Chipotle Carnitas Recipe: Four Ingredients, and Do Not Crisp It
Chipotle published ingredient list for its carnitas is four entries long — pork, salt, and a seasoning of spices, thyme and bay leaf — which makes it the shortest list of any protein on its menu. Two things follow from that, and both cut against the recipes that currently rank for this dish. Thyme and bay leaf are confirmed rather than guessed. And the juniper berries everyone calls the signature are not on the list at all.
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Chipotle lists its carnitas as pork, salt, and seasoning (spices, thyme, bay leaf). Four entries. Braise seasoned pork shoulder for 3 1/2 to 4 hours at 300F, shred it, and return it to its liquid. Do not crisp it under the grill — Chipotle own description is braised and shredded, with no crisping step, and that is where most copycat recipes go wrong.
- Thyme and bay leaf are confirmed on Chipotle own list.
- Juniper is not on that list — and its sourcing is shakier than reported.
- Do not crisp it. Chipotle carnitas are braised and shredded only.
- No citrus, milk, cola, orange or lard on the list. The liquid is water.
- Four entries — the shortest ingredient list of any Chipotle protein.
- 210 cal and 12g fat per 4 oz — the fattiest Chipotle protein.
The Shortest List on the Menu
Chipotle publishes an ingredient list for its carnitas, and it is startlingly brief:
Four entries. For comparison, its sofritas list runs to fifteen and its barbacoa to seven. Set against the other proteins:
| Protein | Entries on Chipotle list | Chilli in it? |
|---|---|---|
| Carnitas | 4 | No |
| Steak | 3 | Yes, in the adobo paste |
| Barbacoa | 7 | Yes, morita |
| Chicken | 9 | Yes, morita |
| Sofritas | 15 | Yes, morita |
So carnitas is the only Chipotle protein with no chilli in it, which is a useful thing to know if you want a bowl where the heat comes entirely from the salsa. And the two herbs it does contain are named outright: thyme and bay leaf.
Ingredients
- 3 lb (1.35 kg) boneless pork shoulder, cut into 4 inch pieces
- 1 tbsp fine salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme, or 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 tsp juniper berries, lightly crushed (optional – read the note)
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Salt the pork. Salt and pepper all over. If you have time, leave it uncovered in the fridge for an hour first – the surface dries and sears better.
- Sear it. Sunflower oil in a heavy casserole over a high heat. Brown the pieces in batches, 4 to 5 minutes a side. Do not crowd the pan.
- Add the aromatics and water. Thyme, bay leaves, juniper if using, and the water. The liquid should come about a third of the way up the pork, no more – this is a braise, not a boil.
- Braise at 300F / 150C for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Lid on. Done when a fork goes in and twists with no resistance.
- Rest in the liquid, 20 minutes. Lid on, off the heat.
- Shred with two forks, in the pot. Irregular pieces, not uniform shreds. Fish out the bay leaves and any juniper berries.
- Return it to the strained liquid. Spoon the fat off the surface and pour the liquid back over the pork. Then stop. Do not put it under the grill – see the note.
Recipe Notes
- DO NOT CRISP IT. Three of the five most visible carnitas recipes finish with a few minutes under the broiler for crispy edges. Traditional carnitas are crisped; CHIPOTLE CARNITAS ARE NOT. Chipotle own menu says braised for hours, then shredded – full stop. The broil step makes better carnitas and worse Chipotle carnitas, and no other page points that out.
- THYME AND BAY LEAF ARE CONFIRMED. Chipotle published list for carnitas is four entries long: pork, salt, and a seasoning of spices, thyme and bay leaf. That is unusually short and unusually specific.
- JUNIPER IS NOT ON THAT LIST, and the sourcing is more complicated than anyone admits – see the section on it below. We include it as optional because the reporting is credible and the flavour is right, not because Chipotle says so.
- No citrus, no milk, no cola, no orange, no lard and no stock are on Chipotle carnitas list. The liquid is water.
- Keeps 4 days refrigerated and 3 months frozen, stored in its liquid both times.
