Green chile pork carnitas - delicious hearty and rich pork carnitas smothered in green chile for tons of Mexican pulled pork flavor the whole family loves.

Green chile carnitas are one of my game day staples.
They are meaty, rich, full of flavor, great for a crowd - and great in wraps, tacos, burritos, in salads, or just on their own.
These green chile carnitas will soon become one of your favorite meals - and it is naturally keto and low carb!
I'm including instructions to make it in your pressure cooker too, so
Just Take Me To The Best Green Chile Pork Carnitas Recipe Already!
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What Kind of Meat Is Used In Carnitas
Carnitas is an amazingly delicious dish of shredded, chopped or pulled pork shoulder.
Think of carnitas as the Mexican version of pulled pork.
Pork carnitas are usually made as taco, burrito, or wrap filling - and is amazing in chili, stews, salads, casseroles - even piled high on top of macaroni and cheese.
For perfect pork carnitas, pick a pork shoulder about 2-3 pounds, which will make enough carnitas taco or burrito servings for about 8 people.
Pork shoulder is an economical cut of meat, and you can often get the best deal by buying pork shoulder in bulk, and then freezing the other pork shoulder (Costco usually sells 2 in a package.)
When you go to reheat the frozen pork shoulder, be sure to read my Instant Pot Carnitas notes above for using frozen pork shoulder in your instant pot pork carnitas recipe!
For another favorite pork shoulder recipe, be sure to visit my Crispy Baked Pork Shoulder. It makes crunchy, crispy pulled pork that you have to taste to believe!
How To Make Carnitas
Since carnitas use pork shoulder, it is important to cook them slow and low to render the fat out of the shoulder, and break down tough connective tissue.
You can use this recipe to make carnitas in the oven, in a slow cooker, or in an Instant Pot.
Instant Pot Pork Carnitas
Pork Carnitas are so easy to make in the Instant pot, we almost always use our pressure cooker to make carnitas.
We find the best results when cooking carnitas at 58 minutes, on high pressure, with natural release.
If you'd like to use a frozen pork shoulder without thawing, please add an additional 10 minutes in your IP's settings to the time at pressure.
While you might think 10 minutes isn't enough to thaw your meat from frozen, remember that this cooking time is the time your instant pot is at pressure - it will add to the overall cooking time to the recipe since it will take longer to get to pressure from frozen. (Thankfully you don't need to worry about that, just program it and go about your day!)
Keto Pork Carnitas Tacos Recipe
If you're looking to cut carbs with a keto diet - you're in luck, because while this green chile carnitas recipe isn't specifically billed as keto, there are no modifications you need to make, because it is naturally keto approved.
I personally love making carnitas tacos and burritos with Folios Cheese Wraps, as pictured below.
You can scoop your carnitas filling into a folio wrap and eat it like a burrito - or crisp the wraps in the oven and use a taco stand to help shape them into crunchy-syle tacos.
Folios wraps are made of cheese - so they make great keto wraps. (This post is 100% NOT sponsored, I just really love using these in my everyday diet and wanted to share.)
Keto Pork Carnitas Considerations:
-Please use brands listed in recipe, or double check ingredients. Some green chili sauces contain flour to thicken, making them not keto approved.
I personally use 505 Hatch Green Chile Sauce because it has 3 carbohydrates per serving, so I can work it into macros.
Keto Carnitas Taco Garnish Ideas:
- sliced black olives
- fresh or pickled jalapeños
- hot sauce
- shredded cheese
- a spoonful of fresh salsa or pico de gallo
- sliced green onions
- shredded lettuce
- cabbage
What To Serve With Carnitas
First off, you'll want to serve carnitas with some sort of taco shell (try these cheese wraps like I used here, which you can bake to crispy and then pop into a taco stand while warm to shape into a crunchy taco), or with salads, or even pasta (carnitas mac and cheese is life).
Carnitas work fabulously with any of your favorite taco sides - like cauliflower rice or Chipotle style cilantro rice, or served on chips (and keto tortilla chips) for carnitas nachos.
Beans are specifically NOT keto approved, but go great with carnitas, so if you're not following a low carb diet, go ahead and scoop a bunch of delicious black or pinto beans into your tacos - be sure to find my Instant Pot Pinto Bean recipe, because it is the BEST!
what to serve with pork carnitas
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10 Minute Chicken Tortilla Soup (Instant Pot, Stovetop, or Slow Cooker)
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Restaurant Style Instant Pot Pinto Beans
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Orange Margarita Cocktail
This delicious twist on a cocktail is made with orange juice and an unsalted glass, for a less-sweet but flavor-packed margarita cocktail!
If you'd like a knockout shredded chicken recipe that is perfect for tacos, similar to this green chile pork, please visit my boiled chicken recipe. Sounds plain, tastes amazing!
I also have a green chile chicken taco recipe that is to die for, and a knockout recipe for creamy Keto White Chicken Chili!
The Best Green Chile Pork Carnitas Recipe
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Green Chile Pork Carnitas Recipe
Green chile pork carnitas - delicious hearty and rich pork carnitas smothered in green chile for tons of Mexican pulled pork flavor the whole family loves.
Ingredients
- 1 pork shoulder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 12oz 505 green chile sauce
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 large jalapeño, sliced, to garnish
- Green onions, chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Generously coat pork shoulder in olive oil, then season well with salt and pepper.
- Add to large dutch oven, slow cooker, or instant pot.
- Add stock, seasonings, and green chile sauce.
- In oven: cook 3 hours at 350 degrees, until pork is soft and shreds when pulled with a fork.
- In slow cooker: cook on low for 8 hours, until pork is soft and shreds when pulled with a fork.
- In pressure cooker: set to 55 minutes on high pressure (65 if using frozen pork shoulder), natural release.
- Remove pork to a large bowl.
- Using two forks, or your hands, pull pork to shred (or you can remove pork from green chile sauce and roughly chop on a cutting board, then add back to chile).
- Top with chopped green onions and optional sliced jalapenos.
- Serve with cheese wraps, tortillas, salad, or over macaroni and cheese for a delicious carnitas dinner!
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Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 187Total Fat 7gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 16mgSodium 508mgCarbohydrates 3gNet Carbohydrates 0gFiber 0gSugar 1gSugar Alcohols 0gProtein 5g
Nutrition is automatically calculated by Nutritionix - please verify all nutrition information independently and consult with a doctor or nutritionist for any and all medical and diet advice.
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Valentina
These pork carnitas are so juicy and the perfect dinner recipe! My family loves these!