Dutch Oven Carnitas (One-Pot)
These Dutch Oven Carnitas are mouthwateringly good, AND low effort to make. Just throw all the ingredients into the Dutch oven and come back in four hours.
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 395kcal
Ingredients
- 2 pounds pork shoulder or pork butt sliced into 8 chunks
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ tablespoon ground cumin
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cinnamon stick no longer than 3 inches
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- 1 head garlic roughly chopped (10 to 12 cloves)
- 1 jalapeño pepper diced
- ¼ cup orange juice or 1 small orange
- 2 tablespoons oil or lard
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a Dutch oven, in the order listed. Cover with a heavy lid and place on medium heat until it comes to a simmer, then turn the heat down to medium-low.
- Cook on medium-low heat for 4 hours. Stir occasionally (once an hour) for the first 3 hours.
- During the last hour, stir frequently (every 5 minutes or so) to prevent the bottom from burning, and to break up the meat into a shredded texture.
- Optional (but recommended): Put the Dutch oven in the oven on the middle rack and broil for a few minutes, or until the surface of the carnitas is brown and crispy.
Nutrition
Calories: 395kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 136mg | Sodium: 733mg | Potassium: 895mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 111IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 4mg