Pulled Pork
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Easy Pulled Pork Recipe: Made from basics in a slow cooker, oven, or pressure cooker. So tender & juicy, with a chewy, flavorful bark!
A few weeks back, I had everybody over to help us eat this pulled pork recipe I came up with, and they all loved it!
It was juicy and tender and really flavorful, with a gentle sweet & savory spice rub that had just the right amount of smoke.
And I especially loved it, as the cook! Because it was seriously SO. EASY.
This pulled pork only dirtied up one dish, and it legit took about 10 minutes of active time. The rest was just letting it sit in the fridge and oven.
It gets a low, slow cook so you know it’s going to come out falling-apart tender and moist as anything. And it naturally forms the most delicious chewy bark on top. It’s everything you could ever want pulled pork to be.
And you can make it in the oven like I did, or in a crock pot or Instant Pot.
I’m all about slow-cooked, one-pot meals like this one. Especially on the weekends. Start them in the afternoon and just let them simmer away, filling your home with their tempting aromas and working up everybody’s appetites. By the time dinner’s ready we’re all just about dying for it!
For more like this one, be sure to check out my bolognese sauce, my beef bourguignon, and my easy chili con carne recipes.
Table of Contents
- What is pulled pork?
- Why this is the best pulled pork recipe
- What does pulled pork taste like?
- Ingredients
- Special equipment
- How to make it
- How to serve pulled pork
- Expert tips
- Frequently asked questions
- A few more of my best main dish recipes
What is pulled pork?
Basically this is just a big hunk of pork that gets seasoned generously and then braised very slowly, so all the fat and tough bits render down and soften to a melt-in-your-mouth consistency.
You then break it apart into bite-sized pieces or strands.
From there it can be piled on a soft bun for pulled pork sandwiches, spooned into tortillas for pulled pork tacos, or layered onto chips for pulled pork nachos.
Why this is the best pulled pork recipe
- Tastes amazing: The balance of brown sugar, spices, and apple cider compliment the meat in the most gorgeous way.
- Few ingredients: You’ll only need a handful of basics to make it. They can all be easily sourced from a regular neighborhood grocery store.
- Easy to make: It will only take you about 10 minutes of active time to make this. The rest is just letting it bubble away ’til tender.
- Crowd-pleaser: Everybody always loves it and it makes a lot, so it’s a perfect recipe for casual entertaining.
What does pulled pork taste like?
This pulled pork recipe yields a robust flavor that’s not at all hot-spicy.
There’s a combination of brown sugar and savory spices, along with a hint of smoke. And it gets braised in apple cider, which is naturally one of pork’s best friends.
It’s juicy and extremely tender, thanks to the long, slow cook.
We like to top it with barbecue sauce, to really bring out the tangy, smoky, and savory flavors.
Ingredients
Sugar: I like dark brown sugar for this, but light brown sugar would also work! As would any type of sweetener, really. As long as it can swap 1:1 it should work just fine.
Salt: Kosher salt helps to cure the meat, almost like a dry brine. It not only carries and enhances the flavors, it also draws moisture and flavor into the pork. I like kosher salt best because it’s cheap, easy to find, and doesn’t contain any bitter-tasting additives like iodine.
Pepper: Ground black pepper adds a little gentle heat to the spice rub.
Garlic & onion: Garlic powder and onion powder bring a sweet and savory vibe.
Smoked paprika: This essential ingredient lends a slightly smoky taste to the pork, so you’d think it was made in a smoker!
Dry mustard: Dry mustard powder is traditional in just about every barbecue recipe out there.
Pork: Any large cut of pork will work. I’ve used a shoulder, which is also sometimes called a “butt.” Makes no sense, I know.
Liquid: My braising liquid of choice is apple cider, because of the natural affinity between pork and apples. Please do not mistake this for apple cider vinegar. Totally different animal! I am talking about apple cider, which is basically just unfiltered apple juice. It’s cloudy and darker than apple juice, although apple juice would work very well too. The kind I use is non-alcoholic and I find it in the produce section, but hard cider would also be very good here. If you can’t find or don’t want to use apple cider or apple juice, you can use any kind of fruit juice or even soda. I’ve made this with root beer, cola, Dr. Pepper, and black cherry wishniak and they are all fantastic!
Special equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons: Follow my guide on how to measure ingredients.
- Baking dish: An oven-safe dish to hold the pork as it roasts (unless you’re using a Crock Pot or Instant Pot.).
- Forks: For breaking the roast down into bite-sized pieces.
How to make it
This easy recipe comes together in 4 simple steps.
Step 1: Dry rub
Start by placing the brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders, smoked paprika, and dry mustard in a bowl.
Stir these all together until combined.
Step 2: Cure
Next pour the rub all over your pork roast and push it into the meat with your hands. Then pop it into the fridge to chill and cure.
I’d recommend letting it chill (uncovered) for at least 2 hours, but if it’s easier you can give it overnight.
Step 3: Cook
Add the apple cider to the bottom of your baking dish and allow this roast to cook low and slow until it’s falling-apart tender.
Step 4: Pull
Allow the meat to rest for at least 5 minutes, so the juices can find their way back into the meat.
Then just break it apart into bite-sized pieces. You can do this with your clean hands, or with two forks.
How to serve pulled pork
As you can see from the photos, I served this pulled pork on sandwiches.
