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Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas

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Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas – Tender, slow-cooked beef carnitas make delicious tacos, burrito bowls, salads & more! (Paleo + Whole30 Friendly)

beef carnitas in corn tortillas

Post updated Oct 2017. Originally posted June 2013. 

First off: I know. These are NOT authentic. Carnitas are traditionally made with pork braised in oil or lard until tender. I skip the oil/lard, and swap pork for beef. I couldn’t say no to our taco craving!

Tacos are a major favorite at our house, but I have to admit that I’m not usually satisfied with a ground beef taco. It feels like the peanut-butter-and-grape-jelly-on-Wonder-bread of tacos. They get the job done, but I always feel like there’s something I could do better, add more flavor, or make them more exciting.

Sometimes that’s whipping up a batch of fish tacos, or salsa verde chicken tacos, but shredded beef tacos will probably be Michael’s forever favorite. Specifically, he loves and craves these Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas tacos.

You’re going to love them as much as we do…

Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas - tender, flavorful beef carnitas. Perfect for tacos, burrito bowls, taco salads and more!

These were a cinch to pull together. I pop everything into the slow cooker, forget about it for a few hours, and then give it a quick shred with tongs (it’s fall-apart tender!).

You could certainly dress them up with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, etc. I think the meat and veggies mixture is so flavorful it doesn’t need much more than a tortilla and a little salsa or guacamole (because EVERYTHING is better with guacamole).

I’ll also say that as much as we love these as tacos, the beef is equally delicious in burrito bowls (with these sweet potatoes), rice bowls, taco salads, or tucked into baked sweet potatoes.

Simple Savory Beef Carnitas from www.onelovelylife.com

FAQ + TIPS AND TRICKS FOR THE BEST SLOW COOKER BEEF CARNITAS:

WHAT KIND OF BEEF ROAST DO YOU USE FOR BEEF CARNITAS? My favorite beef for beef carnitas is chuck roast. It has a nice marbling of fat and gets gorgeously tender when slow-cooked. It makes for seriously flavorful, tender beef carnitas.

MAKE-AHEAD NOTES: To save time in the morning, I often do the prep for this meal at night. I slice up the veggies, brown the beef, put everything into the slow cooker crock, and refrigerated it in the crock overnight. The next morning, I pulled out the crock, settle it into the slow cooker and forget about it till many hours later.

MY FAVORITE SLOW COOKERS: I always get questions about slow cookers when I post a slow cooker recipe. I swear by this one. It’s programmable, has a lid clip (no more sloshing if you need to transport it), and even has a thermometer you can program so that your slow cooker switches to WARM mode when the meat reaches the right temperature (which means NO overcooked, dried out meat–Holla!). Target and Amazon typically have the best prices.

PALEO + WHOLE30 NOTES: if you’re eating paleo or doing a Whole30, this beef recipe is 100% paleo approved. Instead of serving it in tacos, make a giant taco salad heaped high with salsa and guacamole, stuff a baked sweet potato, or serve it in burrito bowls (with these sweet potatoes!) and your favorite taco toppings.

Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas - These make the best tacos, taco salads, or nachos! from www.onelovelylife.com
We can't get enough of these Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas. Paleo, GF, and Whole30 approved!

LOVE TEX-MEX? YOU MIGHT ALSO LOVE:

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Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas - Tender beef cooked in the crock pot! These make amazing tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, taco salads, and more! (gluten free, paleo friendly)

Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas


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5 from 24 reviews

  • Author: One Lovely Life, adapted from Eat Live Run
  • Total Time: 4 hours 20 minutes
  • Yield: about 8 servings 1x
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

If your slow-cooker has a removable crock, you can prep this the night before. Follow all steps up until cooking and refrigerate overnight. The next morning, put the crock in the slow cooker, set it to low, and you’re ready to go!


Ingredients

Scale

FOR SLOW COOKER BEEF CARNITAS:

  • 23 lbs beef chuck roast
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1 onion, sliced (I like sweet onions)
  • 1 green pepper, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, sliced
  • 1 (4oz) can diced green chiles (don’t drain)

FOR SERVING:

  • corn tortillas*
  • your favorite taco toppings: shredded lettuce, salsa, guacamole, cheese, sour cream, cilantro, etc.

