The Secret To The Best Carnitas Fajitas In The Oven

These oven-cooked carnitas fajitas are so good. They’re the perfect balance of savory and a hint of sweetness I love.

The carnitas are slow-cooked in a Dutch oven with a fresh citrus combo of navel orange juice, fresh lemon juice, tons of garlic, and an earthy blend of spices like cumin, chili powder, and Mexican oregano, finished with perfectly caramelized sweet onions and bell peppers for the perfect fajitas!

Served on a bed of cilantro lime rice and a light serving of black beans, topped with fresh cilantro, and a hint of freshly squeezed lime for the perfect dinner!

Carnitas? What’s a Carnita?

Carnitas translates to ‘little meats’ in Spanish. Carne = meat, and ita = small. You can add ‘ita’ to any word in Spanish to turn it into a small one.

It’s also considered a term of endearment when added to the tail end of someone’s name.

What’s a Fajita?

Fajitas are technically Tex-Mex cuisine and were originally known as strips of beef. They’re now known for strips of vegetables, as popularized by Chipotle. Their fajitas blend cooked strips of sweet onions and bell peppers.

In this case, the classic carnitas recipe is served with sweet, sizzling onions, and bell peppers fajitas.

The Secret To Juicy, Flavorful Carnitas

Have you ever slow-cooked meat in the oven and thought, wow, this is so dry? It turns out that cooking meat in the oven doesn’t guarantee it’ll turn out flavorful and juicy.

I’ve made this mistake several times and learned that high heat isn’t always the best method.

The secret is low cooking in a Dutch oven. What I love about it, is It traps the heat and distributes it evenly to cook the meat without setting the temperature too high and drying out the carnitas.

Why This Carnitas Fajitas Recipe Works

Ingredient List and Ingredient Variations

Simple carnitas ingredients.

Pork Butt or Pork Shoulder—pork shoulder is usually sold with a layer of skin on with less fat marbling throughout, whereas pork butt has slightly more fat throughout, no skin on. I prefer pork butt, which is still considered the shoulder meat. It’s perfect for carnitas or pulled pork recipes.

8 out of 10 butchers believe that pork butt is pork shoulder. Either option is delicious!

Simple Carnitas Seasoning

Fresh Oranges – I love navel oranges for this recipe. They’re plump, sweet and juicy.

Fresh Lime Juice or Fresh Lemon Juice

Bay Leaves

Garlic Cloves—minced. I love using a microplane because it’s so easy to mince garlic with one.

Chili Powder

Ground Cumin Powder

Dried Minced Onion Powder

Mexican Oregano

Peppercorn

Salt

Fajitas

Avocado Oil—or your preferred neutral oil. I love avocado oil because it’s the perfect oil for high-heat cooking, and we will be broiling the fajitas at the end.

Large Red or Sweet Onion

Bell Pepper

Equipment

Top Tips

Step-by-Step Instructions

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Cut the pork butt into large chunks and set aside.

Prepare the rest of the seasoning: Mince the fresh garlic cloves with a microplane. It’s much easier with a microplane, but you can also use an old-school knife. Squeeze the citrus, including the oranges and limes, and mix well.

​Step One

Preheat the Dutch oven on the stovetop on medium heat.

Sear the seasoned pork butt on all sides. Since pork will release its own fat, there is no need to add any extra oil while cooking.

Coat seared pork with the dry seasoning and continue searing.

Then add citrus seasoning and minced garlic to the seared pork butt, and then cover the Dutch oven, and place in the oven at 325 degrees for 3 hours.

Step Two

Then carefully remove the cooked pork butt chunks, and skim any excess fat.

Optional: cook down the remaining liquid on the stovetop for a more concentrated flavor.

Step Three

Pull the pork apart using two forks to the texture you’re looking for. Some prefer thinly pulled pork, but I love slightly thicker chunks.

Then, return it to the liquid and coat the carnitas in the reduced liquid.

Step Four

Slice the onion and bell pepper for fajitas. If you’re unsure how to slice the onions for fajitas, I’ve broken it down into step-by-step instructions.

Preheat the saute pan, and quickly saute the fajitas in the avocado oil until they’re soft and golden brown.

Give the combo a quick broil for a golden-brown finish.

Note: make sure the saute pan is oven-safe and is either all stainless steel or cast iron.

Serve with fresh cilantro and fresh lime or lemon wedges.

Storage and Reheating

Store leftovers in an airtight glass container for up to 48 hours.

Reheat on the stovetop on medium heat for 5 minutes or until thoroughly reheated. Or place it in the oven at 400 degrees until it’s thoroughly reheated for roughly 10-15 minutes.

What To Serve With Carnitas Fajitas?

Serve these carnitas fajitas with white rice and black beans for a delicious carnitas bowl. Try this delicious, quick, and easy canned black bean recipe.

Or serve the carnitas family-style with these side dishes: air-fried plantain chips, patacones (twice-fried plantains), and Air-Fried Yuca Fries.

For carnitas and fajitas tacos, warm tortillas on a skillet and serve with avocado and some of your favorite toppings—and a delicious aioli, like this spicy cherry pepper aioli.

Looking for other recipes?

Try some of my favorites:

Pork Belly Fried Rice

Super Crispy Pollo Empanizado (Breaded Chicken)

Puerto Rican Shrimp Stew (Asopao de Camarones)

Citrusy Garlicky Cuban Roasted Chicken

If you’re stuck and in need of ideas for a carnitas fajitas night, here are different ways and dishes to serve with carnitas.

If you make this carnitas fajitas recipe, please leave a comment or rate it. I would love to hear from you and try my best to respond to all comments.