We piled it onto soft brioche buns, drizzled it with my easy homemade barbecue sauce, and spooned on cole slaw for cool, creamy contrast.
But this is also great by itself, on pulled pork tacos, or on pulled pork nachos. Just add beans, cheese, guacamole, and salsa!
Expert tips
Spicy pulled pork: If you like spicier foods, feel free to add a teaspoon or so of cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes to the dry rub. You can also top it with sriracha or hot sauce.
Extra smoky pulled pork: Add a dash of liquid smoke to the apple cider for an even smokier taste.
Use your mixer: Instead of hand-pulling the pork, drop it into the bowl of your mixer and let the machine do the work! Use the paddle attachment and run it on medium-low speed. It will break it up into the perfect texture in just a few minutes. Great trick!
Pulled pork crock pot: Follow the recipe as written up to step 3. Then, instead of putting it in the oven, place it in the slow cooker. Pour in the liquid, pop on the lid, and let it cook for 8 hours on low, 6 hours on medium, or 4 hours on high. You won’t need to baste it. Once it’s tender, remove it from the crockpot, let it rest, and pull it.
Instant Pot pulled pork: Same idea here. Follow the recipe up to step 3. Place the dry-brined pork in the pressure cooker, set it to high, and let it cook for 75 minutes. Then release the pressure, remove the cooked roast, let it rest, and pull it.
Frequently asked questions
This pulled pork recipe is naturally gluten-free, dairy-free, and nut-free. It is not however vegan or vegetarian.
If you are wanting to serve this around dinner time, say, 6pm, then you’ll want to start dry-brining your pork roast at around 12:30 or 1 pm. If this is for lunch, then you’re probably better off putting the dry rub on the night before and allowing it to sit in the fridge overnight (uncovered).
The string netting that often comes on the pork shoulder is to keep it together as it cooks, so it can be cut into slices.
We don’t really do that with pulled pork though. Instead, we break it apart and shred it.
So it’s fine to remove that, and it may even help it to cook a little faster since it allows the meat to flatten out a bit.
This recipe needs around 5 hours to cure and cook, so you will definitely want to plan ahead.
If you want to get it all cooked in advance, you can certainly do that. Make it up to a few days ahead of time, allow it to cool completely, and transfer it to an airtight container. It’s not a bad idea to add any liquid that’s left in the bottom of the baking dish, to keep it moist. Then stash it in the fridge until you’re ready to reheat it and serve it.
It’s fine to leave pulled pork out on the buffet for an hour or so, but any longer than that and it should probably go into the fridge.
Pop it into an airtight container and it should keep there for several days at least.
Or you can freeze it! Pulled pork should last in the freezer for a month or two, and can be thawed in the fridge.
To reheat it, place it in the microwave and warm it in 30-second bursts until heated through, or place it in a 325-degree F oven (tightly covered) until warmed.
Figure on a half a pound of pulled pork per person, and you should be able to serve at least 8 people with a 4-pound pork roast.
The nutritional info below is for 1/8th of the whole recipe. It’s just for the pulled pork. It does not include buns, tortillas, or any toppings.
A few more of my best main dish recipes
- Corn Pizza with Basil and Boursin
- Pasta Puttanesca
- Shrimp and Grits
- Chicken Cheesesteaks
As an amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Pulled Pork
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (110 g) brown sugar, loosely packed (I used dark brown sugar but light brown will work too.)
- 1 tablespoon (18 g) kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon (6 g) ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons (6 g) garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons (4 g) onion powder
- 2 teaspoons (4 g) smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons (4 g) dry mustard
- 4 pounds (1,814.37 g) pork, roast, such as shoulder or butt
- 1 1/2 cups (354 g) apple cider, water, juice, or soda can be substituted
Instructions
- Place the brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, and dry mustard in a small bowl and stir to combine.
- Place the pork roast in a baking dish and rub the mixture all over it.
- Chill (uncovered) for 2 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven* to 325 degrees F and pour the apple cider all around the pork.
- Roast the pork (uncovered) until falling apart tender (approx. 3 hours), basting with the liquid once every 30 minutes.
- Allow the pork to rest for 10 minutes, then pull it into bite-sized pieces using clean hands or 2 forks.
- Serve with barbecue sauce.
I used an 8lb pork loin and it still came out tender, only thing wrong was too much of a vinegary taste. If I make it again would only put half of the apple cider vinegar.
I”m really happy you liked it Dawn! But this recipe does not call for vinegar. Perhaps that’s why you found the taste too sharp. It calls for a liquid such as apple cider, juice, soda, or water. This is explained in the “Ingredients” section. I’m copying & pasting here so you can see:
Liquid: My braising liquid of choice is apple cider, because of the natural affinity between pork and apples. Please do not mistake this for apple cider vinegar. Totally different animal! I am talking about apple cider, which is basically just unfiltered apple juice. It’s cloudy and darker than apple juice, although apple juice would work very well too. The kind I use is non-alcoholic and I find it in the produce section, but hard cider would also be very good here. If you can’t find or don’t want to use apple cider or apple juice, you can use any kind of fruit juice or even soda. I’ve made this with root beer, cola, Dr. Pepper, and black cherry wishniak and they are all fantastic!
Is that a boneless shoulder roast??
Fantastic one pot meal .
Thanks so much!