Carnitas Burrito
This Carnitas Burrito recipe gives you a delicious combination of shredded pork, rice, black beans, and avocado in a crisp, golden brown tortilla. Salsa, sour cream, and cheese give these burritos plenty of flavor, and you can make them from scratch in just 35 minutes, making them a great idea when you’re craving south of the border flavors.
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Carnitas burritos are a simple way to use cooked pork for lunch or dinner, enclosing a delicious pork, rice, and avocado mixture in tortillas, before they’re crisped up in a skillet.
If you have more tortillas to use, you may also like these Baked Rolled Tacos, or how about Cilantro Lime Shrimp Tacos? An extra avocado can go into my Copycat Chipotle Guacamole. And this Spicy Corn Salsa is another great recipe to save for pairing with tacos, burritos or a bowl of tortilla chips.
Why You’ll Love It
- Uses cooked carnitas: Store-bought carnitas or leftover pork cuts out the long cooking time usually needed for shredded meat.
- Full burrito filling: Each tortilla has rice, beans, carnitas, cheese, salsa, sour cream, and avocado inside, for a hearty and satisfying meal.
- Toasted exterior: The rolled burritos are cooked seam-side down in a skillet until the tortillas have golden patches. Those crispy bits are always so good!
What are Carnitas?
Carnitas are tender pieces of pork cooked slowly until they pull apart easily. The shredded meat is often crisped in a skillet and served in tacos, burritos, or rice bowls.
Carnitas Burritos Ingredients
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and exact measurements.
Carnitas: You can use either store-bought carnitas or leftover homemade carnitas.
Flour tortillas: Burrito-size flour tortillas, about 10 inches across, are the best choice for this recipe. I’ve also made this with smaller tortillas for a lighter meal. You get more of them that way.
Rice: Makes them hearty and satisfying.
Beans: Black beans and pinto beans both go well with carnitas. Make sure you drain them well before warming.
Cheese: Shredded Monterey Jack melts easily. Cheddar is another option, or you could use a Mexican blend.
Salsa: Use your preferred salsa or pico de gallo. My Garden Fresh Salsa is a good option if you want to use homemade, or you could try this Eggplant Salsa for something more unusual.
Sour cream: Goes into the burritos before rolling.
Avocado: Adds a creamy, nutty flavor.
Cilantro: You can omit this if you’re not a fan.
Olive oil: A tablespoon is enough to brown the rolled burritos in a skillet. Feel free to use another oil, whatever you have on hand.
Salt and black pepper: I recommend you taste the warmed carnitas before adding either one. Some prepared carnitas are already well seasoned, while others are more bland.
Lime wedges: I always serve lime wedges with the finished burritos carnitas for a zesty touch.
Substitutions and Variations
- Different beans: Try using pinto beans in place of black beans. Not a bean fan? Try well drained corn kernels instead.
- Use a flavored rice: Swap plain white rice for cilantro-lime rice (I love this one) or Spanish rice.
- Make them spicy: Use a hot salsa or add sliced jalapeños to the filling.
- Try guacamole: Use guacamole instead of sliced avocado.
- Another kind of cheese: Use cheddar or a shredded Mexican cheese blend in place of Monterey Jack.
How to Make Carnitas Burritos
STEP 1. Warm the carnitas in a skillet and season if needed.
STEP 2. Warm the rice, beans, and tortillas.
STEP 3. Add the rice, beans, carnitas, cheese, salsa, sour cream, avocado, and cilantro to each tortilla.
STEP 4. Fold in the sides and roll each burrito tightly.
STEP 5. Cook the burritos seam-side down in a lightly oiled skillet until browned, turning once.
STEP 6. Serve warm with lime wedges.
Top Tips
- Use burrito-size tortillas: 10-inch flour tortillas give you enough room to roll the burritos securely. Smaller wraps can split as you fold the sides inward, unless you put less mixture into each one.
- Warm the rice thoroughly: Refrigerated rice can leave the middle of the carnita burrito lukewarm. Make sure it’s nice and hot before assembling.
- Don’t overfill the tortillas: Keep the filling in the middle and leave space around the edges. This makes the burritos easier to close.
- Start seam-side down: Placing the seam against the hot skillet first helps close the flap before you turn the burrito.
- Cook in batches: I like to brown two burritos at a time in my skillet, so each one gets more contact with the pan, which means more crispy bits!
How to Store
- Refrigerator: Leftover burritos will keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge. Wrap the burritos individually if you want to pack them for lunches. The tortillas will soften slightly during storage.
- Freezing: Leave out the sour cream, salsa, avocado, and cilantro if you plan to freeze them. Wrap each burrito tightly and freeze for up to 2 months.
- Thawing: Thaw frozen burritos overnight in the refrigerator. You can also reheat them from frozen if needed.
- Reheating: Reheat refrigerated burritos in the microwave until the center reaches 165°F. For frozen burritos, microwave until heated through, turning halfway through. I like to add a brief skillet fry afterward to crisp up the tortilla again.
Serving Suggestions
Serve these carnitas burritos with Elote Corn Ribs or Black Bean and Corn Mexican Salad. Agua de Piña is a refreshing 3-ingredient drink to have with them. If you want dessert too, my Churro Cheesecake Bars with Cajeta fit the theme perfectly.
Burritos with Carnitas FAQs
Yes, I often do. Make sure you warm the carnitas in a skillet until the meat reaches 165°F before you assemble the burritos.
Spoon the filling in the center of the tortilla and leave space near the edges. Fold the sides inward, bring the bottom edge over the filling, and roll firmly toward the top. Practice makes perfect with these!
The hot skillet presses the flap against the burrito and helps prevent it from opening when you turn it.
Carnitas Burrito
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups carnitas cooked
- 2 cups white rice or cilantro-lime rice cooked and warmed
- ½ cup salsa or pico de gallo
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 4 large flour tortillas burrito-size, about 10 inches wide
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1 cup black beans or pinto beans drained and warmed
- 1 cup Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and black pepper if needed
- Lime wedges to serve
Instructions
Crisp the Pork
- Warm the carnitas in a large skillet over a medium heat until the meat reaches 165°F.
- Spread the carnitas across the skillet and leave them undisturbed for 2 to 3 minutes at a time if you want browned edges.
- Taste and add salt and/or black pepper if needed.
Warm the Tortillas
- Warm the tortillas in a dry skillet or microwave until pliable and soft.
Assemble the Burritos
- Place one tortilla on a flat surface and spoon ½ cup of warm rice into the center.
- Add ¼ cup beans, a quarter of the carnitas, ¼ cup shredded cheese, 2 tablespoons salsa, 2 tablespoons sour cream, avocado slices and chopped cilantro.
- Fold both sides of the tortilla over the filling.
- Bring the bottom edge up over the center and roll the burrito tightly.
- Repeat with the remaining tortillas and fillings.
Cook Until Golden Brown
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
- Add the burritos seam-side down and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side until browned. Cook them in batches if needed.
- Serve the pork burritos warm with lime wedges.
Notes
- Drain the beans well: Excess liquid can make the tortilla soggy around the filling.
- Slice the avocado last: Cut it shortly before assembly to limit browning.
- Taste before seasoning: Prepared carnitas might be salty enough already.
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