gallo, guacamole, and Mexican cotija cheese. Enjoy!
Additional Notes
Stock leftover from the cooking process is included in the nutritional values.
Nutrition Information
Yield: 14 servings, Serving Size: 3.5 oz
Amount Per Serving:
318 Calories | 15.3g Fat | 4.5g Total Carbs | 0.4g Fiber | 0.9g Sugar | 1.7g Sugar Alcohol | 38.3g Protein | 2.4g Net Carbs
Your whole family will love this meal!
These slow cooker keto pork carnitas come together so easily and using the slow cooker makes dinner a breeze! We hope this keto carnitas recipe finds a regular place in your menu rotation!
Check out what my Hip sidekick Erica had to say about this keto carnitas recipe:
“SO Y-U-M! The combination of the butter lettuce, cheese tortillas, pico de gallo, guacamole, and pork meat… it’s delicious, juicy, and so good! I’ll definitely be making it again very soon! It is the perfect meal if you are hosting a dinner for a lot of people as it makes a ton of meat (plus, your guests are going to be impressed)!
There are quite a bit of steps involved, but there are lots of ways to speed this process up if you’re short on time (like getting Cheddar Folios Wraps)! The best part is that I made a carnitas salad the next day with all my leftovers and it was amazing!”
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