0 Picture
Ingredients
- 2 lbs flank steak
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
- for spice rub—
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- for serving—
- corn tortillas
- avocado slices
- cilantro
- your favorite salsa
- limes
Details
Servings 1
Adapted from eatliverun.com
Preparation
Step 1
Mix together all spices in a small bowl. Rub the spices all over your flank steak—be generous here! Then, place your steak at the bottom of your crock pot.
Cover the steak with the chopped onions, bell peppers and jalapeno pepper. Turn heat on LOW and cook for 8 hours.
After 8 hours, remove meat from crock pot and shred with a fork. It should be incredibly easy to shred. You can either stick the shredded meat back in the pot for another hour or serve as is.
To serve, heat your corn tortillas in a skillet on the stove. Spoon some carnitas on a tortilla then top with salsa, avocado, cilantro and a squeeze of lime.
Enjoy with a margarita for best result.
Time:
active time–10 min
total time—8 hours
Tagged as:
boyfriend approved,
crock pot
{ 102 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh. My. Yes!
Can not wait to try these babies, thanks
Ps – those avocados = super cute! I love
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I think you’d appreciate this. I was reading this morning and absolutely HAD to have this for dinner tonight. I hopped up (mid breakfast, mind you) and ran to the grocery store. Got home and threw everything in the crockpot….Now finishing breakfast with time to spare before work! Can’t wait to see how they turn out.
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whoops that was meant to be a general comment! not a reply. clearly trying to accomplish too much before 8 am
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that.is.awesome.
let me know how you like ‘em!!
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Love the bright green avocado! And wanting a savory recipe? Actually, I’d be happy seeing cookies, cakes, or sweets every day (me & my sweet tooth talking…haha!)
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I love the last step of the recipe: enjoy with a margarita for best results. lol. excellent.
I don’t cook much with red meat–I leave that up to my husband–but if it’s a slow cooker recipe, then I think I’ll give it a try. Thanks!
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I am so pinning this recipe! My husband would love it! Thanks!
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These look so good! I do love a good taco.
Top taco that I’ve ever had has been pork belly tacos!
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I’m a vegetarian and this looks delicious. Love me some avocados!
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These look great! So no liquid at all goes in the crock pot? I know you said it cooks in it’s own juices, I’ve just never done this before and I’m afraid that I will end up burning it, haha. I guess I’m not used to putting something “dry” in there.
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Nope! No liquid….you’ll see!
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Taco friday needs to happen in my house! These look great
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Ooh I love that last photo! Something about avocado pictures has been getting me very excited lately! I don’t even eat red meat but I still want to make these… maybe with slow-cooked chicken instead of steak. Great recipe for a hot summer weekend!
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Yay! You told me how to cook a steak in the crockpot! I can’t wait to try these. They look amazing Jenna!
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All I needed to see was a little bit of that yummy avocado and I was SOLD on this recipe. Mmm….so good. Happy Friday Jenna!
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I cannot wait to try these! I love anything that I can use my crockpot for.
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I love carnitas!!! These look delicious. And definitely better with a margarita.
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Oh it’s official. I NEED a slow cooker. If for no other reason than to be able to make these! These look unreal!
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I still say off the chain. “All that and a bag of chips” may slip out of my mouth every once in a while as well. It’s the 90′s child in me.
Side note – I need these tacos in my life.
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yummmmmy! Dan would be over the moon about this pork in a corn tortilla deal.
i never got a chance to comment yesterday, sweet sis, but WAHOO on your yoga teaching!
ya know, with a heart like yours, those girls (or boys!) will be so blessed just to have a friend who loves life so much and loves the Lord and her man and dang good food… who is REAL. Your love for all those things will trickle (or pour!) into each class you teach. oh and smoosh their feet with your feet when they are in childs pose. seriously, just lightly step on the bottoms of their feet with your toes… they will love it!
love you, have a beautiful weekend, sweetie!!! i still cannot believe i will see in you a few months! eeks!
XOXO
p.s. we are all good here. getting ready to travel back to Florida. yay sunshine and BBQ and family time! <3
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love you, pol!
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Just saw your comment on FB about your book tour and headed over to Amazon to put a pre-order of your book in my Shopping Cart… I’ll be ordering later today when I am finished with all of my shopping! Good luck with your tour!!
