Instant Pot Carnitas con Queso
Deliciously tender Mexican pork, finished with crispy, bubbly cheese. The 'Con Queso' part involves a griddle or frying pan, but all the hard work necessary to get deliciously soft and succulent meat is handled by the electric pressure cooker, making this a perfect meal for a weeknight, or for entertaining.
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 1 hr 5 min
- Yield
- 8 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 900 g pork shoulder ((~2 lbs))
- 1 tbsp oregano (preferably Mexican)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin (preferably fresh-ground)
- 1/2 tsp salt (plus more, to taste)
- 1 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed)
- 2 tbsp lime juice (freshly squeezed)
- 3-4 strips Orange zest
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 large garlic cloves (crushed)
- 1 clove
- 4 bay leaves
- 1.5 inch piece cinnamon
- 125 g Oaxaca or asadero cheese (shredded (about 1 cup))
- 16 corn tortillas (toasted/ready to serve)
- 1/4 cup cilantro (or more/less, depending on your tastes)
- 1/4 medium white onion (diced)
- 1/4 cup smoky dried chili salsa ((see below for recipe))
- salt (to taste)
Instructions
- 1
Trim the excess fat from the pork shoulder and cut it into 5 cm (~2.5 inch) square pieces.
- 2
Place the pork in a bowl and toss to combine with the oregano, cumin, and salt.
- 3
Place the pork and all the remaining carnitas ingredients into an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker. Seal and cook on the manual (high-pressure) setting for 60 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally (which should take about 15 minutes).
- 4
Shred the pork and place it in a large bowl or other container. You can proceed directly to serving or refrigerate the meat until you're ready to use it.
- 5
Pre-heat a pan or griddle on the stovetop. Add a small amount of shredded pork (about 2 tbsp at a time). Add a pinch of salt and sear in the hot pan for a minute or so, gently 'tossing' the pile to brown it all over. Once the meat is getting a bit crispy, sprinkle some cheese over the little pile of shredded pork. Let the cheese melt into the meat and brown in the pan. Once the cheese is crispy (but not burnt!), flip the pile and lightly brown the other side. It should hold together fairly well thanks to the cheese. Use a spatula to remove the crispy cheese and pork bundles from the pan, setting them aside to cool a bit. Repeat with as much meat and cheese as necessary given the number of people you're serving. (Note: there should be enough fat in the pork and cooking liquid to keep the meat from sticking while you're searing it, but you could always add a little oil, lard, or bacon fat to the pan to keep things a little more non-stick).
- 6
Serve tacos with a few bundles of cheese and meat, then top with onion, cilantro, white onion, salsa (see recipe link below) and/or any other toppings you like.