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 like 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.
What type of meat is best for 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 (3-4 lbs each). Alternatively, you can choose a Boston roast or picnic roast—these are smaller cuts of the shoulder and work just fine.
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
- 1/2 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 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.
I love this has anyone tried it with beef? I’m wondering if it would be just as good?
Hi there. No, we’ve not tried it with beef. Let us know if you do. :)
Yes it isn’t very good with roast
My family loves the pork, it’s out of this world! One question, didn’t you have a coleslaw recipe too?
Hi. Here ya go: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/recipe-asian-coleslaw-radish-ministicks/.
This is our go-to pulled pork recipe, and has been for several years now! My husband and I both love it. We often add a little bit more cayenne pepper for a spicier flavor, but otherwise follow the recipe as written. :)
Made this tonight and both husband and I were disappointed. Unlike other reviewers, we had no problem with it being too salty or spicy – it was completely flavorless. Cooked to perfection, falling off the bone, but it had no flavor whatsoever. I followed the recipe exactly and did not mix all the sauce in at the end – just added a couple large spoonfuls over shredded meat. Maybe that was the problem? Although other replies to questions about that said you didn’t need to mix any sauce in if you didn’t want to. Not sure what went wrong. We really wanted to love this, but it was a miss for us :(
I have never had a problem. it is my fav. pulled pork. it is suppose to cook in the juice, the you can easily use forks to shred it apart and leave it in the sauce.
Katie, I always pull the meat out to shred, spoon off some of the oil, transfer juices to a sauce pan and reduce the juices for awhile. It makes a delicious sauce!
Any chance your spices are old and have lost their punch? I’ve made this many times and it’s a no-fail recipe for me. When this recipe was originally posted it called for TWO tablespoons of salt, which is way too much. I don’t even use the full tablespoon that it calls for. I’m not a big fan of pork shoulder, so I always use a boneless pork roast that has a nice layer of fat on it. Makes for a moist and flavorful pulled pork.
I usually shred the meat in the pot and let it soak in the sauce for a while, which soaks up the flavor and serve it all mixed up with a spoon. This is the first and only slow cooker pulled pork recipe I have ever used and is a hit every time I make it! So good!
Can I use pork tenderloin instead of pork shoulder?
Loin is too lean for this recipe.
Can I make this with a 3-4 pound pork roast instead of pork shoulder? Thank you for your help?
Hello. You really need a high fat cut of pork. A roast is lean and would not produce the necessary juices.
This is the best recipe. I’ve made it several times, and it always turns out delicious. So many crock pot recipes use processed foods, but this recipe is perfect because it’s all “real” food.
Have you tried with chicken?
I have several times! Its wonderful! Just watch cooking times in the slow cooker- I find that chicken breasts are done in around 3 hours.
We have not, but other readers have with success. – Nicole
Wonderful recipe! Makes a bunch, so my hubby &I I have leftovers. Moist just as it is and doesn’t need additional BBQ sauce. You hit this one out of the park! Thanks!
Any recommendations for making this on an instant pot?
We’ve not tired this recipe in an Instant Pot.
We put all the ingredients in the insta pot with frozen pork. I hit the meat/stew button twice and added a cup of water. Sometime after the 1st time up to pressure I cut it into hunks, resealed it, and pushed the meat/stew button again. I pulled the pork out to shred on a cutting board and pushed the saute button to reduce the liquid. I put it all in after that on keep warm till dinner time. Awesome.
Just wondering how many portions you’d say this makes? Thinking about making it for my daughter’s birthday party.
I’ve easily fed 8 with this recipe.
If I use a 6 lb pork butt do I need to cook it longer or the same amount of time?
Hi there. Be sure to cut the pork in half and I would add 30 minutes to the cooking time.
I am using 1.25lb of pork instead of 3lb does anyone know if i should reduce cooking time and ingredients
Yes, cut ingredients in half and start cooking it 2 hours before normal end time.
I’ve commented before, and this is one of my long-time go-to recipes now. I think I’ve perfected the “liquid” process now that a lot of people have questions on.
