What a better way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo (or any day of any month) than with our spicy and tender Carnitas Tacos? Using slow simmered pork loin, soft warm tortillas, our Homemade Refried Beans and Sweet Cilantro Cabbage, these terrific tacos are addictive.
Carnitas Tacos with Sweet Cilantro Cabbage
Have I told you lately how much I LOVE Mexican food?
(Be sure to check out our other Mexican-inspired dishes!)
I do. I could eat it every day. And with recipes this easy, why not?
We had purchased a pork loin to make another recipe, and it was huge. So we took half of the loin, and cut it into chunks, smothered it with savory Mexican spices, and let it sit in the fridge overnight.
I chose to cut it to reduce the cooking time. Also, it created more surface area for the spices to cling to.
Talk about some flavorful and tender pork. If you want to shortcut, you can always buy pulled BBQ pork and add some spices or sauce.
To get a nice color, we seared our pork for the Carnitas Tacos before we put them in our slow cooker. Get a nice brown on all sides in a hot skillet. You don’t want to cook them all the way through, just get a nice color.
Toss the chunks into your slow cooker with a chopped onion. But wait…what’s that? In the skillet? There’s no way I could leave all of that flavor behind.
While the pan is still hot, pour about 1/2 cup of beer or water or broth into the pan. Stir up this magic gravy and pour it over the pork and onions. (Yes, I said magic gravy.)
There is no need to add any more liquid.
Cooking times will vary based on your slow cooker. I recommend about 3 hours on low, until the pork is tender, pulls apart easily but isn’t dry.
Shred up your carnitas with a couple of forks, and serve on warm flour tortillas with our Homemade Refried Beans and Sweet Cilantro Cabbage. (Or your favorite taco toppings.)
Would also be great with our Cilantro Lime Dip and Fresh Guacamole. ENJOY!
Hope you love our Carnitas Tacos!
Carnitas Tacos & Sweet Cilantro Cabbage
Ingredients
Carnitas
- 2 lbs pork loin cut into large cubes
- 1 onion chopped
- 6 TB oil vegetable, canola, or olive, divided
- 4 TB Frank's hot sauce
- 2 TB chili powder
- 1/2 TB minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Adobo seasoning blend
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup beer
Sweet Cilantro Cabbage
- 4 cups green cabbage thiny sliced
- 1/2 bell pepper
- 3 TB chipotle mayonnaise
- 3 TB fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 TB sugar
- 1 TB cider vinegar
- 1 TB water
- 1 tsp vegetable seasoning blend
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
Carnitas
- In a plastic container with a tight fitting lid, cover the pork chunks with the Frank's hot sauce, 3 tablespoons of oil, and all seasonings. With your hands or spoon, stir to make sure all pieces of pork are well coated.
- Cover tightly and refrigerate 6 hours to overnight. Shake the pork around every couple of hours to distribute the spices.
- In a large cast iron skillet, heat the remaining oil to medium high. Add the marinated pork, and sear until brown on all sides. Once all pork is cooked, deglaze the pan with the beer, stirring to get all of the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Set aside.
- Place chopped onion in the bottom of your slow cooker. Add the seared pork on top. Pour the beer gravy over the pork and onions.
- Cover and cook on low for about 2-3 hours, until the pork is tender, pulls apart easily and isn't dry.
- Cool, shred with a fork. Serve with warm tortillas and your favorite toppings.
Sweet Cilantro Cabbage
- In a large bowl, whisk together mayo, sugar, vinegar, and water. Add all seasonings and cilantro. Stir.
- Add cabbage and bell pepper, toss to coat well. Refrigerate until serving.
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