Instant Pot Chicken Carnitas
You won't believe how quickly these Instant Pot Chicken Carnitas Tacos come together! This is the easiest way to make crispy and delicious carnitas.
Servings : 8
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or you can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup low sodium chicken broth, or beer
- 1/4 cup orange juice, no pulp, freshly squeezed if possible
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- low carb flour tortillas, for serving
- fresh chopped cilantro, for serving
Instructions
- Lightly pat dry the chicken breasts with paper towels.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine cumin, oregano, salt, pepper and chili powder. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken breasts.
- Press the SAUTE button on the Instant Pot and add in 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the chicken breasts to the heated olive oil and brown on both sides. You will have to do this in batches; do not try to sear all chicken breasts at once. Remove chicken and set aside.
- Add the diced onion to the Instant Pot; if needed, add the rest of the olive oil. Cook the onions for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 20 seconds.
- Deglaze the bottom of the Pot with chicken broth while stirring. Add in the orange juice and lime juice ; bring to a simmer.
- Return chicken to the Instant Pot. Cover and set to PRESSURE COOK on HIGH for 10 minutes. 12 minutes for chicken thighs. Do a Natural Release.
- Remove cover from the Instant Pot and transfer chicken breasts to a cutting board. Shred the chicken.
Optional
- While chicken is pressure cooking, set your oven to BROIL and lightly grease a baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Once chicken is shredded, spread it on the baking sheet.
- Remove ¼ cup of the liquid from the Instant Pot and add it to the chicken; stir to combine.
- Broil chicken for 5 minutes; stir. Continue to broil for 5 more minutes.
- Remove from oven and let stand for a couple minutes before serving in tacos, quesadillas, over nachos, etc.
Equipment
Notes
NET CARBS: 3 g
Nutrition
Calories: 181 kcal | Carbohydrates: 4 g | Protein: 25 g | Fat: 7 g | Saturated Fat: 1 g | Cholesterol: 73 mg | Sodium: 430 mg | Potassium: 503 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 1 g | Vitamin A: 107 IU | Vitamin C: 9 mg | Calcium: 30 mg | Iron: 1 mg | Net Carbs: 3 g
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.