With my ~3 lb boneless (or you could do ~5-6 lb bone-in), I let it cook for 7 hours on low, then took out the meat and set aside, poured out all of the liquid and onions, dispose of onions, put pork back in crockpot and then ladle juices back into crockpot enough to submerge about half of the meat, then shred. I think it tastes best if you turn the crockpot to warm (or even to off, but leave lid on to retain heat), so the flavors still meld but its not still cooking about 30 minutes prior to serving. You’ll notice after shredding that the pork soaks in even more of the juices, so its not really sitting in as much liquid.
If you get bone-in, you can take the bone out before putting it back in the crockpot to shred. Or just ask your butcher to remove the bone, and I actually had them trim some of the fat (although there was still a good amount of visible fat).
Also I’ve never been successful at skimming off the fat from the liquids, but a little bit doesn’t hurt :)
Really? 4.5 stars? I was so excited to make this and even considered buying the book the day I saw the recipe on Pinterest. If this is an indication of what the other recipes are like, I’m glad I saved my money. While it’s true that I dearly love SMOKED pulled pork and nothing can replicate that distinct flavor, this meat was absolutely tasteless. I wouldn’t have been able to identify it as pork if it had been served to me rather than my preparing it myself. I couldn’t pick out ANY of the flavors from the ingredients I used to make the ‘paste.’ And speaking of that, mine wasn’t the consistency of a paste; it was more runny….? It didn’t even smell enticing (or have an aroma at ALL, really) as it cooked in all day in the crockpot, which seemed strange to me. Maybe I’m at fault for some error in ingredients or technique,…but this certainly won’t be added to my recipe file, which disappoints me. Glad I have some King’s BBQ sauce from Virginia to spice this up!
Love this recipe.I have made this a couple of times already.Love the fact that there is not any barbecue sauce in it.The rub is very flavorful.Making it again for Super Bowl this Sun.Trying it with a 4.34 lb butt boneless roast. Will adjust the spices.Hope it will be enough for 9 people!
I find it interesting that you couldn’t taste the pork at all. I’ve only made this once but it turned out great. The pork flavor is great! It’s not a smokey flavor by any means but the pork flavor is great. I’m not sure why you find it odd that it needs to cook for 8 hours or so. When you smoke brisket or pulled pork, doesn’t that take about the same amount of time? You could turn the slow cooker up to high and it would take about 5 hours but it would be drier and tougher. I’m taking it that you have made pulled pork before so I’m assuming you used pork shoulder/butt. I got mine on sale for $0.99/lb and even that turned out great. If you don’t like the seasonings, change it up and use chicken broth or stock instead of red wine vinegar. I used apple cider vinegar and so maybe that’s why mine had a good pork flavor but I don’t see where anyone complained about the red wine flavor being overpowering.
We’re sorry to hear it didn’t turn out for you. Hopefully it was just an error somewhere in the ingredients. We get rave reviews for this one. – Nicole
Can I use beef eye roast instead of pork?
We’ve not tried but a really lean cut of meat would not work well with this recipe.
I have never made pulled pork because I thought it would be too complicated and I’ve never seen ingredients that seemed appropriate. I decided to try this today. AMAZING is all I can say! Do yourself a favor and use a hand mixer to pull the pork to save time! Great recipe to add to my collection. I paired this with a creamy coleslaw. Perfection! Thank you!
Does anyone have the proteins, carbs, fat grams associated with the servings for this recipe? Oh, and it is delicious by the way! thanks
Hi Kendra. We do not provide nutrition details on recipes. This post helps explain why: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/healthy-eating-defined/.
OUT OF THIS World!!
Made this in my Instant Pot, 60 minutes on high (manual) I added 1/4 c water to the liquid just to make sure I had enough liquid for it to come to pressure! We love it!!
Made with 6 lb chicken (didn’t double seasonings), no cayenne (for kids), added 2 TBS honey. Came out great served on whole wheat buns with coleslaw. Will make again,
Did you use 2T of honey instead of the 1/2 cup or in addition? Thanks.
