Carnitas Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa is a classic Mexican dish featuring tender, slow-cooked pork (carnitas) that’s crispy outside and juicy inside, tucked into warm corn tortillas.

They are topped with vibrant, tangy tomatillo salsa from roasted tomatillos, chilies, garlic, and cilantro. The rich, savory pork pairs perfectly with the bright, slightly tart salsa, creating a bold and satisfying bite every time.

carnitas tacos with tomatillo salsa

Having some boneless pork shoulder in the freezer, all cut up in 2-inch cubes was the only way to make carnitas with them.

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What we love most about this recipe is that you can boil the pork the day before for the carnitas tacos. 

Please return it to room temperature before proceeding with the final cooking step.

The combination of grapefruit, I have a tree in my backyard that gives out the sweetest juice, and milk leaves the meat savory.

Once all cooked off, the meat will sear to perfection because of the sweetness left on it by both milk and grapefruit.

At this point, you can prepare any sauce you wish.

We do enjoy Smoked Salsa with it quite often. The flavors are just incredible together.

In this Article

What are carnitas made of?

Carnitas, which means little meat in Spanish, is a Mexican pork dish. It consists of a cost-effective, nicely marbled cut of pork, such as pork shoulder or picnic ham, braised or simmered for several hours with seasoning and fat until it is tender enough to shred.

carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce with avocado

Below is an adaptation from one of my favorite Mexican cookbooks, “Mexico The Beautiful Cookbook,” which is no longer on prints

Here is where it gets exciting and a bit challenging for me. I do not embrace spicy hot food, thus making it a bit difficult for the sauce to go alongside.

However, I did make it a bit more tolerable for my palate.

I am giving you the recipe for Carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce and avocado with the whole spicy hot sauce.

How do you eat Carnitas?

It can be a dish all in itself. Depending on where you eat them, they can be served with chopped cilantro, diced onions, salsa, guacamole, tortillas, refried beans, lime, and or radishes, as I have it here.

carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce with avocado

Ingredients needed to make this carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce

This is a short introduction. The ingredient list is also brief. It includes essential items that you may already have in your pantry. Please read the recipe for complete instructions.

Boneless pork shoulder – trimmed of any extra fat and cut into 2-inch cubes

Garlic cloves – must have to give it that fantastic flavor

Onion – peeled and left intact will provide all it got to your carnitas

Lard – Fat that melts and renders a great flavor to your meat

Grapefruit juice – cooking your pork shoulder with the grapefruit will give it that amazing flavor that is so wanted and needed with this recipe.

Whole milk – the original tenderizer. Your meat will soften while cooking with the milk and also get its caramelization.

Poblanos peppers, Tomatillos – used to prepare your tomatillo sauce. It needs blanching and then adding the vinegar and cilantro to create this fantastic bright green sauce.

White wine vinegar – bring a touch of acidity to your dish

Cilantro – it would not be Mexican food if you did not have cilantro

Avocado – used as decoration and added flavor to your tomatillo sauce.

Sea salt – seasoning

Equipment Needed

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Large pot or Dutch oven

Colander

Saucepan

Blender

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07/09/2025 07:01 am GMT

A two-part recipe

This recipe of carnitas is a combination of two recipes coming together beautifully.

The carnitas tacos require a long preparation, and the tomatillo sauce can be prepared the day you want to enjoy it.

However, I recommend that you prepare them both the day before. The longer the flavors stay together, the more savory this dish will become.

tomatillos and poblanos for carnitas tacos

If you are like me, there are a few things that you can omit or substitute

  • First of all, I decided to go with Poblanos peppers instead of Serrano peppers. The poblanos are milder in flavor than the serranos counterparts. 
  • Replace the poblanos with the serrano if you like hot in the recipe.
  • Another of my little changes was taking off the seeds of the poblano before blending them into a puree.

The seeds pack the heat. Keep the seeds if you like the heat.

carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce with avocado

I did not make enough, as it was gone at the speed of light.

Flour and corn taco-size tortillas are warmed before serving. We also had some extra lime to squeeze over it all.

We will add radishes and queso fresco to it as per our preference.

See my other recipes if you enjoy those delicious carnitas tacos with tomatillo salsa.

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Carnitas Tacos with Tomatillo Sauce and Avocado

5 from 3 votes
carnitas tacos with tomatillo sauce with avocado
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 6 people
The combination of grapefruit, I have a tree in my backyard that gives out the sweetest juice of them all, and the milk leaves the meat with a savory flavor.

Ingredients 

CARNITAS

  • 2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch cubes
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • ½ onion, outer skin removed and left intact
  • 1 tablespoon sea salt
  • 6 cups water
  • 2 tablespoons lard
  • ½ cup grapefruit juice
  • ½ cup whole milk

TOMATILLO SAUCE WITH AVOCADO

  • 3 poblanos peppers
  • 14 ounces tomatillos, husk removed
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup cilantro, freshly chopped
  • 1 avocado, peeled, pitted and cubed
  • cup onion, finely chopped

Instructions

CARNITAS

  • Place the pork, water, onion, garlic, and salt in a large pot or Dutch oven. Cook covered over medium heat for 1 to 1 ½ hour or until the pork is tender. Transfer the meat to a colander and drain.
  • Melt the lard in a saucepan. As soon as it bubbles add the grapefruit juice and milk and then the pork. Cook uncovered, over medium heat until the meat is browned, about 20 minutes. The juice and milk will cook off leaving the pork to brown.

TOMATILLO SAUCE WITH AVOCADO

  • Place the fresh poblano peppers in a large saucepan of boiling water. After 5 minutes add the tomatillos. After 3 minutes. Remove the peppers and tomatillos and drain.
  • Puree the poblanos, tomatillos, garlic, vinegar in a blender. Add the salt and cilantro and blend. For 2 short cycles.
  • In a bowl combine the puree, avocado and onion. Adjust seasoning if needed.

Nutrition

Calories: 300kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 93mg | Sodium: 1659mg | Potassium: 1014mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 495IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 2mg

Giangi’s Kitchen provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as a registered dietician does not calculate them.

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