Instant Pot Carnitas con Queso

🧂 Ingredients

• 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.

Nutrition Info