Estimated Nutrition
Calculated estimate for one serving of this home recipe, not a Chipotle figure. It will shift with your brands, cuts and portioning.
As on every page in this silo: Chipotle publishes per-item ingredient lists on its UK site, because UK labelling law requires the disclosure. Its US site publishes no equivalent list, so UK and US formulations may differ.
Do Not Crisp It
This is the correction that matters most on this page, and it runs against the majority of recipes you will find.
Traditional Mexican carnitas are confited in fat and then crisped — that is what the dish is. So almost every copycat recipe finishes with three to five minutes under the grill for crispy edges, and it produces something delicious.
Three of the five most visible copycat carnitas recipes include a broil step, and not one of them flags that it moves the dish away from the thing being copied. Which it does — crisped edges change both the texture and the flavour quite noticeably.
| Chipotle carnitas | Traditional carnitas | |
|---|---|---|
| Method | Braised, then shredded | Confited in fat, then crisped |
| Texture | Soft throughout, juicy | Crisp edges, soft middle |
| Finish | Sits in its liquid | Drained and browned |
| Which to make | For a copycat bowl | For tacos, if that is what you want |
If you want crisp pork, crisp it — just know you are making traditional carnitas rather than Chipotle carnitas. For what the restaurant version is actually like, see our carnitas explainer.
The Juniper Question, Honestly
Juniper berries are presented everywhere as the signature of Chipotle carnitas — the herbal note that sets it apart. The sourcing is more complicated than any page admits, so here is the chain in full.
- Food media reported it. Several outlets have attributed juniper berries to Chipotle carnitas, listing the set as juniper berries, bay leaf, thyme, salt and sunflower oil, and citing one of Chipotle own ingredient pages as the source.
- That page no longer carries an ingredient list. Chipotle juniper berries page now shows promotional copy only, so the original source cannot currently be verified at that URL.
- Chipotle does list juniper berries as an ingredient it uses. It keeps an official ingredient page for them, so juniper is somewhere in its pantry.
- But juniper does not appear on Chipotle published carnitas list, which names thyme and bay leaf and otherwise says only spices.
- And no quantity has ever been published. The established recipes use 2 tsp or 1 tbsp — a 1.5x spread — and both are guesses.
If you do use juniper, crush the berries lightly rather than grinding them, and fish them out before shredding. Whole juniper berries in a mouthful of pork are unpleasant.
What Is Not in It
A four-entry list means almost everything is excluded, and the exclusions are specific:
| Common in carnitas recipes | On Chipotle list? |
|---|---|
| Orange or orange juice | No — traditional, but not Chipotle |
| Lime juice | No |
| Milk or evaporated milk | No |
| Cola or Mexican Coke | No |
| Lard | No — a traditional carnitas staple |
| Chicken or beef stock | No — the liquid is water |
| Salsa | No |
| Taco seasoning packet | No — one popular recipe replaces the whole spice set with one |
| Cumin, oregano, chilli | No — unlike every other Chipotle protein |
| Onion or garlic | Not named |
That last row is the most surprising. Chipotle uses garlic in its chicken, steak, barbacoa, sofritas and beans. Its carnitas list does not name it. We have left it out for that reason, though it would hide inside the word spices easily enough.
The restraint is the point. If your carnitas tastes of orange, cumin and chilli, it is a good dish and it is not this one.
The Fattiest Protein on the Menu
| Per 4 oz, Chipotle published | Calories | Fat | Sodium | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 7 g | 310 mg | 32 g |
| Steak | 150 | 6 g | 330 mg | 21 g |
| Barbacoa | 170 | 7 g | 530 mg | 24 g |
| Carnitas | 210 | 12 g | 450 mg | 23 g |
| Sofritas | 150 | 10 g | 560 mg | 8 g |
Carnitas is the highest-calorie and highest-fat protein Chipotle sells, at 210 calories and 12g of fat per 4 oz, and its 7g of saturated fat is also the most of any of them — against 2.5g for barbacoa and 3g for chicken. The protein is essentially level with barbacoa at 23g against 24g.
