Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas Tacos

#FlashbackFriday with one of my all time favorite WWFreestyle low Smartpoint slow Cooker taco recipes. These are probably the easiest Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas you will ever make.  Rub the pork loin with homemade taco seasoning, top with salsa, fire roasted green chilies, a little onion and bell pepper, then, let it cook slow and low all day long. Enjoy!

Happy Monday all!  Thanks for all the nice comments on my Simply Filling Month Success.  It has been really fun to have you all cheer me on and to share ideas along the way.  It is also great to get back into my cooking groove in the kitchen ~ tonight’s dinner goes on my list of phenomenal dishes….I am pretty sure I kept saying these Pork Carnitas are soooooo good with like every bite.  But, more on that in a bit.

This morning I was up bright and early to hop on the treadmill where I pounded out a 30 minute jog/walk.  It feels awesome to be jogging more than I am walking and going a little further each day.

I couldn’t fathom eating any food at all this morning ~ in fact, even just the smell when I walked into Starbuck’s made me feel sick.  I knew if I could just get a Grande Non Fat Decaf Latte and banana in my system, it might help ~ I totally blame yesterday’s Skinny Cocktail, Wine and rich food.

SF – 3 points+

It actually took another big cup of coffee and rushing around to eat lunch before we headed out to an offsite meeting before I started to feel normal again.

This morning I packed up a big salad with organic mixed greens, red cabbage, carrots, lemon cucumber and cherry tomatoes.

Then, I layered on 1 oz of ham, 1 oz turkey and a lite string cheese.

Topped with 1 Tbsp Sunflower Seeds and 1 Tbsp Newman’s Lite Lime Vinaigrette. (SF+2 WPA for the nuts & dressing) – 5 points+

Hydration!

I managed to grab a quick snack on my way between meetings this afternoon and chow down as I was setting up my computer and telling everyone how the offsite meeting went ~ Multi-Tasker!

Pluot – lite string cheese (SF) – 1 points+

I have been craving really good Mexican Food now for almost two weeks and have had a few thoughts of heading over to Chipotle just to eat their Chips and Guacamole for dinner.  I decided to satisfy my Carnitas Mexican Food craving tonight.

I put dinner in the crockpot before heading out the door this morning so dinner would cook all day long with little for me to do when I got home.

As soon as I walked in the door, I whipped up a batch of Sea Salted Homemade Tortilla Chips drizzled with a little lime juice to snack on while I prepped our tacos. (SF+ 2 WPA for the tortillas) – 2 points+ for 1 chips!

While the chips cooked, I whipped up a quick batch of salsa in my food processor.

FRESH TOMATO SALSA, 0 POINT (print it!)

INGREDIENTS

• 6-8 tomatoes, quartered
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and quartered
• 1 small green bell pepper, quartered
• 1/2 sweet onion, quartered
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped, optional
• sea salt & pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Add tomatoes to food processor and pulse until roughly chopped.  Pour into a large bowl and set aside.

2.  Add jalapeno through garlic to the food processor.  Process until minced.  Pour into tomato bowl.

3.  Add sugar, cilantro, sea salt and black pepper to the salsa mix.  Stir to combine and dig in!

Make 12, 1/2 cup servings, 0 WWFreestyle Smartpoints, 0 points+ each

These are probably the easiest Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas you will ever make.  Rub the pork loin with homemade taco seasoning, top with salsa, fire roasted green chilies, a little onion and bell pepper, then, let it cook slow and low all day long.

The meat is so tender that it literally melts in your mouth as the juices drip down your hand.  The taco season and good salsa really make this recipe exceptional. Carnitas can be served as tacos with GUACAMOLE!, Taco-Dillas with homemade salsa!, healthy nachos, tostadas, in burritos, on top of taco salads or just eaten straight up.  You really do not need anything other than a tortilla to scoop up these Carnitas, but, feel free to mix and match with any toppings that strike your fancy.

Hands down ~ these might just be the BEST tacos I’ve ever made!

SLOW COOKER PORK CARNITAS TACOS, (print it!)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lbs pork sirloin roast
• 2 Tbsp Taco Seasoning
• 16 oz salsa – any kind you love to eat
• 4 oz fire roasted, diced green chilies
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• Sea Salt & Black Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Spray slow cooker with nonstick spray.  Rub taco seasoning all over pork sirloin roast.  Place roast in the crockpot and top with salsa, green chilies, onion and bell pepper.  Stir to cover pork loin and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high 4-6 hours.

2.  Shred pork into the sauce and season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.

3.  Serve on heat tortillas with all your favorite toppings (count points+ for tortillas and toppers).

Makes 24 servings, 1/3 cup each, 2 WWFreestyle Smartpoints, 2 points+ per serving (100% Simply Filling)

Stats for meat only ~ count points for tortillas and toppings

Nutritional information per serving for all ingredients:

STEP – BY – STEP:

I make up a huge batch of Homemade Taco Seasoning every year that I store in a Mason Jar then use it for recipes as needed throughout the year.  You probably have everything on hand to make it and it is so much better than any package mix you will ever buy (sans the sodium too!)

The key is using a salsa you would eat with tortilla chips because it will make your Carnitas extra delicious.  I used Trader Joe’s Chipotle Salsa ~ it’s really not hot like it claims, but, it does have a nice smoky flavor.

After spraying your slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray, rub the pork sirloin roast with the taco seasoning.

Add salsa and green chilies.

Then, the onion and bell pepper. Stir to combine and cook slow and low all day for 8-10 hours.

When you walk in the door, shred the pork loin into the sauce it cooked in all day long.  It is where all the flavor is at ~ season to taste with sea salt and black pepper, then, let the flavors meld while you prep all your taco fixin’s.

I “fried” up Mission Extra Thin Yellow Tortilla shells in nonstick spray cooking them for one minute, then, flipping, topping with a slice of Sargento 2% Colby and cooking for 30 seconds more.

Pile on a big 1/3 cup mound of Pork Carnitas!

Plus a little bit of homemade salsa that I made for our appetizer.

Finish with a little cabbage and mixed greens for color and crunch.  Lean over your plate, dive in and let the juices drip down your hand.  Each taco is (SF + 1 WPA for the tortilla) – 5 points+

If you make one taco this year, make these Carnitas ~ I guarantee your family will love you for it!

STATS (12 am – 9 pm)

• 2,683 calories burned
• 10,422 steps taken
• 6 WPA used, 30 WPA remaining (21 daily points+)

Q’S

How do you top your tacos?  I am usually all about guacamole, but, I definitely need salsa with crisp lettuce and corn tortillas (crunchy or soft) every single time.

Night all!