I used 2 TBS in addition to the 1/2 C
This is truly the best slow cooker BBQ pork and I have tried several
Thanks
I just finished my 10 day pledge and it went great! This was the first meal I cooked and it truly is the best pulled pork ever! Yum!
I have been using this recipe for pulled pork for a number of years and sharing it with everyone I know.
I am now going to try using it for ribs. I am going to marinade the ribs overnight in the fridge using ingredients above then tomorrow morning I will put the racks in the slow cooker on low for 6-8 hrs then bbq them to finish them off.
I have made this over 10 times. Its the absolute best pork I have ever eaten! Everyone I make it for asks for this recipe.
Winner!!!!!!
Thank you
I’ve made this twice before and the meat is juicy and delicious.
Am I supposed to do anything with the juices left in the crockpot after I take out the pork? ‘m not sure whether it’s meant to be thrown out, or if I’m supposed to thicken it (reduce/cornflower). I had kept some of the juice for flavor in a separate container the first time, but we found it fatty and watery. So my family ended up using BBQ sauce instead.
You can mix the juices in with the meat once you have pulled it. I’ve reserved the rest of the juices for flavor and sauces.
I’ve used this recipe for every party, every work event, and all charity events… it never disappoints! I did pump up the garlic powder but that because I looove garlic. For corporate events, I recommend scaling back on the cayenne.
Thanks for this recipe, great with chicken, too!
Pulled Pork feels a bit dry and does not have a lot of flavour in it. I feel it should be more juicy. Is there something I did wrong? What can I do to make it more juicy?
Hi there. Did you use a pork shoulder or a leaner cut?
Hi there. Did you use the suggested cut or something leaner?
I separate the pork and add a little sweet baby ray’s to it and let it cook another 1/2 hr.
Could I cook on high i stead? To shorten the length of time cooking…
Hi Omega,
I would definitely recommend keeping it cooking on low as to not dry out the meat. – Nicole
Can you use apple cider vinegar in place of the red wine vinegar?
You can!
Can you make this ahead of time and. Reheat on low in the crock pot the next day?
I have done it for potlucks and it worked wonderfully!
Yes, just keep an eye on it so it doesn’t dry out. – Nicole
Hi! I juat tried this recipe yesterday and I really didn’t need to change a thing! This recipe is fool-proof and the result is AWESOME!
Thanks a lot for sharing!
I would like to try this recipe – it sounds great! I haven’t ever bought pork shoulder before. I went to look at my grocery store to see if they have it and they do (I think it was called pork shoulder blade roast or something like that), but it looks like it has a huge piece of fat on it. Is this something you cut off before putting it in the slow cooker?
Hi. This is a fattier cut of meat necessary for pulled pork. You can always trim some of the fat if you choose.
Yes, pork shoulder and pork butt are the same.
Out of curiosity do you know the serving sizes? Trying to adjust according to macros.
seriously the best pulled pork ive ever had. I have shared this with so many people. I will never use another recipe. THANK YOU
When serving this, is the idea to pull it apart with a couple forks, mixing the meat with all the liquid/juices that have collected in the bottom of the crock pot? I would assume so, though I’m a little over half way through the cooking process, and there seems to be a pretty substantial amount of oily liquid, which could make for pretty greasy servings.
Hi, Yes, that is the idea. You can drain any of the liquid you do not want.
I was so surprised with the flavor of this recipe. The red wine vinegar made it so awesome! Thanks so much. My husband, kids and I loved this so much! Keeping this. Love it!
This is the best pulled pork recipe I have ever tried. My family requests it often & I have passed along the recipe to a few friends as well. We do add bbq sauce & eat it in sandwiches, but the meat is so flavorful you don’t have to. Definitely try this recipe, your family will thank you.
Do you ever eat it in rolls (with or without bbq sauce), like many of the recipes suggest? That’s the only way we’ve had it, although we are open to trying it on it’s own. I’ve tried several recipes, and yours looks delicious! Thanks.
