Our easy Instant Pot pork carnitas recipe with a jar of salsa verde and plenty of seasonings will become your new favorite meal. Use any pressure cooker or as a Ninja Foodi recipe. We love this made into tacos for dinner.

A close-up shows a hand holding metal tongs with a piece of succulent carnitas above a pot brimming with meat in a rich, red sauce. The pot appears to be part of a pressure cooker, ensuring the flavors meld perfectly.

These pork carnitas came about quite by accident. Using what we had in the house we made some of the most amazingly tender pork Instant Pot recipe. You've gotta' try these.

One night when our family came home from eating at a restaurant everyone said they had the best shredded pork ever, now that was a challenge. We wanted to see if we could make something similar to that at home for much less but tasting similar. They described what it was like and how it was served so we went to creating. It was such a hit after they ate it we thought we'd share it with all of you.

We had a day where we had defrosted a pork roast and realized it needed to be cooked. Thought about what we had in the fridge that would bring all the flavors to the next level and threw it all together. It. Was. good.

Get out whatever electric high pressure machine you have at home and let us tell you how we did this and the tweaks we have made along the way in the years since we made it first. If you are using a Foodi you will use the lid that is not attached to make this one!

Ingredient notes

Carnitas are traditionally made with a pork shouldersometimes called a pork butt. This is usually used because of the higher fat content which helps the meat stay super tender and juicy when it's cooked. Your Instant Pot pork shoulder should ideally cubed about 1.5″ x 1.5″ in size. The smaller they are the faster they will fall apart and become pork tender.

Can you use pork chops for carnitas?

Not really. You need a fattier piece of meat like the pork shoulder or roast to make pressure cooker carnitas. Reason being, it has fat that will render down well and make it tender with tons of flavor. Pork loin and pork chops are pretty lean.

You can call this whatever you like. It did have a Mexican flavor to it with the salsa verde We used so the closest thing we could compare them too would be Instant Pot carnitas. You can see how we prepared it here. Theirs was shredded but we knew we could get the same taste but in small chunks, that way each piece would soak up all those flavors, it worked.

For the seasonings this is what we use (of course you can adjust the heat with the amount of chili powder or red pepper flakes. If you don't want it spicy at all then omit. What is listed makes it mild). We like to add oregano salt and pepper too.

Throwing in a sliced onion adds flavor and texture to the dish. We use white typically but yellow would work as well.

Can you make carnitas with frozen pork?

Yes, we made it again a few months later, but forgot to thaw it ahead of time. NO problem!! We threw in our Instant Pot frozen pork roast with this same sauce and that worked as great as the first go around!

How Long to Cook Pork Carnitas in Instant Pot

For a 2 – 3 pound piece it will take about 30 minutes. If you do use a piece with a bone in it take into account that that weight will be removed so you are going to want a slightly larger piece to account for that. We leave all the fat on while it's being cooked because that offers more flavor. When done we will then trim that off, discard and enjoy the leaner protein pieces.

If you notice there is no cooking liquid per say added. That is okay! like with our pressure cooker chili verde dish, here is moisture in the salsa and when cooked the meat emits liquid as well. We have had plenty of questions regarding this and we wouldn't share anything that didn't work perfectly so believe in the steps y'all.

An overhead view reveals a pressure cooker brimming with raw pork chunks, vibrant green chilies, minced garlic, and bold red spices, all set for crafting good pressure cooker carnitas. The text above declares, "Pork Carnitas in a Pressure Cooker.

We used our Ninja Foodi pot to make this batch which worked fantastic. The only prep work is cubing the meat, the rest is thrown in and stirred together before setting it to pressure cook.

Mine had one bone in it which we removed. Once we added everything in as you see below we put that bone back in and when it was dinner time gave it to our puppy (she was in heaven) Feel free to leave all of the fat on and cube it into 1×1″ pieces, or remove some which is what we did.

Now if you put the entire piece of meat in there without cutting it up at all it would take a lot longer to cook, break down, and be tender enough to pull it apart. This is why we almost always cube our meat before we put it in. That way you not only cut down on the cook time, but it's already cut into bite size pieces so it's ready to eat right away.

How to Serve Pork Carnitas

Serve inside tortillas with toppings or on top of a bed of rice like you see here. There are tons of possibilities as far as that goes. If you want a low carb meal then you can enjoy as is right out of the pot.

If you ask us, cheese goes on everything! It is not typically served with it though. Put on top of a bed of pressure cooker refried beans with grated cheddar cheese. Place coriander, lime, onion, tomato and avocado onto a plate. Or serve inside baked potatoes topped with red tomato salsa.

Black beans on the side is a given
Coleslaw gives them a fresh cool ingredient amongst the heat
Brown or white rice is a cheap option
Throw a pot of corn in for 2 minutes and enjoy
Chips and salsa always works

If you'd rather make a batch of slow cooker pork carnitaswe have a recipe for that too!

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas Recipe

By Instant Pot pork carnitas with bold flavors of salsa verde and plenty of seasonings will become your new favorite Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi pork dinner. Prep: 10 minutes minsCook: 25 minutes minsServings: 6 Save Recipe Saved! Pin Recipe Comment Print Recipe

Equipment

Ingredients

2-3 lb pork shoulder, cubed
3 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1.5 tsp chili powder
1/2 small onion, diced
1 cup salsa verde

Instructions

Remove bone and cube pork into 1×1" pieces, put them into your pot.
Add all other ingredients and stir together so meat is coated.
Close pressure cooker lid and seal steam valve and set to high pressure for 25 minutes.
Allow for a natural release of steam for 5 minutes, then release the rest quickly.
Lift lid and use forks or tongs to shred meat (will fall apart). If you want some of the liquid to evaporate you can set pot to saute for about 5 minutes and then serve inside tortillas or on top of rice.

Nutrition

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Entree, Main CourseCuisine: Mexican Tried this recipe?Mention @thetypical_mom or tag #thetypicalmom!

What can we make with leftovers?

They are so versatile! You can fill any taco or burrito with this, make pork quesadillas, OR use them as a topping for nachos! Include them in a salad like this Chipotle Carnitas Salad! Serve them with alongside air fryer empanadas with onion/cilantro topping typically seen served on Mexican food trucks OR a good Guacamole or Pico De Gallo!