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These are hands-down the BEST carnitas I’ve ever had. They’re impossibly tender and moist, and they’re crazy easy and quick to make in the Instant Pot. Perfect for entertaining, picnics, and meal prep, these Instant Pot carnitas are kind of life changing!
These pressure cooker carnitas are the perfect dinner in the summer. They require so little effort and are made easy in the Instant Pot. Translation: no heating up the house and more time spent outside. Carnitas are versatile and keep well, perfect with salsas over lettuce, over cauliflower rice, in tacos, or on nachos. Even better, these carnitas are keto, paleo, Whole30-compliant, and low carb.
These 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. 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? Carnitas perfection.
What Makes This Recipe So Good
Pork tenderloin – A lean cut of meat that is tender, juicy, and affordable.
Onion – Aromatic and lightly sweet when cooked, onions pair perfectly with the saltiness of the pork.
Garlic cloves – One of my favorite seasonings that helps give the carnitas the perfect flavor.
Cinnamon stick – The strong, sweet, and warm flavor with a bit woodiness helps give the juices the pork is cooked in a little kick.
Orange and lime juice – Fresh citrus juice as the base of the cooking juices makes the pork tenderloin extra zesty.
How To Make Instant Pot Carnitas
Mix all the rub ingredients together except the pork.
Rub onto the pork tenderloin.
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 the carnitas cooking juice 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 with a fork, potato masher, or a hand-held mixer on low..
Preheat your broiler.
Place the carnitas you plan on serving on a parchment-lined baking sheet and ladle a bit of the cooking juice over them.
Broil for 5 minutes. Keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t burn, and stir if needed. Serve and enjoy!
Top Tips For Making
- After rubbing the rub onto the pork tenderloin, if you have time, let it sit and dry marinade for up to two hours. I highly recommend it to let the seasonings soak in.
- Don’t ladle too much sauce in the broiling pan or the carnitas won’t crisp up! The secret to crispy carnitas is making sure to broil them long enough.
- If you aren’t cooking all of the carnitas at once, keep the pork with the juices in an airtight container in the fridge one week. Before serving each time, follow the broiling instructions.
- Don’t have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker? This is one I have, and I highly recommend it!
More Delicious Instant Pot Recipes
- Instant Pot Potato Salad
- Instant Pot Red Beans & Rice
- Dreamy Instant Pot Chicken & Rice
- Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Thighs
- Instant Pot Dal
Instant Pot Carnitas
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless pork tenderloin , excess fat trimmed, cubed
Rub
- 1 ½ tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil plus more for browning
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile pepper
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Cooking Juice
- 1 onion , peeled, quartered
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 cup fresh orange juice
- ⅓ 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 cooking juice 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 5 minutes, watching so as not to burn. Serve.
- Dry marinade: After rubbing the rub onto the pork tenderloin, if you have time, let it sit and dry marinade for up to two hours. I highly recommend it to let the seasonings soak in.
- Broiling tips: Don’t ladle too much sauce in the broiling pan or the carnitas won’t crisp up! The secret to crispy carnitas is making sure to broil them long enough.
- Leftover carnitas: If you aren’t cooking all of the carnitas at once, keep the pork with the juices in an airtight container in the fridge one week. Before serving each time, follow the broiling instructions.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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Do you cut the pork up prior to browning or you just throw the whole thing in the instant pot? Sorry if the question is silly
No silly questions here! If it will fit in the instant pot whole, that’s fine! If not, you can cut it to fit.
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/