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Easy Pork Carnitas – Perfect Use For Leftover Shredded Pork

July 31, 2013 //  by Michelle//  20 Comments

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I can’t tell you how many times my husband has smoked a Boston Butt roast on our Big Green Egg and afterwards we are left with a huge pile of smoked pork. You know there is no way I am letting that go to waste. At my house, our favorite way to use up the leftovers is to turn them into Easy Pork Carnitas!

Since the pork is already cooked it only takes about an hour on the oven to infuse delicious Mexican flavors that become the base of some of the tastiest tacos.

Now, the recipe below uses pre-cooked shredded pork but you can just as easily use an uncooked Boston Butt Roast with the ingredients listed below. You will have to cook it a bit longer, but the results are the same – delicious!

4.3 from 7 reviews
Easy Pork Carnitas - Perfect Use For Leftover Shredded Pork
 
Print
Prep time
5 mins
Cook time
1 hour 15 mins
Total time
1 hour 20 mins
 
Author: Michelle
Serves: 6 - 8
Ingredients
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 orange, juiced
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2½ - 3 cups shredded cooked pork
  • 1 - 1½ cups chicken broth
Instructions
  1. Place all ingredients into a large Dutch oven and simmer for 1 hour until most of the liquid is absorbed. You want to have about ½ cup liquid left in bottom of pan
  2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  3. Spread shredded meat and remaining juices on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes until browned.
  4. Remove and serve on a corn tortilla with your favorite fixings...limes, cilantro, tomato, etc...
Notes
If you do not have precooked pork. You can mix your spices with a tablespoon of oil and rub all over a 3 pound Boston Butt Roast. Place in crockpot and add onion, jalapeño garlic and fruit juices. Cover and cook for 8 hours on low. Remove and shred pork using two forks. Once shredded you can place on a baking sheet and cook in oven to crisp the meat as described above.
3.2.2089
 

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Category: Crockpot Recipe, Main Dish, Pork

Previous Post: « Black Walnut Pound Cake
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kathy

    August 28, 2013 at 8:16 am

    This is perfect! I have a ton of leftover shredded pork. Thank you.

    Reply
  2. durwoodx

    December 29, 2013 at 11:29 pm

    I have to be honest. This comes off as excessively citrusy compared to the real deal. I think the various fruit juices need to be dialed back a LOT. Other than that, there’s a good base here.

    Reply
    • Brian

      December 8, 2015 at 12:48 am

      Just made this and I agree — it definitely came out on the sour side. Still good, though. Next time I make it I think I will omit the lemon entirely and just go with the orange and lime.

      Reply
  3. Dee Flournoy

    January 9, 2014 at 7:18 am

    hi love the site with the all the recipes. You had a recipe that had peanut butter noodles and chicken a while back , my daughter is asking for it but I can’t find it.Do still have it ?Could you send it to me ? THanks for all that you do.
    Dee

    Reply
  4. jennifer

    January 12, 2014 at 2:28 pm

    i agree with an early comment; too much citrus for me. I would start by eliminating the lemon, or half all the juice.

    Reply
  5. Dale

    July 9, 2015 at 7:24 pm

    I cut out the lemon and 1 lime. I added in the zest of one lime. It turned out perfect. Delicious!!!!!

    Reply
  6. Ella

    January 31, 2016 at 7:32 pm

    We had a bunch of leftover pork roast to use up so I made this. I followed the advice of other commenters and reduced the amount of citrus: instead I squeezed a small fresh mandarin orange, added the same amount of lime juice, and then a little squirt of lemon juice. Did everything else per the recipe (except I had to lower the heat and add a splash of water half way through). Awesome. Family loved it. Will definitely have this on the menu on the days following pot-roast-day.

    Reply
    • Ella

      February 1, 2016 at 10:06 am

      I mean: I used a clementine, not a mandarin, because it’s what I had on hand. I think about a 1/3 of an orange would work well too.

      Reply
    • Becky

      May 27, 2024 at 6:49 pm

      Try Sunny Delight too. Original or Tangy.

      Reply
  7. Joan

    April 18, 2018 at 10:39 am

    I made this for a birthday party. I used already shredded pulled pork from Costco. And followed your recipe it was a huge hit. So easy to make.

    Reply
  8. Nathan Hunzeker

    July 22, 2018 at 5:46 pm

    Great flavor, and great way to use leftovers. I served in flour tortillas with cheese, sour cream, black olives salsa, and mangos. Yum!

    Reply
  9. Craig H

    November 27, 2018 at 6:13 pm

    I agree with some of the other comments in regards to the juice. I cut the orange and lime juice in half and used just a squeeze of lemon and followed the rest of the recipe. It is great. Everyone liked it.

    Reply
  10. Mary

    September 24, 2019 at 9:07 pm

    My husband smoked a Boston butt this weekend, and even after our large party, we still had so much left over. Followed the recipe exact and it was delicious! We didn’t taste the citrus at all. We made burrito bowls with cauliflower rice and black beans and you could still taste the smoke on the pork. Looking forward to making Carnitas tacos tomorrow night with the leftovers.

    Reply
  11. ASHLEY

    June 10, 2021 at 10:15 pm

    I’ve been making this recipe for years and we love it. I’ve never omitted anything and it’s perfect for my family everytime… definitely my go to!

    Reply
  12. MC

    December 21, 2021 at 10:42 pm

    Followed the recipe exactly and it was delicious!! I think because I used a leftover smoked pork shoulder which had a lot of fat and juices, the citrus cut the richness and balanced out the flavors. Served with radishes, cilantro, queso fresco, avocado, and white onion. Next time I might add two jalapeños to kick up the heat. But otherwise perfection!

    Reply
  13. Mary

    March 31, 2022 at 10:21 pm

    ******I used left over pork tenderloin, and did NOT use lemon, only used ONE half of lime for juice, one orange for juice, 1/2 jalapeno sliced, and ADDED the following: diced chiles (half a small can), 2 teaspoons of apple juice, and sprinkled brown sugar on top when I put in the oven. All other spices I added according to the recipe. Added a bit more chicken broth too. Was a 10+++!!! According to hubby and me! <3

    Reply
  14. Mary Anna

    September 30, 2023 at 7:08 pm

    I do one lime, one orange, and omit the lemon, and it’s perfect. (Agree that as written , it’s not ideal.). Having it again tonight!

    Reply
  15. Kevin Bullock

    March 30, 2024 at 2:04 pm

    I thought about trying to add pineapple. Anyone tried that?

    Reply
  16. muchos gracias

    April 27, 2024 at 4:06 pm

    I used what I had on hand: 1 blood orange, 1 lemon, 1 lime. I didn’t have garlic cloves so doubled the powered garlic. Didn’t have fresh onions and jalapeños so subbed those with crispy fried onions and crispy fried jalapeños leftover from Thanksgiving. It was delish.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. easiest meals 101: the burrito bowl – The Lemke Lodge says:
    December 6, 2016 at 10:43 pm

    […] not the same thing…but it gives it the extra kick.  Other times it’s this pork recipe with Costco or Trader Joe’s precooked BBQ pork.  Even other times,  it’s shrimp, or […]

    Reply

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