My signature pulled pork recipe is slow roasted for 12 hours. This is my easy pulled pork recipe made in a slow cooker, a recipe loved by readers all around the world! High returns for minimal effort, pork is rubbed with a secret spice mix, slow cooked until the meat pulls apart effortlessly then tossed in a simple-yet-flavour-loaded homemade BBQ Sauce.
Super economical, makes loads, freezes 100% perfectly and insanely moreish. Make sliders or a big Southern BBQ dinner plate complete with classic sides like Mac and Cheese, Cornbread and Coleslaw!
Easy slow cooker pulled pork
No self respecting BBQ shack would cook pulled pork in a slow cooker. They do an overnight smoke, with a pork babysitter on duty all through the night to stoke the coals, monitor and maintain the temperature, and occasionally give the pork a good spray with their secret-formula spritzer.
I do not do that.
I need my beauty sleep.
(Also, I don’t have a smoker).
So here’s how I make pulled pork in a slow cooker. Simple. Totally hands off. Makes loads, super economical. Amazing result for minimum effort!
What you need for pulled pork
Here’s what you need for pulled pork made in a slow cooker – a spice rub and some kind of liquid for a braising liquid to infuse with flavour, add a touch of sweetness and keep everything nice and moist.
I like to use beer – any beer other than dark brown beers like stout or Guinness. Apple cider – alcoholic or non alcoholic – or similar fruit ciders (like pear) are also terrific. For non alcoholic, apple juice works really well. Emergency fallback: water!
Best pork for pulled pork?
The best pork for pulled pork is bone in Pork Butt – also known as Boston Butt – or pork shoulder. It’s well marbled with fat so it’s juicy, and it’s a tough cut of pork so it needs the long cook time to become tender enough to shred – which means more flavour infusion time!
Difference between pork butt and pork shoulder
While both are cut from the shoulder of pig, the pork shoulder comes from the lower end (upper leg) whereas pork butt is the upper part near the back which is why the shape is more rectangle block-like. Here’s an excellent diagram from Cooks’ Illustrated!
Homemade barbecue sauce
And here’s what you need for the homemade Barbecue Sauce. It’s my base recipe for all things barbecue sauced – from pork ribs to chicken, beef ribs to brisket.
Sometimes I change it up a bit – depends on the protein and purpose of the dish, but fundamentally the same ingredients!
How to make pulled pork
We’re bypassing the step to sit by a smoker through the whole night, and just opting for a simple home version here. So all I need you to do is:
rub pork with spice mix;
plonk in slow cooker with beer, set and forget;
brown in oven – optional step, but totally worth it for that extra little edge of flavour (besides, you need to use a pan for shredding anyway, so you may as well throw it in the oven for a bit!);
shred, douse with BBQ sauce, devour.
PS I slow cook it with the thick layer of fat on it so it looks blubbery and unappetising when you pull it out of the slow cooker but it does all sorts of wonderful things to the pork as it slow cooks – imagine the spice rubbed layer of fat slooooowly dripping down the pork and basting it for hours!
Pulled pork should be tender…but not mushy!
When I see pork being shredded with a food processor and vigorously mixed with sauce until it resembles baby food, it makes me want to cry.
We want tender, juicy pork that can be pulled apart effortlessly, but still has the texture of meat – we don’t want mush! To achieve that, you just need to cook it for the right length of time (10 hours on low is long enough) and toss with the sauce gently rather than vigorously stirring it like it’s a pot of soup!
How to serve pulled pork
The two classic ways to serve pulled pork are:
1. Sliders – stuffed in soft rolls with Coleslaw*. Terrific way to serve loads of people – this recipe will make around 20 sliders;
* If you or your hips are anti mayo, try the RecipeTin No Mayo Coleslaw – it’s very, very good!
2. Southern BBQ Dinner Plate – complete with classic sides like Baked Mac and Cheese, Corn Bread, steamed corn slathered with butter, Coleslaw (or this No Mayo version) and a side of something green (pictured: simple steamed greens drizzled with butter, salt and pepper).
This recipe makes loads of pulled pork. Pork butts are BIG – so there’s no getting around that!
If you use shoulder you can get smaller pieces. But actually, you don’t want to make this with much less than 2kg / 4 lb because otherwise the pork will cook too quickly and lack the time it needs for the flavour to infuse.
Besides, it freezes 100% perfectly. And imagine how smug you’ll feel knowing you’ve got a stash of this in your freezer??? Shove it in a bread roll for a quick meal anytime! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Easy slow cooker BBQ pulled pork
Ingredients
- 3.5-4.5kg/ 5-7lb pork butt / pork shoulder , bone in, fat cap on (Note 1)
- 1 cup beer , apple cider or apple juice (Note 2)
RUB:
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp paprika powder
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp mustard powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
BBQ Sauce:
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar (Note 3)
- 3 cups tomato ketchup (or Aussie tomato sauce)
- 1 cup water (or use remaining beer!)
- 3 tbsp molasses , orginal (not blackstrap, Note 4)
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 4 tsp mustard powder
- 3 tsp garlic powder
- 4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp Tabasco or cayenne pepper (optional, for spiciness)
Instructions
- Mix the Rub together, then rub all over the pork.
- Place in a slow cooker, pour over beer. Slow cook on low for 10 hours. Pork should be tender enough to easily shred.
Browning in oven (optional, recommended):
- Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F.