Yes, you can absolutely eat it on bread. :)
We tried it and served it to company, and it was enjoyed by all! Some tried it “plain” without BBQ, and some with, but mostly on rolls. I also have some leftover in the freezer for some quick future meals. Thanks so much for a wonderful and tasty recipe.
I have this in the crockpot right now!! So excited! I’m wondering if you drain any of the fat before pouring the liquid over it when it’s done? Also, do you leave the onion in?? Thank you in advance!
Yum! Hope it turned out great for you. You can definitely drain any of the fat before mixing it up with the liquids. You can use the onion with your meal if you wish. – Nicole
we made this exactly as described and it was soooooooooo good
you were right about no barbecue sauce necessary
I made this for dinner and it is absolutely delicious! The spices blend perfectly and it was very easy to make! I fixed homemade coleslaw and corn on the cob with it. This will be my new go to for pulled pork bbq. :-)
Hey! This looks awesome, got a bargain lump of pork but my other half never fancies pulled pork with BBQ sauce drowning it! Going to get it in for hangover day tomorrow-thanks! Just one thing, what size is your slow cooker? I’ve tried out loads of recipes and always over cook the meat as I’ve a medium size slow cooker or crockpot. TIA X
6 quart.
is the Thyme leaves or ground?
We use dried.
Looks great! I’m going to make it tomorrow for a grad party! Red or white onion?
Sorry, we can’t always reply to recipe comments in real time. Did you end up making it? – Nicole
Should I trim some of the fat cap off pork before adding to the slow cooker?
We do not typically trim the cut.
Love this recipe. Getting ready to make tonight to have during the Supwr Bowl. We got small Hawaiian type rolls for sliders
Do you truly cut the onion in half only (no smaller pieces)? If so, what do you do with the onion after cooking and before shredding?
I do the onion in half as recommended. It becomes soft and you can take it out. I usually do that but by having in half it acts as a rack in the slow cooker to keep off the meat off the bottom
Made this, as per recipe, and was very pleased with the result. It will be one that I recommend to others. A five star, for sure! Good work!!!
Made this today, and realized after everything was in the crockpot that the recipe was written to cook on low. I had Lisa’s Best Whole Chicken in a Crock Pot recipe in my head – a staple in my house – and always make that on high for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Comes out perfectly every time. So…. no wiggle room since the meat was already cooking, so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. Four hours later, and the pork came out perfectly! So tender and tasty, not too salty like some have commented, with a good balance of tangy and sweet. Even my daughter, who is not a big meat eater, asked for seconds! Served with Carrots with Rosemary and Super Easy Whole Wheat Biscuits. We’ll have leftovers for lunch tomorrow – awesome. :)
I would love to make this tonight but I only have a picnic shoulder, how would I approach this recipe using that? Debone beforehand?
I’ve made the picnic roast before with an almost identical recipe. I left the bone in and picked it out afterwards. The bone came out in big pieces, so it wasn’t a pain to remove at the end. I assume cooking with the bone in gives it more flavor too. I also would recommend removing the fat cap if it has one. Overall I was very pleased with recipe.
I use this recipe for boneless skinless chicken breast. It’s amazing! It’s done on low after 5 1/2 hours.
Made this tonight or dinner and it was so good. Did not have red wine vinegar so I used apple cider vinegar instead and poured a little coca cola in the slow cooker as well. Delicious!!!
I am making this today and am doing something similar. I used apple cider vinegar, grapico (I have no idea why I had this in my house), and added chicken broth. I omitted the olive oil. I also used smoked paprika because I didn’t have regular. Smells amazing so far and can’t wait to try it!
Hi
Do you have to sear the pork in a pan before slow cooking it to get the best results?
No, if you are doing pulled pork no need to brown first
It doesn’t say when to add the wine. Do you just drink it? Also is that not too much salt. Trying this with some changes.
