Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

Carlito's rojito yucatán Main dish Tacos
Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

By Erica Perez

Servings

6-8

Category

Dinner

Cochinita Pibil, a specialty of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, is traditionally slow-roasted in banana leaves and served with pickled red onions. The trademark spice in this recipe is the annatto seed, also known as achiote, whose bright red color permeates everything it touches.


We messed a little with tradition by skipping the banana leaves and the hours-long roasting in favor of a slow cooker, and serving the meat in tacos. We also used our Carlito's Rojito Yucatan Rub, which contains annatto seed and was inspired by the flavors of the Yucatan. Recipe inspired by Rick Bayless.

Ingredients

  • 2.5 lbs bone-in pork shoulder or butt

  • 2-3 tablespoons Oaktown Spice Shop Carlito's Rojito Yucatan Rub

  • 1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice 
  • Sea salt and pepper

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Directions

  1. Lightly salt the pork. Coat it completely on all sides with the spice rub. You should still have some spice left over.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix together the citrus juices with what remains of the 2-3 tablespoons spice. Using a large bowl or a large plastic ziploc bag, place the pork in the marinade and coat completely. Refrigerate for several hours, preferably overnight.

  3. Place the pork and the marinade in your crock pot and cook on on low for 8 hours, until the pork is falling off the bone.

  4. Remove the pork from the juices and use two forks to shred. If you like, use a fat separator to strain the grease out of the sauce. Then add as much of the juice back to the pork as you desire. Add additional Carlito's Rojito Yucatan Rub, salt and pepper to taste.

  5. Assemble the tacos, filling each with pork and toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

Slow Cooker Cochinita Pibil Tacos

COMMENTS

  • Evan on

    Hi Suzanne!

    Thanks for your interest in this recipe! I chatted with Erica about your question, and she has not made this using an Instant Pot pressure setting/pressure cooker, so we can’t offer specific settings or timing suggestions.

    That said, I read through a few other recipes for Cochinita Pibil and Carnitas (which also uses citrus and pork shoulder), and saw ratios from 0.25 cups liquid/1 lb pork to 0.8 cups liquid/1 lb pork. Our recipe already falls within that range.

    When checking for timing, there was also a range of recommendations depending on how large the pieces of pork were cut, and how many pounds were used. It seems like 45-60 minutes at high pressure, with natural pressure release could be a good place to start, but since our recipe uses a whole cut of meat you may need additional time and/or liquid.

    I hope this is helpful, and if you end up trying it out in the Instant Pot I’d love to hear how it goes!

    Warmly,
    Evan (they/them)
    Customer Success Lead
    Oaktown Spice Shop

  • Eileen on

    This is my go-to large family get-together meal. Everyone loves it. The pickled onions are amazing! Carlito’s Rojito Yucatán is one of my favorite spices too!

  • Suzanne Cowan on

    Would it be possible to do this in an Instant Pot? Ive got the pork and the Carlito Rojito Yucantan Rub. Setting and timing?

  • Erica on

    Thanks Lynn! Glad you enjoyed the recipe. Great idea to use turkey!

  • Lynn on

    Great recipe. I love the Carlito Rojito Yucatan Rub: great alternative to the available commercial achiote pastes which all have chemicals/preservatives, and much more convenient than, and comparable to, making the achiote paste from scratch…speaking from personal experience! Nice recipe: as we do not eat pork, subbed out turkey thigh and added some duck fat and butter for that delicious fat element.

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