You can bet I've eaten my weight in barbecue while living in Texas.
One meal I can't quite get enough of is a good pulled pork sandwich with easy homemade coleslaw on top. I had tried this sandwich a few times in California with mixed results, so I was very excited for our Texas time to enjoy some "real" barbecue.
Then I got home. And the itch hit again. I needed more.
This recipe isn't too barbecue-y. It is more mild with a sweet hint of apples and a late kick of heat. It was a nice change of pace from the heavier barbecue pulled pork sandwiches from around here, but I am always happy to eat more Texas barbecue.
I've made this pulled pork in my dutch oven and in my new crock pot, and also instant pot pulled pork. You can also make pulled pork in an Instant Pot, like my instant pot bbq pulled pork recipe or my Instant Pot Carolina Pulled Pork. Both work beautifully - it just depends on whether you wanna add the ingredients, hit "on" and walk away for 6 hours OR if you'd rather pop in the oven for a few hours.
Speaking of, these really are the best crock pot pulled pork sandwiches.
Best Crock Pot Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Equipment
- Crock Pot
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Ingredients
- 2 cups apple cider or juice
- ½ cup ketchup
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon cumin
- 1 ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- optional: 4 tbsp. of your favorite barbecue sauce
- 1 medium onion divided into eighths
- 2-3 lbs pork shoulder I used a pork shoulder butt roast, all ties removed
- 4-6 sandwich buns try these Egg Bread Buns if you'd like
Instructions
- If using crock pot:
- Add all the ingredients, starting with the pork, fat-side-up, followed by the rest of the ingredients. Turn the heat to Low. Cook for 6-7 hours, or until pork is tender and easily falls apart with a fork.
- If using dutch oven:
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, combine the apple cider, ketchup, brown sugar, optional barbecue sauce and spices and set aside.
- Place ½ of the sliced onions into the bottom of a 4-6-quart dutch oven. Place the pork shoulder on top the onions. Top the pork shoulder with the remaining onions and then pour sauce over everything. The pork shoulder need not be completely submerged to reach perfect pulled perfection, but you can add a little more apple cider if you'd like at this point.
- Cover and place in the oven for 2 ½ to 3 hours, depending on the size of your pork shoulder. Begin checking for doneness after about 2 hours. When done, the pork will easily pull apart from itself with a fork. Remove the meat and place onto a flat surface.
- Place the dutch oven on the stove (or move contents to a large pan) and heat to boiling to thicken.
- Once Pork Is Tender And Cooked:
- Pull the pork into shreds using two forks. Take care to remove the pieces of fat. Return the shredded pork to the sauce.
- Serve pulled pork piled high on a sandwich bun or just by itself. Top with some coleslaw if you'd like. It's really yummy!
Jackie
Hi there,
Is it possible to freeze the pulled pork? I'm stocking up in preparation for a new baby!
Thank you!
Dustin
Definitely should make this again.
Brody
Is okay to cook the pork for 8 hours.
Lacey Baier
While that is quite a long time to be cooking pork, as long as it's slowly cooking and is a good size, it should be fine in a slow cooker. I don't see why it would ever take much longer than that to be ready to eat, though.