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I miss my Slow Cooker so much. I also want my own cocktail waiter (on a timer, like a coffee machine) to prepare me Margaritas upon entry to the house..
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Oh I am SO making these!!!! They look easy and delish!
My husband says “off the chain”…always in reference to food. It’s like, the highest compliment he can give a dish, haha.
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Tacos are like a Friday/weekend staple! I usually do pork in the crock pot, but steak is a pretty great idea!
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These look amazing. I need to get a crock pot asap!
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Tacos are one of the BEST foods
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although i’m vegetarian…those tacos look seriously good O_o. yowza!
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Hahaha! Yes, I still say “off the chain” and wonder if other people say things like that too. In fact, my last post included an embarassing amount of random slang…
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oooohhhhh yummmmm!!!! I’ve been craving tacos and with the ease of the crockpot, this recipe looks perfect!
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This looks good, but I’m pretty sure it’s incorrect to call beef “carnitas.” Right? Especially shredded – I think carnitas are for little hunks of meat.
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Well, I was unsure about that, too, actually so I looked it up and found out that since carnitas technically does mean “little bits of meat”, shredded beef does fall in the carnitas category as well! I learned something, too
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I thought carnitas = pork! Ooops!
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I think traditionally carnitas is made with pork. At least the carnitas I’ve had has been pork. But any slow cooked meat is delicious and will do. It’s great to serve them with a side of radishes. I don’t know why but it works!
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I would recheck your sources as this is NOT carnitas. Carnitas are purely pork they are slow cooked much like this in their own fat all day and left in chunks so as to get the outside of the chunks a nice crispy texture but the inside moist and juicy. If you are ever served anything other than the above and are told its carnitas they have taken liberties because making good carnitas is an art form and they probably messed it up along the way.
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I’m shocked more people haven’t weighed in on this as it was the first thing I checked. Mark is absolutely correct tosay that carnitas are purely pork and involve specific methods of preparation. Wikipedia agrees as well:
“Carnitas, literally “little meats,” are a type of braised or roasted (often after first being fried) pork in Mexican cuisine. ” I don’t mean to be nit-picky but it’s a signficant difference, especially when you live with someone who doesn’t eat pork.
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Very nice. Never did think of putting steak in the crock, but this has inspired. Have a lovely weekend.
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ummm holy yum. i am definitely making this very, very soon! looks incredibly easy & delicious!
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Can you leave them in the slow cooker longer, like 11 hours or will it dry out? I would love to start using my slow cooker but it I ussually about 11 hours from when I leave for work and get home. Looks amazing!!
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Okay, so I’m really not sure about this one but I would ASSUME it would be fine. They definitely will not dry out..if your slow cooker has a timer, I would probably set it for eight hours, but if not, I’m sure it would be okay.
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You totally read my mind! Just yesterday I was thinking about how carnitas tacos are something my picky boyfriend would actually like, and that I should find a good recipe to make over the weekend! I can’t wait to try them!
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This looks A-mazing!
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definitely trying these soon!!
would pass on cake for tacos and a margarita any day. thank you again jenna!
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Looks delicious! Nothing better to kick off some Olympics Opening Ceremony watching!
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Yum! These look delicious, and my fiance would LOVE them! Definitely trying this recipe out next week!
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What a great recipe! I am going to test it and I expect it will go into my regular rotation. I have but TWO recipes I got of the internet at one time or another (and both, years ago) which have gone into the regular rotation. And oddly, they are both Mexican-style. One is a turkey chili recipe (in the crock pot) and one is a cilantro-lime chicken fajita recipe.
My husband will LOVE these, and I am sure I will too.
Did anyone EVER say “off the chain?” (I think it was “off the hook,” where I lived.)
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I’d like to make a recommendation…
I call my slow cooker a “crock pot,” but it is really a Hamilton Beach model (which my husband bought before I knew him!) It’s great – you have a rather shallow metal base with the heating element, and it comes with three very heavy white ceramic bowls of different sizes (which are not encased by the base – they sit in it and most of the bowl is well above the base, but the ceramic material conducts heat very well.) It’s like having crock pots of three different sizes. Plus, the bowls actually look pretty nice so you can just take them and go if you need to bring food somewhere. (I like to imagine my husband cooked lots of crock pot meals for himself in his single days, but the truth is that he bought it so that he could bring food to work for potlucks and fundraising sales some committee sometimes has. He would cook up FROZEN PRE-PACKAGED stuff in it but it would look like his own!)