- Transfer from slow cooker into a roasting pan (reserve liquid).
- Scoop fat off surface of juices in slow cooker and drizzle over pork (about 1/3 cup), then roast pork for 20 minutes.
- Remove from oven, cut thick layer of fat off top and discard. Spoon over 1/4 cup fat from slow cooker juices, then roast 15 minutes.
Shredding:
- Shred pork using 2 forks. Pour over BBQ sauce, toss gently.
- Serve stuffed in sliders with Coleslaw, or make a Southern dinner plate with Coleslaw, Mac and Cheese, Corn bread, steamed corn & green beans tossed in butter, with Margaritas to quench your thirst!
Barbecue Sauce:
- Place all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until thickened.
- Add 3/4 – 1 cup of juices from slow cooker until sauce is syrup consistency.
- Adjust to taste: sweetness with brown sugar / honey, salt and sour with vinegar. Use per recipe.
Recipe Notes:
- Pressure cooker / instant pot – With a slightly smaller pork (2-2.5 kg/4-5lb), I make this in my pressure cooker, 1 hr 20 minutes on high.
- Oven – 7 to 8 hours at 130C/270F, covered with double foil in a roasting pan with 2 cups of water (plus the beer per recipe). I rarely do this simply because of logistics – I don’t like to leave the house or sleep with the oven on! But by roasting, you do get an amazing crust which I compensate for by roasting the pork briefly after slow cooker. Note: slow cooker yields juicier pork.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
This is how my post-trip reunions with Dozer go down…..
I didn’t have any beer, cider or juice so I am using coke, I thought the cola might work, we will see tonight in about 6 hours
Oh my goodness
Best ever
Coke worked a treat
Thank you for all you beautiful recipes, if I am looking for a recipe I search with you first
I need to make this recipe and keep several hours for dinner in crockpot. After roasting and shredding do I put into crockpot with all the leftover juices until serving time?
This Pulled Pork with BBQ Sauce recipe . Super excited to try this one, thanks for sharing this with us, will love to try this one.
Cooked this in the oven last weekend. 8hrs, the smell was amazing! Then a big nasty plate of pulled pork nachos!!
Oh and plenty left over in the freezer now too.
Great recipe, thank you!
Nagi
Can you crackle the skin after it’s removed ? 240C
Wow, just amazing.. the sauce is incredible, pork was super soft.. I did the 7 pound pork in an Instapot for 2.5 hrs and was just perfect. Thanks Nagi!
Another amazing recipe. Made it exactly to your instructions Nagi with only 1 tspn of cayenne and that was plenty hot enough haha. So good on buns with coleslaw. The bbq sauce was lovely.
This is why I never go out for dinner
☺️ Me, I never go out in the area I live in cause there are no good restaurants!! 😂 FORCED to cook!
Us, too! I & my two adult children share a home. We all agree that there are just no good places to eat out, compared to what I make from your site. (Whenever I need a recipe, I Google, like, “pulled pork, Nagi”). Thank you, Nagi!
Delicioso. Outstanding recipe. Thanks for sharing this Pulled Pork, this one is so amazing.
👋🏼 Hi Nagi!
I’m cooking a Pork Shoulder in the oven, the beer + water covered approximately 1 inch of the pork in the roasting pan. Should I be worried that the rest will be dry, should I turn the pork at any stage? (I have done double foil)
Hi nagi- any reason we can’t just add the sauce ingredients at the start to cook with the meat for 10 hrs instead of doing it separately at the end?
I have made pulled pork before in the crock pot. But your BBQ sauce sets this apart from any of my previous efforts. Seriously the best.
Could I use this in your pork enchilada recipe?
Hi, do I have to use molasses? I don’ t have any but I do have some dark cane sugar- would that work?
Many thanks,Caroline
Hi Nagi,
I’m wondering if I can make this with pork cheeks? Obviously smaller pieces, but can slow cook them for a long time.
Served this for friends last night! I did forget to add some juices from the slow cooker to my bbq sauce at the end, not sure how that would have changed the flavour, but it still tasted good! Will have to try that next time. I used a 2.6kg pork shoulder and was a bit nervous about the dryness of some of the meat after 9 hours cooking plus roasting in the oven, but the bbq sauce made it succulent and delicious!
Hi Nagi
Can u make this on the stovetop ?
Lovely Pulled Pork with BBQ Sauce , seems amazing and unique . Super excited to try this one, thanks for sharing this recipe with us.
I accidentally bought blackstrap molasses instead of the original just for this recipe. What would be the difference if I were to used it?
Ok. This is my go to website for recipes (especially when in a hurry). But this recipe was fkn awesome 👏 I used 2.4kg boneless shoulder. Chucked it in slow cooker for 2 hours on high (cause I got up late) then down to slow for another 4.5 hours. Then did everything else properly as per recipe.
That sauce deserves a medal. Damn. Everything was delicious even though I baked my Turkish bread rolls a bit too long. Crispy is GOOD. Family loved it.
Gonna chuck the rest on a homemade pizza tomorrow. (Which I will probably search this website for dough recipe as I do everything else I make). Thanks Nagi you rock. 👏👍 wish I could show you a picture it was delicious!
Made this today and it turned out fantastic, as does every recipe Nagi shares 🙂 the bbq sauce was soooo yum and nice and tangy. Thanks again for such detailed instructions and delicious recipes, it really makes all the difference having all of that detail. I also love seeing your beautiful puppa too