Want to Save this Recipe?
Enter your email below & we'll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you'll get great new recipes from us every week!
This is some of the best pulled pork I've had in a long time (I've been working on perfecting this recipe for months!), and it also doesn't include any highly processed ingredients such as refined brown sugar, corn syrup, or ketchup.
My husband says it is so good that no BBQ sauce is necessary. Now, you know it’s good pulled pork when you don't reach for your favorite BBQ sauce. He would like me to pass on that he does like to dip it into a little hot sauce, although I for sure prefer mine with nothing added.
Try it both ways and decide for yourself. Either way, this is a great dish for serving (and pleasing!) a crowd. Try this Dutch Oven Pulled Pork or this Instant Pot Pork Roast too!
What type of meat is best for slow cooked pulled pork?
Pork shoulder is the most common cut used when making pulled pork. The shoulder includes the front leg and shoulder, and will likely come with a bone and plenty of marbling. The marbling is key because the fat is what will prevent the meat from drying out during the cooking process.
A full pork shoulder is a large cut of meat, so I recommend asking your grocery store's butcher to cut the shoulder down into two portions (3-5 lbs each). There are different names for the various parts of the pork shoulder that may be used—whether you use a pork butt, pork shoulder, Boston butt or picnic roast, they will all work just fine.
How long should you cook pulled pork in a Crock Pot?
The Crock Pot is great for pulled pork because you need to cook it low and slow for several hours. I usually cook 4 lbs of pork shoulder for 7 hours on low. Be aware though, pulled pork will dry out if overcooked.
Can you slow cook pulled pork on high?
I don’t recommend it. Pork is the most tender when cooked on low. Trust me, it’s worth the wait! For a quicker option, try this Instant Pot Pulled Pork.
What to put on a pulled pork sandwich
Pulled pork sandwiches are a super easy dinner idea or way to serve a crowd. If you use real food ingredients for your rolls and toppings, it’s also a healthier alternative to all that junk food you get at Superbowl parties or BBQ gatherings.
Whole wheat bread or bun
Start with any whole wheat slider bun, either homemade or store bought. Whole grain brioche is another delicious option or serve pulled pork sandwich style with homemade sandwich bread.
Vegetable toppings
Traditionally, pulled pork is served with coleslaw. You can also top your pulled pork sandwiches with lettuce, julienned carrots, onions, or arugula—almost any sandwich or burger fixings taste great on pulled pork!
Personally, I like to add veggies that give the sandwiches a bit of crunch. If you’re entertaining, offer toppings buffet style so people can pick their own.
Sauce
My husband says this recipe is great without BBQ sauce, and we avoid it because it’s usually full of sugar. An easy alternative is to drizzle a bit of the leftover juices onto your sandwich. Just don’t go overboard or your bun will get soggy!
Some other great sauce ideas are: hot sauce, tzatziki, and salsa.
Cheese
Not everyone agrees when it comes to cheese on pulled pork, but some popular choices are cheddar, mozzarella, and Havarti. Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, try Gruyère, Cotija cheese, or pepper jack. Try these pulled pork nachos too!
How to make this pulled pork recipe in an Instant Pot
Crockpots and Instant Pots cook things differently, but this is one recipe that does adapt well to pressure cooking. Here’s how to make this pulled pork recipe in an Instant Pot:
- Note: You’ll need an additional 1 cup of liquid for this recipe. Water will work, but chicken stock will be more flavorful.
- Prep the seasoning mixture.
- Heat a small amount of olive oil in the Instant Pot on the sauté setting.
- Meanwhile, cut your pork shoulder into quarters.
- Cover each pork piece with the seasoning mixture, then drop into the Instant Pot. Don’t overcrowd; you may have to work in batches.
- Brown the pork on all sides and remove.
- Turn off the Instant Pot, then toss in half a cup of water or stock and use wooden spoon to deglaze the pan.
- Place the pork back into the Instant Pot and add the remaining ingredients including the other ½ cup of water or stock. Note: Instant Pots heat from the bottom. Add the onion last and keep it mostly on top of the pork.
- Cook on high pressure for 60 minutes. Once it’s done, natural release for at least 15 minutes.
What to serve with pulled pork
I have some great side choice options here on the blog that perfectly accompany this slow cooker pulled pork.
- Collard Greens
- Simple Corn Salad
- Kale and Bacon Stuffed Potatoes
- Southern Potato Salad (without mayo!)