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I love that you recommend a margarita in the blog post and in the serving directions. I feel the same way:-)
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You cannot beat of meal like this, especially the active time of 10 minutes. Yes, please. They look delicious!
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Would this work just as well with a chuck roast? I have a little 2 1/2 lb roast I need to use and this sounds delicious! Thanks
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I’m sure they would!
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Uh yeah, these tacos are licking my soul lining.
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Looks great! I adore the pics of the avos.
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Oh holy yum – I cannot wait to make these for my new roommates! A perfect “thanks for letting me crash on your couch for 4 months” dinner! And your food photography is beyond gorgeous.
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Just added these to my menu for next week, except I must add sour cream to the topping section. Mmm, so excited! Thanks!
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Ahhh I used to work at a mexican restaurant and crockpot tacos were one of the best kept secrets in town!
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I might be in the minority, but I’m tired of the dessert recipes. I’m sorry! Don’t hit me!
I just miss your veggie-rich recipes from a few years ago. : )
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I made this today and it was AMAZING! Our tortillas were old so I ate the meat over white rice. Added cilantro, avocado, sour cream, and salsa… SO GOOD! Thanks for the awesome new recipe
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Made these today and they were amazing!! So easy and some of the best tacos I’ve made at home. My husband was a big fan too and requested that I make them again every week! Thanks for sharing!
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Does the jalapeno make it hot? I have a 7 year old girl just starting to like hot stuff but if it’s too hot she won’t do it!
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Nope–it doesn’t!
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Made these today…soooooo good! Thanks for the recipe. I chopped the veggies and put the rub on the steak the night before and threw it all in the crock pot this morning. I can’t believe how simple it is and I just never thought of steak in the crock pot!
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We had these last night and they were FABULOUS!! I want to love my crockpot, but the reality is I am just not a fan of most of the recipes I’ve tried, but this hit it out of the park! i was a wee bit naughty and poured about half a can of beer over the whole shebang when I started to cook it. Thanks soooo much for the recipe!
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Beer in the crock pot! So naughty, yet SO good! Glad you liked ‘em
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We have a favorite food truck we go to called El Don and we get these tiny tacos! We love them and I always wanted to make them at home. THEN I FOUND THIS RECIPE!! Yeah!!!
I made these this weekend!! SO WONDERFUL!!! It was so easy! We saved the meat for the next day because it needed another hour or so. I warmed the meat on a griddle pan along side some baby size corn tortillas. I get the extra small ones at the Mexican market. Meat warms fast. I put a little cheese on the tortilla then add the meat with some cilantro pieces on top and a slice of avocado if you like them. Add some more cheese and top it with another tortilla. If you have an avocado on there push to squish and flatten the avocado. That way it spreads. So good! I’m the only one that likes it in my family!! Fry both sides with cooking spray on the pan. Put a little homemade salsa on top and you have the BEST dinner ever!!! I’m so glad I found this blog and this recipe!!
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These look so delicious. We had some pork loins in the fridge that needed cooking so I just used those instead. I’m sitting here salivating over the thought of how good dinner will be tonight. I suppose I should go find something to do for the next 8 hours.
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We made these tonight (well this morning actually LOL) and they were excellent. We all really liked them and I will definitely be making them again. I love your blog, thanks for the recipe!!
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These look so great! Just came across them on Pinterest as I’m trying to find new recipes to make, especially in the slow cooker.
Do you know of anyway to not make them spicy (I can’t take spicy) but still retain maximum flavor?! That’s the only thing I’m on the fence about!
Thank you!!
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This beef really isn’t spicy! I promise. You can omit the cayenne pepper to, to make it even more mild.
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Would this work with chicken?
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OMG. I was soooo skeptical of cooking this without any liquid. I was prepared to come home to a dried out hunk of meat. Partly because my crock pot is old and crappy. You were so right, though. So so so good. Thanks!
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Glad you liked it!
