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instant pot carnitas

Servings: 8 servings
By: Heather Bursch

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil or bacon fat
  • 3-4 pound boneless pork shoulder
  • 1 cup of water
  • 2 oranges zested and squeezed to about 1 cup of juice
  • 1 lime juiced
  • 4 cloves of garlic peeled but left whole
  • 2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 cup white onion chopped
  • 2 teaspoons oregano

Instructions

  • Trim large pieces of fat off of pork shoulder. Save fat and add to the pot before cooking for flavor.
  • Cut pork into 2-inch pieces.
  • Press [Saute], then press [Adjust] to [More] mode on your Instant Pot. In 10 seconds, your pot is ready to saute your meat. Add oil for a few seconds to cover the bottom of the insert and saute all meat sides in batches, placing browned pork in a bowl until all pieces are brown. Keep all meat in the extra bowl to rest and saute onions for about 3 minutes. Add some more oil as needed.
  • Add meat and all the remaining ingredients back into the Instant Pot insert, including reserved fat pieces, and stir to combine, scraping up browned bits if possible.
  • Close the lid of the Instant Pot. Press [Manual] and set the time for 30 minutes.
  • When time is up, let the pork naturally release for about 20 minutes and then release the remaining pressure manually.
  • Finishing Option 1: To eat immediately
    Shred meat and use juices to add moisture as needed, and skip the sauce thickening process as detailed next.
  • Finishing Option 2: To cook down the sauce with stove and oven
    With a slotted spoon, strain meat pieces onto a rimmed baking sheet with about 1/2 cup of juices poured on top. Put remaining juices in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer vigorously while the sauce cooks down to a thicker sauce. Broil pan with meat until the tops of meat chunks start to crisp. Remove from the oven. Discard fat pieces and shred meat. Pour thicker sauce on top and stir together before serving.
  • Finishing Option 3: To cook down the sauce with stove top only
    Remove pork pieces and pour all juices into a saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until thick and reduced as you desire. Add pork pieces back in (removing all fat portions) and stir and shred until meat is pulled apart and ready to eat.
  • Finishing Option 4: To save or freeze for later
    Cool the meat and juices in the Instant Pot pan, then package into a storage container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Proceed with either of the options above, removing the fat layer on top as you wish, or use some in your recipe for flavor. Or you can put cooled meat and juices into the freezer once cooled and when you decide to thaw, proceed with the oven or stove-top reheating instructions above.

Notes:

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