- Whole Grain Cornbread
- Charred Corn Salad with Tomatoes and Avocados
Pulled Pork in a Crock Pot
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons paprika
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons pepper
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon thyme (dried)
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion (peeled and cut in half)
- 3-5 pounds pork shoulder (cut in half)
Instructions
- In a medium size mixing bowl, mix together the first six ingredients (all of the spices) with a fork.
- Pour in the honey, vinegar, and olive oil and stir to form a paste.
- Place the onion in the bottom of the slow cooker. Top it with the 2 pieces of pork and then pour the honey paste over all sides of the pork pieces. It’s okay if some of it (or a lot of it) just drips down to the bottom.
- Turn the slow cooker on to low and cook for 7 to 8 hours or until the meat is tender enough to be easily shredded with a fork.
- Serve the shredded pork warm with fixings like homemade coleslaw and cornbread. My husband also likes his dipped in a little hot sauce. Refrigerate or freeze the leftovers.
Linda Sidowski says
I don't care for pork. Has anyone tried this recipe using chicken?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Linda. If you do, please share your results. :) ~Amy
Shannon says
Can I use pork butt? I accidentally bought the wrong thing.
Nathalie says
i used pork butt and it had a bone in it. Mine came out great.
Shelly says
here is a good piece on the pork butt vs. pork shoulder (very little difference)
http://www.cookshack.com/store/Smokin-Okies-101-Series/Pork-Butt-101
Freddie says
I made the dish and while it has great flavor and aroma it was too salty. I followed the recipe as it is written and I was wondering if the 3-3.5 lbs of pork w/o the bone?
Thank you!
Nathalie says
I used half the salt recommended. I rarely follow anyone's salt in recipes they always seem to put too much. i always 1/2 it cause you can always add later but you can't take it out. ;-)
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hello Freddie. It was not boneless. Just try reducing the salt next time. ~Amy
Ange says
Hi
This might be a stupid question, as I've only just invested in a slow cooker (crock pot).
Do I add any water or liquid to it when cooking this recipe?
WhenPigsFry says
Most likely you won't need to in the crock pot, but that depends on the amount of connective tissue and fat in the meat you get. Also, the bone in the meat helps cook the meat evenly to reduce shrinkage and moisture loss. If you do notice it going dry on top, you could try basting it with the juices in the bottom of the crock. If you do add liquid, I'd suggest a juice or a wine that pairs nicely with pork instead of water. This will help increase flavor. Good luck with your new cooker!
Lee says
I made this yesterday and it turned out great! Great flavor, not too spicey, everyone loved it. Made some cole slaw to go with it. Thank you for the recipe!
monique pollock says
It's so hard to find healthy slow cooker recipes. Most have sodium filled cream soups as the star ingredient. yuck!
WhenPigsFry says
Lisa provides an alternative homemade version of cream of mushroom soup at https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/12/23/recipe-homemade-cream-of-mushroom-soup/
I've never personally tried them, but there is a base cream of mix that you can make that makes it easy to throw together a cream of mushroom, chicken, celery, etc... an example can be found at http://www.stacymakescents.com/homemade-cream-of-soup-mix
I've also subbed homemade cheese sauces in place of cream of soups when the recipe sounds like it may be good cheesy... of course this has flopped before, too. Good luck!
Cassandra says
I LOVE all your slow cooker meals-so delicious! This is great and has so much flavor. I paired it with homemade apple coleslaw from the FoodNetwork, homemade Arrowhead Mills cornbread muffins, and whole pickles. With the leftovers I will make nachos. A QUESTION: DOES ANYONE BUY MEAT ONLINE (IF SO, WHERE)? I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED THAT MY ORGANIC GROCERY STORE DID NOT CARRY A SINGLE PIECE OF ORGANIC PORK, SO I HAD TO BUY CONVENTIONAL WHICH PROBABLY MEANT GMO FEED.
Brandi says
Cassandra, try going to http://www.localharvest.org to find a local meat producer near you. If there aren't any listed, you could try calling a local farmer near you and just asking if they know of anybody. Good luck!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi. Try http://www.eatwild.com, too. ~Amy
Whitney says
Could I use something besides Pork? I currently have Beef Top Round Roast in my freezer and am looking for a recipe to use so I can get rid of it!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Whitney. You could try and let us know how it turns out. :) ~Amy
Mara says
Can i use a pork loin instead?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Mara. We have not tried this recipe with a loin. Loins are more lean than shoulder so it may not result in a very moist dish. ~Amy
Andy says
Just made this. It is the best slow-cooker Pulled pork that I have tried. Thought the salt was high, but it tastes great!
