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Chipotle Carnitas Recipe Photo

Chipotle Carnitas Recipe

David Dial
Chipotle Carnitas Recipe takes the inspiration of Chipotle and brings it into your own kitchen. How great is that?
4 from 41 votes
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 30 minutes
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 10
Calories 462 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2-3 tablespoons Canola Oil Or vegetable oil
  • 5-6 pounds Pork Shoulder
  • 1 medium Onion Coarsley chopped
  • 1 tablespoon Kosher Salt
  • 1 tablespoon Black Pepper
  • 2 cloves Garlic Peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1-2 Chipotle Pepper Finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon Adobo Sauce
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons juniper berries Lightly crushed
  • 2 Bay Leaf
  • 1/2 tablespoon Red Chili Powder
  • 1 tablespoon Dried Oregano
  • 1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin
  • 2 cups Chicken Broth

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  • Place a large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the canola oil and heat until oil is hot.
  • Place the pork shoulder in the pan and sear each side for about 2-3 minutes. Continue rotating until all sides of the pork shoulder have been seared.
  • Reduce heat to medium and add the chopped onions. Cook for 6-8 minutes.
  • Add all of the remaining ingredients except for the chicken broth (garlic, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, juniper berries, bay leaves, chili powder, oregano, thyme and cumin) to the pot.
  • Add chicken broth to the pot. Then add water until the water is about ¾ of the way up the side of the pork shoulder. Stir the pot gently.
  • Cover and place pot in the oven for 4 hours.
  • Once cooked, transfer the pork shoulder to a large cutting board. Discard the remaining liquid.
  • Once pork is cool enough to handle, shred it using 2 forks.
  • To prepare, place about 2 cups of pork in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2-3 Tbsp of chicken stock and cook until stock has evaporated and pork is slightly crispy.
  • Serve in tacos or burritos along with shredded lettuce, guacamole, corn salsa, pico de gallo, cheese and Chipotle rice.

Notes

  • Cans of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are common in the Mexican food aisle. Chipotle peppers are very spicy, so I usually only use 1-2 peppers for this recipe. I do add about one tablespoon of the adobo sauce from the can into the pot as well. The leftover peppers and adobo sauce freeze quite well.

Nutrition

Calories: 462kcalCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 40gFat: 31gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gSodium: 326mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1g
Keyword Braised, Copycat, Dinners, Easy, Easy Dinners, Mexican, Pork, Taco Week, Tacos
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