Keto Carnitas
Juicy, mouthwatering Mexican pulled pork, slow roasted with lime & jalapeños, these Keto Carnitas are piled onto pliable and tasty almond flour tortillas.
Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 2 hours hrs
Total Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Canadian, Low Carb, Mexican
Servings 6 servings
Calories 415 kcal
- 3 lb pork butt
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 small onion
- 3 jalapeños
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 limes
- 1 ½ cups beef broth or water * if baking in oven
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- Almond Flour Tortillas
- Toppings see notes for ideas
Instant Pot
Looking to embrace these Keto Carnitas in less than 2 hours? The Instant Pot is definitely the way to go! Hop on over to this Instant Pot Carnitas recipe, focusing solely on the Instant Pot method.
Oven Baked
Grab a large oven and stove top safe dish and heat it on medium high heat with 1 tbsp avocado oil. Heat oven to 300°. Remove the string from the pork and saw it into 4 equal portions. Mix oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper in a dish and then massage it into the pork.
Once the pot is hot, sear the meat on all sides. Meanwhile, prep the rest of the ingredients. Finely chop the onion and jalapeños *see notes, then mince the garlic or press it through a garlic press. Once the meat has seared on all edges, remove it from the pot and reduce the heat to medium.
If needed, add 1 tbsp avocado oil to the pot and then the diced onion. Cook until translucent and then stir in the garlic and jalapeños. Cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes, then deglaze the pot with 1/2 cup beef broth or water. Scrub the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to remove all of the little blackened bits from the bottom.
Add the remaining broth/water, place the meat back inside the pot and then squeeze the limes over top. Turn the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil. Once there, place a tight fitting lid over top and then place the whole pot inside the oven. Cook for 1 hour, remove the lid and then cook for 1 hour more.
Remove the pot from the oven, shred the meat inside the pot and then mix it in with the remaining liquid. The meat will have crispy bits from baking so no need to broil it. Enjoy on Almond Flour Tortillas with your favourite toppings!
Slow Cooker
Heat a skillet on high heat with a tbsp of avocado oil. Remove the string from the pork and saw it into 4 equal portions. Mix oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper in a dish and then massage it into the pork.
Once the skillet is hot, sear the meat on all sides. Meanwhile, prep the rest of the ingredients. Finely chop the onion and jalapeño *see notes, then mince the garlic or press it through a garlic press. Once the meat has seared on all edges, remove it from the skillet and place it inside your slow cooker.
If needed, add 1 tbsp avocado oil to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium and then add the diced onion. Cook until the onion is translucent and then stir in the garlic and jalapeños. Cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape the fried goodies overtop of the pork. *No water or broth is needed with the slow cooker method.
Place the lid on and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high 4-5 hours. The meat should be tender and easily pulled apart. Heat the oven to broil. Remove the meat from the slow cooker, use two forks to shred it all into pieces and then place on a baking sheet. Pour 1 cup of the juices all over the pulled meat and then broil for 5 minutes, flipping the meat halfway through. Enjoy on Almond Flour Tortillas with your favourite toppings!
- Almond Flour Tortillas - Not to toot my own horn, (though if any time called for that it would be now) but these Almond Flour Tortillas are insanely delicious! Divide the recipe into 12 to get the perfect size tortillas for these Keto Carnitas. They are super pliable and taste great! If you don't want to make them, you can find low carb tortillas as some grocery stores or can use butter lettuce leaves instead!
- Toppings - The possibilities are endless my friend! I like to make a smorgasbord of toppings so that I can have a different taco each time. I like to make little dishes of: Guacamole, Pico de Gallo or Keto Salsa, minced cilantro, thin sliced cabbage, minced red or green onion, sour cream, hot sauce, Low Carb Refried Beans and shredded cheese or, better yet, when I can find some fresh Mexican cheese like Queso Fresco, Manchego or Cotija.
- I like to remove most of the large fatty pieces from the pork before I cook it. Total preference here, a lot of people leave it for flavour and the more fat, the juicer the Keto Carnitas will be. Totally your call! I find these Carnitas super juicy without the large pieces.
- Jalapeños! Be careful when working with these little green gems. Their juice can burn your skin so I choose to wear gloves while working with them. Also, the seeds and white pith can be very spicy. To keep it mild, remove and discard all seeds and white pith. Like it hot? Keep it all! I like it medium so discard all the white pith and leave about half of the seeds.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition facts are an estimate only! The ingredients you choose could have different nutritional values than the ingredients I have used.
Nutrition facts do not include tortillas or toppings. Deduct fibre from total carbs to get 3.2 g net carbs per 1/2 lb of meat.
Serving: 0.5lbCalories: 415kcalCarbohydrates: 4.4gProtein: 32gFat: 27.1gSodium: 566mgFiber: 1.2g
Keyword keto carnitas, low carb carnitas