Instructions

  1. If desired, brown your beef roast in a pan or Dutch oven. Heat a small drizzle of oil over medium heat, add the beef roast and cook 5-7 minutes per side, or until it’s very browned and crisped.
  2. Place roast in the slow cooker. In a small bowl, whisk together chili powder, salt, pepper, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder. Sprinkle spice mixture over the roast. Add onion, bell peppers, and green chiles over the roast as well.
  3. Cook on HIGH 3-4 hours or LOW 7-8 hours, or until beef is pull-apart tender. (You should be able to easily shred it with a fork or a pair of tongs).

Notes

*Gluten & Dairy Free Notes: not all corn tortillas are gluten free. Read your package to be sure. We like Tortilla Land cook-your-own corn tortillas. They’re gluten and dairy free and are delicious and soft (i.e. they don’t crack or split when you bend them). Also, this is common sense, but skip cheese and sour cream if you’re dairy free.

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 4 hours
  • Category: Main Dish
  • Method: Slow Cooker
  • Cuisine: Mexican, Tex-Mex

Recipe adapted from Eat Live RunSaveSave

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91 Comments

  1. My mouth is watering. We love taco’s but hate ground beef. Thank you for a wonderful alternative!

    1. Can I add these to the Hootenanny menu?? Please? Also, Emily–where do you find the tortillas? I’m guessing cold food section?

        1. The type of tortillas she mention have to be refriderated. They are normally in the deli section depending on the store.

          1. Yes they are in the regular cooler section at Meijer’s they are called Aztec Torila shells, krogers they are in the regular aisle but a cooler section.

  2. These were fantastic and easy since I keep bell pepper strips frozen in my freezer. It took only a few seconds to throw together and made a TON.






  3. These were a huge hit with my family! Than you for sharing this great recipe. I didn’t marinate overnight but decided to sear the seasoned meat first, worked well, crockpotted it all day. My house still smells yummy the morning after!






  4. We made these tonight and everyone loved them! The meat had just the right amount of seasoning to add flavor without taking away from all my other favorites (avocados, cilantro, sour cream, etc..) Thanks for sharing!

  5. Emily we love this recipe. We have made it multiple times since you posted it and it has become an instant staple in our house. I’m featuring it on my fabulous friday post tomorrow just to give you a heads up. Miss you girl and keep the great recipes coming!






  6. Wow this looks delish. I have some chuck roast that I cut up do you think 8 could use that
    Tha ks

    1. Nanci – Absolutely! Since the meat is in smaller pieces, you may just want to check it 1-2 hours earlier. It will probably be tender sooner. Yum! Hope you love them!

  7. Instead of cooking it on low, could I cook it on high for a shorter amount of time? Any idea how long that might be if I cook it on high?

    1. Tania – That should be just fine! When switching from low to high, I generally half the time, so I’d say 3-4 hours on high should do the job. Just so long as the meat shreds easily, you’ll know they’re done!

  8. I have now made this several times. My family begs for them which is just fine with me. We love them and it is really easy to make. Thank you for the recipe and also the tip about the corn tortillas-I will never go back to the ones I used to use.

    1. Karen – I don’t. In all the times I’ve made this, the beef releases it’s own liquid shortly into the cooking process, and it’s enough to keep everything from burning. If you’re nervous, you could put a little beef stock or water in, but I wouldn’t add more than about 1/2 cup at the very most.

  9. So the ingredients calls for a chuck k roast but directions reference a rump roast. Have you tried this with a rump roast? I’m just a bit worried it’ll be too lean.

    1. JJ – I’m sorry for the confusion! I’ve updated the directions to say chuck roast. I’ve used both kinds of roast with good results, though I most often use a chuck roast since the price is typically better at my markets. I hope that helps! Have a great day!

    1. Tracy – I don’t. I’ve never had a problem with scorching. Typically the juices from the beef are plenty to keep everything nice and cozy! I hope that helps!

  10. I am making this as we speak. The smell is so delightful I can’t wait to sink my teeth into this. Thanks for such a tasty recipe.






  11. would it be reasonable to save the juice (the water released by the meat) to use as, say, a salad dressing? (I ask because I know you’re not supposed to reuse chicken marinade.) if so, would it need to be stored in the refrigerator?






    1. S – you could certainly repurpose the juice from the cooked meat if you like. Mine has never tuned out overly juicy since there’s no added liquid.I’ve always just eaten it as part of my carnitas. You would absolutely want to refrigerate it and it will only keep for about 5-7 days max.

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