Hi. It says add the vinegar after the honey. And, the salt is correct. :)
Thank you for sharing this excellent recipe. The ingredients listed above are of high-quality as well. Can’t wait to try it.
Replace the paprika with smoked paprika… Slow cook it then let it cool down and leave it in the fridge overnight in the slow cooker pot. Slow cook again on low the following day for 4 hours. The meat falls apart. Great fuss free party food.
I made this for a family gathering and it was excellent! I will try the suggestion of some apple cider vinegar.
I have used hog shoulder and its great recipe! I used red vine and apple cider mix as I didn’t had vine vinegar. When I have shredded the meat I have added in batches the sauce to keep it moist. I had some leftovers and next day its even better and it tasted delicious even cold! It would be great for tamales!
Did this on NYE for my friends.
I have tried many pulled pork recipes and this is by far the best I have found.
I did vary it slightly, I used cider vinegar instead of red wine vinegar
Also I removed the pork at the end and then reduced the liquid on the stove top to get a syrup like consistency before adding the shredded pork back in and so didn’t need any BBQ sauce.
I served with homemade coleslaw. awesome!!
I’m making this tomorrow for our traditional New Years dinner. I am so excited about it!
This recipe sounds great. curious, has anyone ever suggested adding a little Liquid Smoke to the recipe? And if so, how much would you suggest?
I will quite often add some liquid smoke to meat I do in my crock pot and not my smoker – I would say for a 3-4 lb shoulder you could add about 8-10 dashes (about 1 teaspoon) – remember that with liquid smoke a little goes a long way.
I was skeptical at first but said why not! I made this for our Christmas Eve dinner. I used a 6 1/2 lbs. Shoulder roast and I substituted apple cider vinegar for the red wine vinegar. I cut the roast into 3 smaller chunks. I doubled all the ingredients for the larger roast size and prepared it as instructed. I cooked it in our slow cooker for about 8 hrs on low. I have one word for how it turned out: Amazing
It is the best pulled pork I’ve ever had bar none. So juicy and tender with a great flavor. I thought I would need some BBQ sauce but it is perfect on it’s own using just it’s own juices.
I cooked up some cornbread, baked beans, coleslaw and toasted the buns on a frying pan using leftover bacon grease I keep after cooking breakfasts. Simply delicious with a ton of leftovers.
This recipe is restaurant quality! Give it a try and see for yourself!
I have a 6lb piece of boneless shoulder here to make pulled pork for our son’s birthday party (yep – on Christmas Eve… bad planning, I know!)
Can I cook it on low for 17 hours, do you think? Or will it be completely dried out by then?
Sorry that it often takes us some time to get to messages. I have to ask…did you cook it that long and how did it turn out?
Hi Amy!
No, I ended up setting my alarm clock early and slow cooking for 8 hours – turned out beautiful! :-)
Thanks
Do you have to cut it in half?
Hi. Cutting it in half helps it cook more evenly.
Is there a substitute for the red wine vinegar? I dont have any but I do have balsamic, white and malted brown vinegar? Can these be use Some?
Hi. I’ve subbed apple cider vinegar. Some vinegars would add more neutral flavors than others. Balsamic would have a distinct flavor.
I made this last night with a 4 lb pork butt roast, all ingredients as written, 7 hrs on low. It was tasty, not at all salty nor too spicy as other reviewers have been commenting. I took the roast out and pulled it apart on a platter. I think those that find it too spicy/salty must be pulling it in the liquid in the crockpot perhaps? Those juices (and there was alot) did taste pretty spicy. Next time I’ll drizzle a little of it over the meat for some of us who like it spicy. I did put some in with the leftovers so we’ll see if that increased the spice/salt of the taste. I expect it will a little. Thanks for a great recipe! This was a trial run, making it again next weekend for a big family gathering.
Wow, no kidding, this is the best pulled pork recipe! When I told my son that it’s so flavorful that you don’t need bbq sauce, he tried and agreed! Thank you for this recipe
Would I just triple the recipe for a 10 lb pork shoulder? And cut the meat into three pieces? Thx
Yes, should work as long as your crock pot is large enough. ;)
Can I make this with a pork loin roast?
