Carnitas Burritos with Pineapple Slaw

Make these tender Mexican pork carnitas burritos topped with a spicy sweet pineapple slaw for the ultimate game day, Cinco de Mayo, or party idea.  Let your guests add their favorite toppings or make themselves a tasty carnitas bowl.

We have a thing for Tex-Mex flavors like our Shrimp Burritos with Creamy Poblano Sauce and Cheesy Roasted Poblano flavors. However, if you need something you can just pick up and eat (without the need for flatware), you need these crispy carnitas burritos.

Pork is cooked in the pressure cooker (instant pot) in a zesty and sweet citrus pineapple sauce until it is pull apart tender and juicy – without using any lard or sugar. Then, its placed under the oven broiler to get those addictive little crispy ends. Wrap carnitas up in a tortilla with all your favorite toppings and a little pineapple jalapeno coleslaw. It’s sure to please.

We know you can’t wait to get started. This recipe includes how to make the best ‘healthyish’ pork carnitas, topping ideas, what to serve them with and how to roll up a burrito. We have also included slow cooker instructions in case you need these too. So, Let’s get started!

Jump to:

• Carnitas Ingredients & Substitutions
• Pineapple Slaw Ingredients
• Step by Step Basic Overview
• Toppings
• How to Wrap a Burrito?
• Recipe Tips
• Hosting a Gathering or Tailgating Party?
• Variations
• Side Dishes
• Frequent Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
• More Delicious Tex Mex Recipes
• Carnitas Burritos with Pineapple Slaw

Carnitas Ingredients & Substitutions

Do you know that “carnitas”, in Mexican cuisine literally means “little meats”.  The pork meat is usually braised in lard (rendered fat of a pig) until tender.  However, we are all about making cuisine from around the world healthier.

Here are the ingredients we used to replace fat with healthy flavors.

Pork – Pork butt (also known as pork shoulder) is the best cut of pork for carnitas because it is fatty and tender. However, all we had available were 2 pork tenderloins and guess what? They turned out even better- very tender, less time to cook and a little leaner. Win-Win!

Citrus Juice – Lime and orange juice are used to make traditional pork carnitas. They give a lovely flavor and natural sweetness to the pork. Of course, we did not have oranges but did have mandarin oranges. Just like in our recipe for Hot and Spicy Mandarin Orange Chicken, mandarin oranges are sweeter, have a more intense flavor and worked out well. You can also use prepared orange juice or lime juice from the little squirt bottles in a pinch.

2 large regular oranges = ¾ cup juice

5 mandarin oranges = ¾ juice

Pineapple juice – we used the juice from our 20-ounce canned pineapple with 100% fresh fruit juices no added sweeteners. It was approximately ¾ cup. We used ½ of the pineapple slices to make our delicious pineapple slaw.

Chicken Broth – The goal is to end up with approximately 2 cups of liquid total. Between the citrus fruits and pineapple juice we had 1.5 cups of juice. We used about ½ cups of gluten free chicken broth to make a total of 2 cups of sauce. You can also use bone broth.

Garlic – ok a lot of garlic! We used approximately 6 to 8 large cloves because, well, that is how we roll! You can replace with about 2 teaspoons of dried garlic powder.

1 clove of fresh garlic = ¼ teaspoon of dried garlic powder

Spices – Don’ skip the cumin, dried oregano, or chili. We used Tajin seasoning which is a traditional Mexican spice with mild chili, lime, and sea salt. However, you can also use regular chili powder as well. Be sure to season (salt and pepper) your pork well before putting it in the pressure cooker.

Flour tortillas – you can even choose gluten-free or low carb options. If your guests are following a keto diet, lay out lettuce leaves so they can make themselves a pork carnitas lettuce wrap instead. There are no special rules to follow.

Pineapple Slaw Ingredients

This pineapple slaw for pulled pork is not a mandatory ingredient. However, if you already have a can of pineapple open, why would you skip this delicious topping? Pineapple jalapeno coleslaw without mayo adds that much needed bit of freshness to the burrito. The sweet and salty combo is extra delicious.

Coleslaw mix with carrots (pre-mixed). Makes preparing this slaw super easy. We like the shredded cabbage and carrots in a convenient package available in the refrigerated vegetable section of the grocery store. Sometimes, it will have both red and green cabbage. Do-it-yourselfers, can finely shred their own cabbage and carrots in a food processor as well.

Canned or fresh pineapple – it adds a pop of natural sweetness.

Jalapeno pepper – just a bit to taste. Canned green chilis also work. If you do not like it spicy, you can leave it out.

Cumin – gives it that nice earthy flavor.

Cilantro – for us this fresh herb makes the best carnitas burrito.

Onion – freshly chopped. We choose to put a little in the slaw instead of a topping for the burritos. A purple onion would even add more color.

Olive oil – extra virgin is best or oil of choice.

Apple cider vinegar – adds a splash of acid to the pineapple slaw.

Step by Step Basic Overview

• Cut pork into cubes and season with salt and pepper.
• Make the citrus sauce to cook the pork in. Add orange juice, lime juice, pineapple juice, chicken broth, garlic, Tajin or chili powder, cumin and oregano and mix.

• Place oil in pressure cooker (Instant Pot) and turn on the sauté function. Sear pork cubes in batches and brown on all sides.
• Add all the pork back into the pressure cooker with the citrus sauce and pressure cook on high 35 minutes with 15 minutes natural release for pork tenderloins. For pork butt, pressure cook on high for 45 minutes with 15 minutes natural release.

