1 (6- to 8-pound) bone-in pork butt, also called pork shoulder
2 tablespoons coarse salt
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
8 whole cloves garlic, smashed
4 chipotle peppers (canned or dried)
1 (14- or 15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 to 3 cups liquid (orange juice, beer, stock, or a combination)
Trim the excess fat from the pork and discard. Place all the ingredients in the slow cooker. Set to cook on LOW for 8 hours. The meat is done when it literally falls off the bone.
Let it cool enough to handle, then lift the meat from the juices and place in a large bowl. Remove the bone, then shred the meat. Skim the fat from the leftover juices and keep as a medium for reheating the meat. (You'll have about 10 cups of shredded meat.)
For carnitas tacos, reheat the meat and serve in tortillas with accompaniments, like sour cream, cilantro, radishes, pineapple, chopped red onion, and lime wedges.
This recipe has been updated — first published July 2010.