Hello. A loin is too lean for this recipe.
Why does the meat need to be cut in half? Just curious- could I leave it whole? Thanks!
Sorry- I just found the answer in a previous comment! I will be trying this tomorrow.
Is it spicy due to the cayenne and black pepper?
I do not find it spicy but you can always lessen or eliminate the spice ingredients.
If I double the size of the meat, do you think I should double the spices and liquid?
Hi. Yes. I have used a much larger cut and doubled those ingredients.
I have made this recipe three times already. Twice, when I knew my husband and I would have a busy day and once for when my family came to visit us – and they loved it. I love the ingredients! I just love this recipe and will only use this one for slow cooking my pork!
This is the best recipe. I’ve made it several times. I love that it uses only “real” ingredients. Our high school son loves pork sandwiches in his lunch.
I love this recipe but I’m wondering if it would turn out as well with chicken breast? Has anyone tried it?
Hi there. This recipe is greatly dependent on the fat in the pork in order to make it saucy and juicy. :)
I need to feed 16 will this recipe doubled fit into a crock pot…I am a crock pot novice.
Depends on the size of your crock pot. I did about 12lbs in my 8 quart crock pot when i had a group of guys working on my roof and they ate every bit of it. Great recipe and no bbq needed
I did this with the *best* pork from our local farmers market. It was truly amazing. I added in a beer on top of the onions for extra moisture, and it was seriously the best pork I’ve ever eaten!
what type of beer did you use and home much??
*how much!!
Could you also do this with beef? Which cut ?
I’m always a fan of Chuck roast. But I would think you could use any cut you want – whatever is on sale.
A chuck roast will work best, but an arm roast would work as well. Any of the round roasts (top round, bottom round, eye of round, rump) might be too lean and certainly wouldn’t shred as nicely.
I make this all the time with top round roast. Never had a bad comment!
Delicious! My family loved it. Thanks!
Could you do this recipe in the oven?
We did. We cooked it in our cast iron pot with a lid. 325 degrees, 3 and 1/2 hours.
Made this! It’s great! Made it with pork first 3 or 4 times. My grandkids and neighbors ate it up.Used 2 Tbs. Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime and used it on about 3 lbs. chicken breast. Didn’t need as much time. So good — I’m not sharing, I’m freezing in meal portions!!!
I”m looking for good, but lean, pulled pork to serve at graduation this Spring, and I’m afraid if I pour off some or most of the liquid/grease left in the bottom of the crock pot, the pulled pork will lose the good flavor. Any thoughts or ideas? Do you normally pour off any of the liquid or mix it all into the meat? Thanks – this sounds like a wonderful recipe and I’m looking forward to trying it out!!!
You do not need to pour off the liquid. The sauce will keep it moist and full of flavor.
I think they wanted to pour off some of the fat. They were worried if they did pour off some of the liquid it would lose the flavor. Thoughts?
You could pour off some but I wouldn’t pour off too much because you would sacrifice some flavor.
I made this recipe yesterday for the first time and can I say OMG it turned out amazing.I used a 8lb pork shoulder with bone in and doubled the recipe. It was so good!! My husband and friends said this is definitely a keeper. Thanks for such a delicious recipe.
Can I make this the day before and then reheat it in the crockpot before I’m ready to serve? I like to get some of the extra fat out.
I have a pork loin that is just under 5 lbs. – any thoughts on how much more ingredients I would add to make up the difference and additional time in the slow cooker?
Hi there. A loin will likely turn out dry.
Can I use pork tenderloin instead of shoulder?
Hi. You need to use a higher fat cut for this recipe, otherwise, it will likely turn out dry.
first time I made pulled pork. This recipe is so good. Love the honey taste. I used balsamic vinegar and ummmm good. thanks for recipe.
How can I make this in an oven instead of slow cooker??
Hi there. You might use this as a baking guide: http://www.seriouseats.com/2016/02/the-food-lab-how-to-make-the-best-oven-cooked-pulled-pork.html.
