Crock Pot Pork Pineapple Carnitas

If you love pulled pork, you'll love carnitas (the Mexican version of Pulled Pork)! These healthy Crock Pot Pork Pineapple Carnitas are loaded with grilled pineapple, red onion, and cilantro, and they are dairy-free. They can also be made gluten-free and Weight Watchers friendly!

This Pork Carnitas recipe is healthy, make-at-home street food at its finest! These Slow Cooker Crispy Pork Carnitas with pineapple are also Weight Watchers friendly and one of my favorite Mexican food recipes! It pairs perfectly with this Spanish Rice with brown rice recipe.

🥘 Ingredient Notes

For this pineapple carnitas recipe, you will need:

• Pork shoulder. When you're looking for pork shoulder at the grocery store, be aware that it goes by several names, including picnic roast,  Boston butt, blade roast, pork butt, and pork shoulder blade roast. You can buy it boneless or bone-in (see recipe card for weights)
• Chipotle pepper in adobo sauce. You can find this in the Mexican food section or order it online.
• BBQ Sauce. You can use your favorite brand. I used Bulls-eye and it was AMAZING! 
• Pineapple. You can buy cans of pineapple rings and diced pineapple. You'll need one of each.
• Fresh cilantro and lime. Fresh cilantro and lime are critical for this recipe! 
• Tortillas. Both corn and flour tortillas work well. Corn tortillas give a more authentic flavor, while flour tortillas are softer and easier to fold. Warm them before serving for the best texture. You'll want to get the medium tortillas (6-7 inches in diameter).

*Please see recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.

📖Variations & Substitutions

• Gluten- free- I have made this completely gluten-free using gluten-free tortillas (or corn tortillas, gluten-free cumin, chipotle in adobo sauce (*Roland's and La Costena brands are gluten-free and can be ordered from Amazon -if you can't find it in stores) )and gluten-free BBQ sauce.
• Pineapple - you can use fresh or canned pineapple
• Toppings - I like to use pineapple and red onion, but you can use your favorite toppings instead. I also like to add a little lime zest, as well as a drizzle of lime juice.

🔢WW POINTS

• This Slow Cooker Carnitas recipe is Weight Watchers friendly @ 11 WW points per serving. If you want to lighten these up and make them more WW friendly, use a sugar-free BBQ sauce.
• You can also lighten these up even further by using pork loin or pork tenderloin, but keep in mind they are leaner and may not be as juicy. To prevent dryness, reduce the cooking time slightly. Or substitute chicken breasts or thighs for the pork and cook for 4-5 hours on low or until tender (the chicken should shred easily).
• Then panfry to crisp, as per instructions. You can bring the recipe down from 11 points to 4 WW points by making these two changes!

*Please note: the recipe is calculated assuming that all the sauce is consumed in 8 servings. I only use a small portion of the sauce and discard the remaining, so the calorie and fat content is greatly reduced. However, it's nearly impossible for my nutrition calculator to get an accurate calculation of this

🔪Step-by-Step: How to Make Pineapple Pork Carnitas in the Slow Cooker

MAKE THE SAUCE (STEP 1): Combine chipotle with adobo sauce, cumin, garlic, lime juice, and the pineapple cubes (diced pineapple) in a blender (IMAGE 1). Blend until smooth - about 45 seconds to 1 minute or until smooth (IMAGE 2). Mix together with BBQ Sauce (IMAGE 3).

PREPARE THE PORK (STEP 2): Spray slow cooker/crockpot with non-stick cooking spray and place the pork (fat side up) in a slow cooker.2 kg (4 lb) pork shoulder (IMAGE 4). Pour the sauce over the meat (IMAGE 5). Slow Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. * I use low, as I prefer the results of a really long, slow cook.

SHRED THE MEAT (STEP 3): Remove pork from slow cooker with a slotted spoon and let cool slightly. Remove any fat or bone (you will also be removing a little when you shred the pork, but most of it just falls off during the cooking process. Then shred using two forks (IMAGE 6) or use a hand or stand mixer- this is what method I use because it's easier (IMAGE 7). If you have never shredded pork before, check out this video:  How to pull pork * I shred mine a little more than he does in this video, if I use that method.

Sauce: Skim any visible fat off the top of the remaining sauce in the crock pot, then drain the sauce from the slow cooker through a sieve into a bowl (you'll save this) and set aside. Discard the remnants of fat and other bits.

CRISP THE MEAT (STEP 4): Mix ¼ cup of the sauce with the pork and mix until combined (IMAGE 8). Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a large non-stick pan or well-seasoned skillet over high heat. * You may need 2 frying pans to spread it out evenly - don't overcrowd the pan. Alternatively, you could use a Dutch oven. In the pan, add some freshly squeezed lime (IMAGE 9 ) or a little pineapple juice (about a tbsp), then drizzle over some sauce from the slow cooker. (IMAGE 10), Wait until the juices evaporate and the bottom side is golden brown and crusty. Turn and just briefly sear the other side - you don't want to make it brown all over because then it's too crispy; you need tender juicy bits (IMAGE 11). Remove the meat from the skillet and add at least 2 more tablespoons of the sauce. If you like it really spicy, then add more. *You can discard any remaining sauce or use it for whatever else you like.

GRILL THE VEGETABLE TOPPINGS (STEP 5): Meanwhile, coat the onion and pineapple rings with olive oil and grill the pineapple rings (IMAGE 12) in a separate frying pan from the onions. You can do this in a frying pan or on an indoor or outdoor grill (IMAGE 13). Set aside.

ASSEMBLE THE CARNITAS (STEP 6): Divide the shredded meat evenly between the tortillas and add the grilled pineapple and onion (whole or chopped) and chopped cilantro on top. Serve immediately (IMAGE 14).

🥗 What to serve with Pork Carnitas

I love serving these pork carnitas with cilantro and extra lime wedges, in addition to the grilled red onion and pineapple. They go great as a filling in tacos (pork carnitas tacos), in quesadillas (try them instead of chicken in my Easy Chicken Quesadillas), as a nacho topping, or over rice!

And if you're not sure what to serve with your carnitas, check out these 25 Recipes to Serve with Carnitas.

🌡️Storage

Store leftover pineapple carnitas in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. This filling will freeze well in a sealed container for 3 months.

👪 Serving Size

This slow cooker pork pineapple carnitas recipe serves 8. However, you can half, double, or triple the recipe by clicking on the serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.

❔ Recipe FAQs