Rachel says
Would this be okay left on low for 10-12 hours? I work full-time so my crock pot has to be on all day.
casey says
it should be fine but I stronly recommend investing in a crockpot with a timer. I got one for Christmas last year and it is great because I set it when I leave for work and once the alloted cooking time is up it switches to warm. Then when I get home I just refrigerate it until it is time for dinner although depending on what time you get home you could eat it right away. (I work from 6-3:30) so I'm not ready for dinner when I first get home.
The other option is to cook it overnight - if you get up at 6AM - put it on at 8 the night before. I don't like this way as much becasue everything is so hot and then i have to cool it quickly so I can refrigerate it before I leave for work.
Theresa says
Yes, this was absolutely delicious. Like I said earlier, I'm glad I cut the salt in half. I may reduce it even more the next time I make it. Depending on your palate (or that of your diners), you may want to reduce the cayenne as well. Personally, I loved the spicy kick.
I went to my store at night, so I had to pick my cut of meat from what was in the self-service cooler. There wasn't a boneless shoulder, so I grabbed a boneless pork roast. I made sure I grabbed one with a decent layer of fat on it, because the roast itself was very lean. Shoulder is usually used in pulled pork because the fat keeps it from drying out during the long cooking time.
Samantha says
I have this cooking in the slow cooker right now! Do you add the leftover liquid back in?
Nan says
Wow..just made this and it is absolutely delicious! I am not a lover of pork but this recipe had me eating a plateful of it...thanks!
Clint says
I've got this in the cooker right now. I added some chipotle peppers (for smokiness) and raw chopped garlic instead of the powder. Also, I used raw honey. It's a little more expensive, but my girlfriend and I LOVE raw honey. So looking forward to it! Thanks!
Chris says
May I suggest using Boston Butt instead of shoulder? It is the more traditional cut when making pulled pork, not as "hammy" as the shoulder.
John Coutts says
Two questions, should I trim the skin off the pork shoulder?
Should I cut it in half length wise or width wise?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi John. You shouldn't have to trim and you can cut it either way. ~Amy
Jessica says
Made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! Very tender and flavorful. Thanks for such a great recipe!
Alicia says
I made this tonight and everybody loved it! I have to be honest, I was afraid to try a new pulled pork recipe because I loved my old one (however, it wasn't the healthiest because it was cooked with a bottle of soda). I gave this a shot and my inlaws (who love their pulled pork) thought it tasted great. It was moist and it had a little kick to it - not too much of a kick, otherwise, my kids would not have eaten it. Plus, I thought it tasted fine without adding any BBQ sauce to it because the flavor was wonderful enough! Try it - You won't be disappointed. :)
Tina says
I was so very excited to try this recipe, but I'm so sad to say, I don't like it. :( Way too paprika-y. Bummer.
Lauren says
WAY TOO SALTY! I made this tonight, and although it smells heavenly in the crockpot, I just tried a bite and needed half a cup of water. **NOTE: I only used 1 TBS of salt!! I will make this again, but next time I'll only use 1 TSP. of salt seeing as though pork alone is salty!!
Jamie Short says
I agree, it was sooo salty! I came back to read the comments here after making it to see if anyone else thought so too. I would definitely halve the salt next time. The flavor is delicious though!
Laura says
Modified this recipe sightly to fit what I had on hand (garlic cloves minced, more cayenne, apple cider vinegar for red wine vinegar) and used pork loin (which cooked for more like 16 hours because I forgot it was in there). I also poured a little extra vinegar on the bottom on the crockpot to keep the pork moist and rubbed the mix into the pork before putting it in the pot. It was INCREDIBLE. Because it cooked so long it was the most tender homemade pulled pork I've ever had, though I did have to cut off a thin top layer of pork because it was pretty blackened. I think I'm going to let it "accidentally" cook too long every time I make it in the future!
Theresa says
I have this in my slow cooker right now. However, I only used 1 tablespoon of salt...2 seemed like it would be too salty. And upon testing the sauce, I think I made the right decision. Can't wait to eat tonight.
Maria says
Good advice. Had this for dinner tonight. A bit salty but we ate it all.
