This Instant Pot pulled pork chili verde is made by pressure cooking pieces of pork shoulder in a delicious homemade chile salsa verde made with roasted green chiles, tomatillos, onions, garlic and cilantro. Serve alone, as tacos or top french fries to make carnitas fries.
Got leftovers? Find leftover pulled pork recipes here.
Comfort food evokes different responses depending on who you ask. For my family and I, we love so many varieties of foods. One of our favorite comfort foods is pulled pork.
My family loves a smoked pulled pork roast on the grill and when we don’t feel like grilling, I make crispy oven pulled pork in my oven. It is not only easy on the budget to prepare, but it is also very versatile.
Here in San Diego, we have an amazing selection of Mexican food. And the Mexican version of pulled pork is carnitas. Today I am sharing how to make carnitas in the Instant Pot with a very dreamy New Mexico green chile salsa verde. Totally delicious comfort food.
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Recipe highlights
- Quick and Easy: The Instant Pot does the heavy lifting. Just toss everything in and let it work its magic. Dinner’s ready before the kids ask what’s for dinner for the third time.
- Kid-Approved Comfort: Pulled pork + crispy fries + cheese = guaranteed smiles. It’s like nachos got an upgrade—and yes, you’ll want seconds.
- Flexible for the Whole Family: Serve it over fries, stuff it in tacos, roll it into burritos, or pile it on rice. Everyone gets to build their own favorite version.
- Make-Ahead Friendly: It reheats like a dream, so you can make it ahead and have a tasty, no-stress meal ready for busy nights.
Ingredients you need
- Pork roast: The most common choice of meat for pulled pork are the pork shoulder, Boston butt, picnic shoulder, or picnic ham. Whatever cut you use, you will need to cut the pieces into big chunks.
- Green chiles: I absolutely LOVE Hatch chiles, fresh or canned. You can also use Anaheim chiles, which are easier to find.
- Tomatillos: These resemble green tomatoes, but are wrapped in a green cover. They are sour and have tremendous flavor. To prep, you will need to remove the paper wrapping and wash off the sticky residue.
- Onion: Regular brown onions work great in this recipe.
- Cilantro: Fresh cilantro is a must for a delicious chile verde sauce.
- Olive Oil: Oil is used to coat the vegetables prior to roasting.
Step-by-step directions
- Roast the veggies. Place the tomatillos, chile peppers and onion on the baking sheet and coat with olive oil. Broil for 5 minutes. Flip vegetables over and broil for an additional 3-5 minutes until charred, but not burnt. Remove from the oven and cover chile peppers with aluminum foil. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Prep the meat. Trim any excess fat on the exterior of the pork roast and cut it into smaller pieces about 4-5 inches long and then place it in the Instant Pot.
- Blend the veggies. Remove charred skin and seeds from the chile peppers. Add the broiled vegetables into a large blender with cilantro, garlic and salt. Blend until smooth.
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- Coat the pork. Reserve about 1-cup of chile verde and pour remainder over pork. Coat all the pork pieces with sauce.
- Cook the pork. Cover pressure cooker and secure the lid then set for 75 minutes high pressure. Let it natural pressure release for 20-30 minutes then release any remaining pressure. Open and remove the lid. Pork should be fall apart fork tender.
- Shred the pork. Remove the pork from the pressure cooker and place it on a baking sheet. Using two forks, begin shredding the pork into bite size pieces while removing any large chunks of fat.
- Broil (optional). For crispy pulled pork, add a single layer of shredded pork onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with some of the liquid remaining in the Instant Pot.
Recipe tips and FAQs
This recipe is a twist on classic carne asada fries. To make carnitas fries, you can fry up your own potatoes or use frozen french fries. You can add as much or as little toppings as you like. Besides adding a layer of carnitas, you can also add:
- Cheese
- Sour cream
- Guacamole
- Extra chile verde sauce
- Pico de gallo
- Jalapeño slices
- Fresh cilantro
Every August I do my best to get a supply of Hatch chile peppers. I roast them in the oven, on the grill or directly on my gas burners. If I don’t use the chile peppers right away, I peel them, remove the seeds and then freeze them. The frozen chile peppers will last until NEXT chile season!
Once roasted, I use the chile peppers in everything, from hot corn dip to chile chocolate chip cookies! I have also made chicken chile verde, Hatch chile dip and my pulled pork chili.
Storing/Freezing Instructions
TO STORE: Store any leftover pork in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
TO FREEZE: You can also freeze leftovers. Transfer to a resealable bag or freezer safe container and freeze for up to 4 months.
Pork shoulder (also called pork butt) is ideal because it’s marbled with fat, which keeps it tender and juicy after pressure cooking. You can also use a Boston butt, picnic shoulder, or picnic ham.
The spice level depends on the green chiles you use. You can keep it mild with roasted Anaheim or poblano peppers, or kick it up with jalapeños or serranos. I prefer to use Hatch chiles which come in mild, medium and hot varieties.
Besides piling it over fries, you can serve it in tacos, burritos, nachos, rice bowls, or even over baked potatoes. It’s super versatile!
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Instant Pot Pulled Pork Chile Verde
Ingredients
- 5 New Mexico green chile peppers
- 8 tomatillos peeled
- 1 small onion quartered
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 7-8 lb bone-in pork shoulder
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro
- 6 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Peel the tomatillos and clean with water to remove the stickiness. Pat dry. Place the tomatillos, chile peppers and onion on the baking sheet and coat with olive oil.
- Place under the broiler for 5 minutes. Flip vegetables over and broil for an additional 3-5 minutes until charred, but not burnt. Remove from the oven and cover chile peppers with aluminum foil. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, trim any excess fat on the exterior of the pork roast. Cut pork into smaller pieces about 4-5 inches long and then place it in the Instant Pot.
- Remove skin from the chile peppers. Remove the seeds if you don't want your dish too spicy. Add the broiled vegetables into a large blender with cilantro, garlic and salt. Blend until smooth.
- Reserve about 1-cup of chile verde and pour remainder over pork. Coat all the pork pieces with sauce.
- Cover pressure cooker and secure the lid then set for 75 minutes high pressure. Make sure the vent is in sealing position.
- Let it natural pressure release for 20-30 minutes then release any remaining pressure. Open and remove the lid. Pork should be fall apart fork tender.
- Remove the pork from the pressure cooker and place it on a baking sheet. Using two forks, begin shredding the pork into bite size pieces while removing any large chunks of fat.
- For crispy pulled pork, add a single layer of shredded pork onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with some of the liquid remaining in the Instant Pot.
- Place the baking sheet under the broiler about 4-6 inches away and cook for 5 minutes.
- Using long handled tongs mix and flip the crispy pieces over and cook under the broiler for another 2-3 minutes until crispy and not burnt.
- Serve as tacos or top french fries. Serve with reserved salsa verde, shredded cheese, pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream, radishes, and/or wedges of lime.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
Lotta stuff going on in this post! Really informative. Love carnitas (who doesn’t?) and chile verde. Using the IP is a great idea — so easy. Thanks!