Really good – rivals other recipes I’ve made that have much more sugar in them.
I’m assuming this is without the bone? I have pork shoulder on bone I want to get rid of. Will that work?
Hi. Yes, that will work.
Loved the recipe. The only thing I did differently was I started the pork on high for 2 hours, then low for 4 hours. Instead of cooking for the full 8 hours on low. It came out tender and pulled apart so easily.
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Good luck for the next!
Can I cook this on high for 4-5 hours instead of low for 7-8 hours? How will I know when it is safely cooked?
Hi Jen. Other readers have but we’ve not tried. The slow cooking helps with tenderness.
Has anyone cooked this the day before serving it? Does it reheat well? I’m having family over at 1 and I’d rather not get up at 5:30 to get this going. ;)
Yep, I have. I just throw the ceramic crock in the fridge and reheat on high until heated through.
Could I sub the red wine vinegar with apple cider vinegar without it throwing the taste off?
I actually just put mine in the crock. I used balsamic vinegar instead, a tad sweeter. A website says you can also sub cider vinegar but only go 3TBS cider vinegar to 4TBS of red dye to cider being more pungent/strong. Go for it. Looking forward to 7 hours from now!
How did yours come out using the apple cider vinegar?
This was excellent! Followed recipe as written, although I did chop the onion and the pork shoulder into smaller pieces. I also used smoked paprika mixed with regular paprika. I had a 2.5 lb shoulder and it was perfect after about 7.5 hrs on low. Enough for 6 dinner portions and about 2 large size lunch portions. Served over rice with Siracha and avocado. Also made tacos with some fresh cilantro, sour cream, and avocado. Really delicious and versatile. Thank you!
I absolutely love this recipe!!! I am wanting to make a milder version for a kids’ party. Would cutting out the cayenne pepper completely change the recipe too much?
Hi Emily. Other readers have cut out the cayenne without issue. You could also just go easier on it. :)
1/4 cup of brown sugar is sweet on top:D
Made this for a work gathering and everyone ate it up! My son who originally thought he didn’t like pulled pork ate leftovers for a week straight asking for it every night! It’s absolutely delicious and it is perfect without sauce… although we like it with a little drizzle of Root Beer BBQ sauce to finish it off on the bun! :) Thank you so much for a great spice recipe instead of one soaked in sugar sauces.
I made this for the family and it was awesome! I bought Italian bread and made a Broccoli Slaw. I put the Pulled Pork and the Slaw on the bread to make a sandwich. Wonderful! I followed the recipe exactly! Thank you!
Fabulous!
Love that it isn’t made with a bunch of high sodium bottled sauces. Used one smal( 2 1/2) lb slightly fatty pork loin roast and it was perfect. After pulling we skimmed the fat and just threw the meat back in the sauce, mixed it up and had it on toasted burger buns.
BEST pulled pork I’ve ever had! Made it twice this week so I could have some for the freezer. Did substitute lime juice for vinegar and added 1 Tbs Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime to 4 lb roasts. Used pork sirloin once and pork butt (trimmed). Put it back in juices after I pulled it and kept on warm about 2 hours before serving. Sirloin pulled better with less fat.
Have this in the slow cooker right now! Serving it with sweet potato mash and coleslaw. And corn tortillas! Can’t wait to try it!
Tried the recipe today – perfect, the kids and I had the pork on fresh bread rolls, I had to substitute the cayenne for cumin and added some tomato sauce/ketchup- the result was amazing and despite being a little concerned with the marinade levels at first it all turned out well.
TERRIBLE recipe.
In the slow cooker for 7 hours and the meat is getting tougher.
Sauce does not turn into a paste; more like the consistancy of very melted ice cream.
The worse recipe for pulled pork Ive ever made.
Either she left something out of the directions or she’s never had good pulled pork in her life.
Not sure what happened but that is a very unusual result from what is a favorite recipe on this site. Sorry you had a bad experience.