Darlene says
So I made this for dinner tonight with some basmati and cranberry cornbread. I also threw some carrots in the slow cooker. I love spicy good but I found this tio be overwhelmingly spicy. I had to use a different cut of pork because they didn't have what I needed and I think that's where I went wrong. It was a much smaller piece of meat. Maybe 1 1/2 lbs but I used the same quantities of herbs/spices from the instructions. Lol!
My mistake! I admit we all had seconds and just drank a lot of water! :)
Tammy says
I never seem to get crockpot meals going early enough in the day. Is this something that can be cooked on high and for how long?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Tammy. The meat won't he nearly as tender if you rush it. How about trying overnight? :) ~Amy
Kick Like a Mom says
What a great recipe! And you could use it for so many different kinds of meals!
Amy says
Can I cook this on high for a shorter time?
Shallon says
Yes and No - The meet will cook in the shorter time at the hotter setting, but it will not break down the meat so it easily pulls apart. That takes time. Consider making it the day before you want it, or starting it the night before.
Shallon says
I can't believe I misspelled meat!
Sommer @ ASpicyPerspective says
Yum! Looks delicious! Love that it's made in the crockpot!
Samantha Terry says
Sounds and looks great, but what is a crock pot? I live in South Africa so never heard of this.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Samantha. A crockpot is a slow cooker. You can put your recipe in in the morning or before you go to bed and let it cook through the night or through day. They are pictured above. :) ~Amy
Joanne says
I made this for dinner tonight and it was DELICIOUS! I love this recipe! It was so flavorful. I took your advice and made homemade cornbread and some apple coleslaw (recipe from epicurious) to go with it. It paired wonderfully! This is my first time posting to 100 days of real food. I've been following you on facebook for almost a year now and have tried several recipes. I used to hate cooking and think I was not terribly good at it. You have changed my perspective on cooking! I feel so proud to be making good, healthy food for my family :) You are my go to source for finding recipes and meal ideas. Thank you!
Marie says
If this is anywhere as delicious as your crock pot chicken, then we will be doing a party dance in this house. We love the carnitas at Chipotle, is this recipe anywhere in that ballpark for taste?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Marie. Not sure. You'll have to try. :) ~Amy
christy says
Thank you for sharing your recipe! You have on the ingredients list 2 Tablespoons of salt..did you mean to put 2 tsp. ? Just want to make sure I make it the right way in case there was a typo! Can't wait to try make it! :)
andy says
I bet it is teaspoons of salt. I am going to try this too
Lisa says
No, it is tablespoons - it's a lot of pork!
Nora says
cannot wait to try this. do you use a boneless pork shoulder or bone-in?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Nora. Lisa used a bone in cut. ~Amy
Sarah T says
Looks great! One quick question - I've looked through your fabulous website but can't seem to find what Crock Pot model you use. I would think this will make a difference on cooking time, as I have the very basic Crock Pot model (the one that only has Low/Med/Warm settings) and I find it tends to run hot (even on Low). So when you say 7-8 hours, I'd just be curious to know which Crock Pot you use (and then I can adjust my time accordingly!).
Thanks so much for all you do for the food community!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi there. You can find it here: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/my-kitchen-essentials/. ~Amy
jami says
I think this would be a 5-star recipe if about 1/2 the salt was omitted. The wonderful bbq flavor shined through, but was overpowered by saltiness. Will try again with maybe 1tsp salt instead if 2T
Jill says
Is that 2 teaspoons or tablespoons of salt? Not sure if that is a typo. Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Jill. Nope, it is tablespoons. It is a large recipe. ~Amy
Jen says
Do you have a good recipe for coleslaw?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Jen. Here is a slaw recipe from our index: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/08/02/recipe-asian-coleslaw-radish-ministicks/. ~Amy
laramealor.com says
Yes I would be interested in your cole slaw recipe as well .
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi there. Here is a slaw recipe from Lisa's index: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/08/02/recipe-asian-coleslaw-radish-ministicks/. ~Amy
Allison D says
Looks awesome! Can you share your cole slaw recipe? I really love cole slaw, but am looking for a recipe that delivers an authentic taste without all the junk :) Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Allison. Lisa has shared her Asian version: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/08/02/recipe-asian-coleslaw-radish-ministicks/. She could be reserving this one for her cookbook due out in 2014. :) ~Amy
sarah says
Would this recipe work just as well with porkloin? We already have that! Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Sarah. We've not tried it with a loin. If you do, let us know what you think. ~Amy