• Make the pineapple slaw. Add the coleslaw mix, pineapple, jalapeno, cumin, onion, cilantro, olive oil, apple cider vinegar and salt and pepper and toss well.
• While the pork is cooking, gather and prepare all your carnitas toppings and supplies.

• Remove the pork from the instant pot. Turn the Instant pot function back on to sauté and reduce the reserved citrus sauce liquid to ½ with the lid off.
• Shred pork with forks.

• Place cooked pork on a sheet pan, drizzle some of the reduced citrus sauce drippings over the pork and broil in oven for about 3 to 5 minutes or until the edges are crispy.
• Serve pork carnitas with all the of the toppings to make delicious burritos.

Toppings

There are no right or wrong topping but just delicious ones that you enjoy. Pick and choose your favorites.

• Beans – black beans or refried beans (frijoles refritos). If you have leftover black beans, try our Baked Skinny Tex-Mex Fish.
• Guacamole or avocados
• Cheese – grated cheddar, Colby jack or even crumbled cotija cheese are all delicious on a carnitas burrito.
• Chopped tomatoes
• Fresh salsa or pico de gallo.
• Taco sauce
• Fresh limes wedges to sprinkle on a little juice
• Mexican or cilantro lime rice
• Pineapple Slaw – but of course!
• Cilantro
• Jalapenos
• Roasted sweet potato cubes
• Cooked sweet corn cut off the cob
• Red or white finely chopped onion
• Sour cream or avocado crema (choose light sour cream if watching the fat intake)

How to Wrap a Burrito?

• Warm up your tortilla to help it stretch and lay flat on your work surface.
• Layer on all your favorite toppings in a line down the center of the wrap. I know you will be tempted but don’t overfill the burrito wrap. It will be difficult to close and may tear. Try to keep the filling about 2 inches away from the edges.
• Fold over the two sides over the filling in the middle.

• Then, carefully roll up the burrito going away from you. You will need to push the ingredients inward to tuck them inside the burrito.
• Fold over again until all wrap is sealed and lay the burrito seam side down.
• Cut the burrito in half, if desired, or eat whole and enjoy!

Recipe Tips

• Soften the tortillas in the microwave before serving to make it easier to wrap burritos.  You can also soften tortillas in a 300 degrees F (148 degrees C) oven in aluminum foil for about 10 minutes or until softened.
• Keep tortillas warm in covered container or in aluminum foil.
• Pork shoulder (pork butt) is the best cut of pork to make pork carnitas due to its high fat content, but it takes longer to pressure cook. However, due to contrary belief, pork tenderloin also makes a delicious carnitas in less time.
• To save some time, use the natural release for 15 minutes before doing a quick release on the pressure cooker.
• First sear or brown your pork on the sauté function BEFORE pressure cooking. You are locking in all that extra flavor. Do not crowd the Instant pot. Make sure there is room so that it can brown on all sides. You might need to sauté the pork in batches to prevent overcrowding.
• Don’t throw away those delicious citrus sauce juice that the pork was cooking in. Reduce it to half to intensify the flavor. Then, drizzle some of that sauce on the pork before broiling it.
• To keep your burrito from getting soggy, make sure your fillings are all at room temperature before filling
• Spray oil on the pork before broiling to get extra crispy edges.  

Hosting a Gathering or Tailgating Party?

1. Make your pork carnitas in the pressure cooker the day before and then just oven broil in oven before your guests arrives.
2. You can prep all your ingredients, except for the guacamole the day before to save time.
3. Make the pineapple slaw the day you are serving because the enzymatic enzymes of pineapple will start to soften the cabbage and vegetables. 
4. Wrap your burritos in aluminum foil. This way your guests can just peel one end and eat the burrito. Any drippings will go into the foil instead of on your white sofa. (Just saying – smiling)
5. You can also assemble the burritos before your guests arrive and then air fry or pan sear to heat up and make crispy. This method is extra delicious. A little extra work but seriously a MUST try.

Variations

• Leftover pork carnitas can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days in a sealed container and are fantastic in our Healthy Tex Mex Breakfast Bowls.
• Try serving in crispy taco shell or Taco Salad Bowl, instead of a four tortilla.
• Make a carnitas bowl and serve on top of Mexican or cilantro lime rice with all the fixings.
• To keep the recipe keto or low carb serve it up in a lettuce wrap or keto wrap and hold the rice and beans.
• Burritos can be made vegan or vegetarian if you leave all the toppings separate and let everyone make their own.
• Gluten-free wraps are available to serve up burritos.
• After you assemble your carnitas burrito, air fry or pan fry to make crispy or to reheat.

Side Dishes

These delicious pork carnitas burritos with pineapple slaw are delicious all on their own with your favorite beverage of choice. However, you may like to make our Best Chicken Tortilla Soup or Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps to start.  Not required, but what is a party without chips and salsa.  Have you tried our Cherry Ginger Salsa? It’s amazing with pork.

Frequent Asked Questions (FAQ’s)

More Delicious Tex Mex Recipes

Creamy Chipotle Chicken Skillet

Tomatillo Key Lime Chicken Sizzle

Chicken Enchiladas with Fire Roasted Poblano Peppers

Stove Top Chicken Fajitas Sliders

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