Carnitas vs Al Pastor
Carnitas Tacos are pork, confit: simmered for hours in its own lard, then crisped. Al Pastor Tacos are pork, stacked on a vertical spit (trompo) and shaved to order. Both are pork on corn tortillas, so the cooking method is the whole difference.
Side by side
The difference is the cut: Carnitas uses shoulder, belly, ribs, leg , often mixed, Al Pastor uses marinated pork shoulder, thinly shaved.
Which one to order
Carnitas usually comes with onion, cilantro, salsa verde, lime; al pastor with pineapple, onion, cilantro, salsa roja.
Carnitas is associated with Michoacán, al pastor with Mexico City / Puebla.
In the US you will find carnitas most in Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas, and al pastor in Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston.
Neither is the better taco in the abstract — they are different dishes that happen to share a tortilla. Order by which method you are in the mood for.
Which is easier to find in the US
Across this directory, 44 venues name carnitas and 28 name al pastor. Carnitas is the easier of the two to track down. These are counts of venues that say so in their name or listing, so both undercount.
Read up on each
Carnitas vs Al Pastor: common questions
What is the main difference between carnitas and al pastor?
Confit: simmered for hours in its own lard, then crisped for carnitas (pork), versus stacked on a vertical spit (trompo) and shaved to order for al pastor (pork). The method is what changes the texture most.
What is on a carnitas taco?
Pork shoulder simmered slowly in its own fat until tender, then crisped, chopped or shredded onto a corn tortilla with white onion, cilantro, a squeeze of lime and salsa. Sometimes a little pickled onion or a slice of pineapple.
What is the difference between carnitas and asada tacos?
Carnitas is pork, slow-cooked in fat and then crisped. Carne asada is beef (skirt or flank steak) marinated and grilled hot and fast, then chopped. Carnitas is soft and rich; asada is charred and beefy.
How are carnitas traditionally cooked?
In a wide copper pot (cazo) over a flame, the pork submerged in lard with a little milk, orange, bay and salt, cooked low for a couple of hours until it falls apart, then the heat is raised to crisp the outside. It comes from Michoacán.
What does carnitas mean?
"Little meats", a reference to the small pieces the crisped pork is chopped into.
What are tacos al pastor made of?
Thin-sliced pork shoulder marinated in a red paste of dried chiles, achiote (annatto), vinegar, pineapple juice and spices, stacked on a vertical spit called a trompo, roasted, and shaved off as the outer layer chars. Served on small corn tortillas with a little of the charred pork, chopped onion, cilantro, a piece of pineapple and salsa.
Last updated September 29, 2026. Venue details refresh with each data import.