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Just took this out of the crockpot. Genius Girl. Genius. Love your receipes! Folks think I’m a gourmet cook.
Its.The. Bomb. = Off.The.Chain.
Yes, I’m that old.
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Yay! So glad you liked it!
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Would these freeze well? I am part of a Mom’s freezer club and would love to make them for everyone.
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So I’ve been itching to make this recipe since I pinned it. I have flank steak in my freezer. Can I throw it in the crock frozen???
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I would defrost first! Let it defrost in the fridge overnight before using.
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Thanks! I guess I’ll have to wait another day.
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I made these tonight, and my family LOVED them! It’s officially going into the recipe book! Do you happen to know how many calories are in one of these tacos? Thanks for the recipe. I look forward to trying more of your stuff!
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This recipe was so easy to make and delicious! Even my 11 yo and my 6 yo have couple of tacos, thank you for the recipe :0)
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I made these the other night for dinner and they were “THE BOMB”!!! My kids loved it. I was worried it would be spicy with all the onion and peppers but was not spicy at all!! Definitely making these again!!
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I also used a pot roast / chuck steak instead of the flank steak cuz it was much cheaper! Worked perfectly easy to shred I gave the extra fatty pieces to my dogs and they loved it too!
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My kids do not like spicy food-please post spice measurements that will still give good flavor but not spicy. A little kick is OK. THANKS!!
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I made these on Friday. My house smelled awesome! My man-love wanted them again the very next day! Thanks for this recipe.
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These carnitas are currently sitting in my crock pot, I can’t WAIT for dinner when I get home! =) Thank you!
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Oh word!!! I am so making these bad boy’s like today. I am heading to the grocery store. YUM
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Lol, another thing, I do actually say “off the chain” too funny! I thought I was the only one, so glad I am not!! hee hee
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These look amazing! Going to the store now to get my ingredients. Perfect for a busy Labor Day weekend!
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This was our dinner for tonight! DELICIOUS! I seasoned the meat over night and wrapped it in plastic wrap with the diced onion and bell peppers(just to save myself time this morning) I was suprised at how much juice the meat produced! Great recipe! Thanks for sharing!!
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oh i cook beef frequently in the slow cooker – comes out melt in the mouth. Gravy beef cooked with a BBQ marinade, gravy is fantastic. These look awesome, so will try them for sure.
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It sounds crazy to put meat in there for 8 hours without any liquid. But it’s in my crockpot right now…Hope it turns out as good as the picture!
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think i could get away with putting it on a low for a few hours, and high for another 3? i got a late start putting these in the crockpot!
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I think that would be fine!
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I just found this recipe on pinterst and meat is in crock pot as we speak. When I went to pick up ingredients they were out of flank steak but butcher told me skirt steak should work just fine. My house smells soooo good! I can’t wait to eat tonight! Thank u for the recipe
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Love it! Thanks for sharing! It’s absolutely delicious!
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WOW, looks amazing Love your blog
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I love you and I love your recipes! They are ALL SO good! Thank you for this recipe. I’m thawing a flank steak right now to make these tomorrow for dinner. My husband will love it. Can’t wait! Thanks for the restaurant recs on your Southern tour too – will be doing a southern tour soon and will try all the places you recommended for sure, as I know they will be good food! Do you have a few favorite restaurants in Savannah you love? Thanks!
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I realize I’m not the first to point this out but carnitas are PORK not beef. You have made some great sounding beef tacos. Carnitas are tender and delicious but not saucy at all.
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Thanks – now I know what’s for dinner tomorrow night!
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Just tried this recipe and loved it! I’m always looking for new crock pot recipes, so thank you for sharing!
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Just made these. I’ve NEVER had success in a crock pot. Don’t judge. BUT, these came out AMAZING! Seriously, SO good. Thank you, thank you THANK YOU!
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I just made these tacos and they were delicious! I used brisket instead of flank steak because it was on sale at my grocery store and I used flour tortillas because I prefer them to corn. I also put a little sour cream on the tortillas and my salsa of choice was mango peach! Thanks heavens Pinterest brought this recipe to me!
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Hi, I’m Jenna! I’m a trained chef, freelance food writer and recipe developer. My recipes feature seasonal, local ingredients and are geared towards active lifestyles.
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