Pork shoulder is simply a fatty cut, and that fat is doing the work over four hours. You can trim the pieces harder before searing, which brings the figure down without hurting the result much, since there is plenty left.
Our version runs higher on fat still, because home-butchered shoulder keeps more of it than whatever Chipotle specifies, and because we are not draining it. Spoon more fat off the braising liquid if you want to close that gap.
Build the rest with our cilantro-lime rice, black beans and salsas, or follow the whole assembly on our bowl at home guide. All components are on the copycat recipes page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is in Chipotle carnitas?
Chipotle published ingredient list is four entries: pork, salt, and a seasoning described as spices, thyme and bay leaf. That is the shortest list of any protein on its menu. Its menu description adds that the pork is responsibly raised, braised for hours, then shredded. There is no citrus, no milk, no cola, no lard and no stock on the list — the liquid is water.
Does Chipotle carnitas have juniper berries in it?
Not according to Chipotle current published list, which names thyme and bay leaf and does not name juniper. The juniper claim is widely reported by food media, which attributed it to one of Chipotle own ingredient pages — but that page now shows only promotional copy with no ingredient list, so the original source cannot currently be checked. Chipotle does keep an official ingredient page for juniper berries, so it is plausible. We include it as optional and label the uncertainty.
Should Chipotle carnitas be crispy?
No, and this is the most common mistake in copycat versions. Traditional Mexican carnitas are crisped, so the instinct is understandable — but Chipotle own description is braised for hours, then shredded, with no crisping step at all. Three of the five most visible copycat recipes finish with a few minutes under the broiler for crispy edges, which makes very good carnitas and moves them away from the thing they claim to copy.
What cut of pork is Chipotle carnitas?
Chipotle does not publish the cut; its list says only pork. Boneless pork shoulder, also sold as pork butt, is the right choice and it is what all five established recipes use: enough fat and connective tissue to survive four hours and shred properly. Loin and tenderloin will not work — they dry out long before they become tender.
How long does Chipotle carnitas take?
Three and a half to four hours at 300F in the oven, after a sear. Published recipes range from three hours in a 300F oven to ten hours in a slow cooker, and that whole range produces tender pork — the difference is in how much the liquid reduces. Chipotle itself says only braised for hours.
Is Chipotle carnitas spicy?
No. It is the least spicy protein Chipotle sells, and the ingredient list explains why: there is no chilli in it at all. Where the chicken, steak, barbacoa and sofritas are all built on a morita chilli paste, carnitas is pork, salt, thyme and bay leaf. If you want a Chipotle order with no chilli in the protein, this is it.
Why is Chipotle carnitas higher in calories than barbacoa?
Fat. Chipotle publishes 210 calories and 12g of fat per 4 oz for carnitas against 170 calories and 7g for barbacoa, with both at about 24 grams of protein. Pork shoulder is simply fattier than beef chuck, and carnitas has 7g of saturated fat to barbacoa’s 2.5g — the biggest saturated fat figure of any Chipotle protein.
Can you freeze Chipotle carnitas?
Yes, three months, and freeze it sitting in its braising liquid rather than drained. The liquid protects the shredded pork from freezer burn and it reabsorbs as it thaws. Refrigerated it keeps four days, and like barbacoa it is better on day two than on the day you make it.
Methodology
The four-entry ingredient list on this page is Chipotle own, from its published ingredient statement, which appears on Chipotle UK site as UK labelling law requires; the US site publishes no equivalent list, so formulations may differ. The menu description and nutrition figures are from Chipotle US nutrition facts menu. On the juniper question, this page reports the chain of sourcing rather than the claim: food media have attributed juniper berries to a Chipotle ingredient page, that page no longer displays an ingredient list, and juniper does not appear on Chipotle published carnitas list – all of which is stated on the page. Chipotle has never published a recipe, a braising time, a temperature or a quantity for its carnitas, so every number in the recipe is our own development work.
