These perfect paleo Instant Pot carnitas are tender, flavorful, and juicy, made in about 30 minutes. A perfect Whole30 dinner, these Whole30 carnitas are the best carnitas I’ve ever had… and that’s saying something. Instant Pot carnitas are so freaking good, easy, and quick, they might just become your new go-to during the week! You’ve absolutely got to have an Instant Pot – life changer. Click here to buy one.
I lost these photos.
I knew I wanted to share them with you today, since they’re kind of perfect for Whole30 dinners in the summer, right? They require like zero effort and are made in the Instant Pot. Translation: no heating up the house and more time spent outside, watching your toddler run through the sprinkler, laughing maniacally and trying to blackmail the dog into doing the same.
You know, like, for instance.
So I kept scouring my Lightroom collections, looking for “Instant Pot carnitas”, but nothing! I started getting worried when it dawned on me that I could just search my catalog for the batch. And there they were…
“perfect instant pot carnitas”
Of course! Of course of course of course. Of course I would name them that even to myself because they’re that insanely good. Of course I wouldn’t do something reasonable, label them something organized and easy to find, right? No, because, when you make the perfect paleo Instant Pot carnitas, you go all in.
I love making carnitas at home to start with. It’s a smarter-not-harder thing: a big, cheap piece of meat that requires like no effort and packs a perfect flavor punch. They’re versatile and keep well, perfect with salsas over lettuce as a sort of Chipotle copycat burrito bowl or over cauliflower rice or in tacos or on nachos.
And my paleo Crockpot carnitas recipe is amazing. The carnitas are tender, juicy, and full of flavor; they’re made with economical pork tenderloin and produce a bunch. The recipe is ridiculously easy, too: dump, wait, brown. Tada!
But I have to admit… this perfect paleo Instant Pot carnitas recipe is even better. Something about the Instant Pot produces the most tender carnitas I’ve ever had, ever, and the cinnamon and orange juice is heady and just right. I rubbed the whole tenderloin with a rich, smoky spice mix, covered it with aromatics and fresh citrus juices. 15 minutes later?
Paleo Instant Pot Carnitas perfection.
If I could literally twist your arm to try these, I would. They’re that good and that easy. And quite honestly, I’m not sure I’ll ever, ever make them another way. Of course, you really need an Instant Pot to tackle this recipe, but if you don’t have one, my paleo Crockpot carnitas are just delicious.
To make these, I used…
Perfect Paleo Instant Pot Carnitas (Whole30)
These perfect paleo Instant Pot carnitas are tender, flavorful, and juicy, made in about 30 minutes. A perfect Whole30 dinner, these Whole30 carnitas are the best carnitas I've ever had... and that's saying something. Instant Pot carnitas are so freaking good, easy, and quick, they might just become your new go-to during the week!
Ingredients
Rub
- 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil plus more for browning
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 pounds boneless pork tenderloin , excess fat trimmed, cubed
Carnitas Cooking Juice
- 1 onion , peeled, quartered
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 cup fresh orange juice
- 1/3 cup fresh lime juice
Instructions
- Mix all rub ingredients together, minus pork tenderloin, and rub onto pork tenderloin. You can let this sit and dry marinade for up to two hours; if you have the time, I highly recommend it. Otherwise, continue on with the directions.
- Turn your Instant Pot on Sauté mode and add a drizzle of olive oil or avocado oil to coat the bottom of the pot. Add rubbed pork tenderloin and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned on all sides.
Add all carnitas cooking juices ingredients to the Instant Pot over the browned pork. Secure lid and cook on Manual at high pressure for 15 minutes. Quick release, remove the pork and shred (or use a potato masher to shred).
- Preheat your broiler. Place amount of carnitas to be served on a parchment-lined baking sheet and ladle with a bit of cooking juice. Broil 3 minutes. Stir and broil another 2-3 minutes, watching so as not to burn. Serve.
Recipe Notes
Keep with juices in an airtight container in the fridge one week. Before serving each time, follow broiling instructions. Don't skip the browny bits!
Adapted from this awesome recipe.
Here’s proof I’m a teacher…I didn’t see the “cubed” part! Lol I made it with whole pork loin but because I doubled the meat I added time, thankfully. It turned out so delicious that another batch is in the pot right now for camping this week! Thanks for all the great recipes!
Haha! Glad it worked out!
Does browning the meat require cooking the cubes all the way through? Or just to brown the edges and let the meat reach temp during the pressure cook?
If I only use 1 pound, still cut into cubes, do I need to adjust the cooking time at all? Thanks!
I would only cut down on the cooking time maybe a minute or two!
You mention to marinade for “up to two hours”. I was planning on marinating it overnight. Would you not advise this? Thank you!
Overnight would be totally fine! 🙂
Hi there, I’m planning on making this tonight- about how big should the cubes of meat be? I’ve seen some pork recipes with 1-inch cubes and others with 4-5 inch cubes hehe so specifics would be appreciated. Thanks!
1-2″ cubes will be perfect! Honestly you can do almost anything with this recipe BUT that size cubes will make it much easier to shred.
I have an 8 pound shoulder…would that also work and for how long in the Instant Pot?
It probably won’t all fit so I’d split it into two cooking times. I’ve doubled this recipe exactly before and had great success. You’ll need to cook it much longer though – I’d try something like 45 minutes!
Still slightly confused about “these ingredients” mentioned in step 3. You responded above that it refers to the ingredients in step #2, but there are no ingredients in step 2 (beyond pork and oil). There would need to be some liquid added to the Instant Pot, though, for it to work appropriately. Is step 3 adding the cooking juices?
Ah! You’re correct. Not sure how that slipped through! Step 3 is adding the cooking juices. Thank you for catching that! I’ll update ❤️
I’m so excited to try these!
Quick question….I feel like I’m missing something obvious, but what do I do with the cooking juice ingredients? Is it in step 3 where it says, “Add these ingredients…”?
Step 3 refers to the ingredients in step #2 🙂
I’m new to instant pot, can you tell me if this recipe could be doubled? Suggested adjustments in cooking time?
You can definitely double the recipe! I’ve done so many times and have found no need to increase the cooking time.
I made this in the instant pot and it came out dry and not easily shreddsble. Any suggestions?
Are you sure you used the proper poundage for the pork? I make these probably every three weeks exactly as written, and they come out perfectly tender with tons of juice every single time. How big of pieces did you cut the pork into?
We have an orange allergy in our family. What do you think would be a good substitute for the orange juice? Thanks.
I’d substitute about half of the orange juice with more lime juice and the other half with broth. Let me know how it goes!
I made this last night! Very tasty but I needed to pressure cook mine for 50 minutes. Could your instructions have a typo?
15 minutes at High in the Instant Pot should be enough time after you sauté the chunks. Did you use an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker? I will certainly retest this recipe in a different device with your experience in mind! Thank you for letting me know 🙂 And I’m glad you liked the taste!
How would I make this in a crockpot – not purchasing an instant pot.
Hi Karla! You would love this recipe; it’s very similar but made in a Crockpot. Let me know how you like it! https://40aprons.com/paleo-carnitas-whole30-crockpot/