SLOW COOKER CRISPY CHICKEN CARNITAS
These Slow Cooker Crispy Chicken Carnitas are made easy by simmering for hours in the slow cooker, then they are briefly crisped up in the broiler, resulting in tender, crispy, juicy, and absolutely DELICIOUS carnitas. Serve them in your favorite tacos, burritos, salads, or whatever sounds good!
INGREDIENTS:
- 4-5 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts*
- 1 bottle beer (or chicken stock, if you do not like to cook with alcohol)
- 1 small white onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 tablespoon chipotle powder (or 1 chipotle in adobo sauce, minced)
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2-4 fresh limes
DIRECTIONS:
- Add the chicken, beer, onion, garlic, chipotle, cumin, black pepper, chili powder, and salt to the bowl of a large slow cooker. Gently toss to combine.
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours until the chicken is completely tender and shreds easily with a fork.
- Once the chicken is cooked, preheat your broiler to high heat and grease one large baking sheet with cooking spray. Use a fork to shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Then use a slotted spoon to transfer it to the prepared baking sheet, spreading the chicken in an even layer and leaving the juices behind in the slow cooker. (Don’t discard the juices, we’re going to use them later!)
- Place one sheet under the broiler, 2 racks down from the very top, and broil for about 5-6 minutes, or until the edges of the chicken begin browning and crisping up. Remove the sheet from the oven, then ladle about 1/2 cup of the juices from the slow cooker evenly over the chicken, and then give it a good toss with some tongs so that the chicken is evenly coated with the juices. Broil for an additional 5 minutes to get the meat more crispy. Then remove and ladle an additional 1/2 cup of broth over the crispy pork. Broil for an additional 5 minutes. Then remove sheet from the oven, and toss chicken with the remaining broth. Then drizzle with however much fresh lime juice you’d like (I love a ton of lime flavor!), and toss once more to combine.
- Serve immediately in tacos, burritos, salads, or whatever sounds good to you! This chicken can also be refrigerated in a sealed container for up to 3 days, or frozen in a sealed container for up to 3 months.
*Or, instead of chicken breasts, you are welcome to use other cuts of chicken, such as thighs. I just recommend buying skinless and boneless chicken, so that you do not have to remove any bones or skin afterwards.
Source:gimmesomeoven
