Chipotle’s Carnitas (Copycat recipe)

I have loved Chipotle’s (the restaurant) pork carnitas meat ever since I first dined there years ago, and it’s the only meat I order. Recently, I asked a manager what their secret was, and he said juniper berries! I found an easy Chipotle’s carnitas (copycat recipe) recipe on Culinary Hill! I adapted the recipe by cooking the meat low and slow in my Dutch oven for 4 hours instead of in a crockpot, until the pork was tender and falling off the bone. The pork was AMAZING and tasted just like Chipotle’s carnitas. Yay! I used this meat for tacos, but it will also be great for enchiladas, burritos, and nachos.

Chipotle’s Carnitas (Copycat recipe)

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tsp olive oil
• 3½ lb pork shoulder, fat cap trimmed to 1/8th inch
• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• ½ cup water
• 2 tsp whole juniper berries
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 large sprig of fresh thyme

How to Make Chipotle’s Carnitas (Copycat recipe)

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Season the entire pork shoulder well with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste.

Place the fat side down in the HOT Dutch oven and sear for 2 minutes, or until golden brown, repeating on all sides of the pork shoulder until completely seared.

Remove the Dutch oven from the heat. Add the water, juniper berries, bay leaves, and fresh thyme sprig. Cover with a lid and place into the oven to cook for four hours, carefully turning the pork shoulder over halfway through cooking.

Remove from the oven.

Remove the bone and fat. Shred pork with a fork. Serve as is (as pictured), if desired.

For crispy edges, transfer the shredded pork and juices to a rimmed baking sheet and broil, watching carefully, until the edges become crispy. Serve. Enjoy.