Slow Cooking Pulled Pork

Slow cooker, also known as Crock Pot (in the United States), is best suited for cooking pork. Though slow cooker consumes more time for cooking (at least 8 - 10 hours), the taste and flavor of the cooked food is worth spending the time. As the heat inside the slow cooker is maintained at a relatively low temperature, the meat turns tender and is cooked well. The cooked meat can be used as fillings for sandwiches and tortillas. Here are some delicious slow cooker pulled pork recipes.

Slow Cooking a Pork Shoulder

Ingredients

4 pounds pork shoulder
2 medium-sized onions (cut into thin slices)
1 cup chopped onion
1 bottle barbecues sauce (or 2 cups homemade sauce)
1 cups water
Salt and pepper as per taste

Procedure

Preheat a slow cooker and add sliced onions, pork, and water. Cover the crock pot and cook on low setting for about 8 - 9 hours. For high heat setting, you can cook for about 4 - 5 hours. Cook the meat as per the stipulated timing, remove the lid of slow cooker and drain the cooking water. Shred or chop the meat pieces; while doing so, discard excess fat parts. Then, place the shredded meat pieces in the slow cooker and add the remaining ingredients, chopped onion, salt, pepper and barbecue sauce (or homemade sauce). Cover with lid and cook on low heat setting for another 4 - 5 hours. Remove the cooked meat and stir well. Garnish with seasonings and serve with hamburger or plain bun.

Slow Cooking Pulled Pork with Sauce

Ingredients

4 pounds boneless pork shoulder-blade (cut into 4 pieces)
1 medium-sized onion (chopped)
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
cup brown sugar
cup tomato paste
cup tomato ketchup
cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
Sandwich buns or ciabatta rolls
Salt and pepper as per taste

Procedure

In a slow cooker, add chopped onions, brown sugar, mustard, tomato paste, ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, paprika and stir well to mix the ingredients. Add pork pieces and toss, so that the meat is coated by the sauce mixture. Cover the slow cooker and cook on a low heat setting for about 8 - 10 minutes. Check whether the meat turns tender or not. With the help of tongs, transfer the cooked meat into a platter or a large bowl. Change the setting of the slow cooker to high heat and bring the sauce mixture to boil. Boil the sauce mixture till it thickens. In the meantime, pull pork pieces with two forks, so as to prepare shreds. When the sauce mixture reduces to about half, open the lid and add the shredded pieces to the slow cooker. Cook for about 30 minutes stirring well. Serve the pulled pork with sandwich buns, topped with hot sauce.

Pulled Pork Barbecue

Ingredients

5 pounds boneless pork shoulder or butt
3 cups beef broth
2 cups barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground pepper
1 pinch cayenne pepper
Hamburger buns
Salt as per taste

Procedure

In a large mixing bowl, mix the ingredients, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, ground pepper, salt and cayenne pepper. Add pork pieces into the mixing bowl and toss well to cover the meat from all sides. Cover with a lid and marinate by keeping in the refrigerator for 1 - 2 hours. Transfer the marinated meat into a slow cooker and cook on low heat setting for about 8 - 10 hours. Transfer the meat into a cutting board and shred into pieces by using fork, discard excess fat parts (if any). Then place the shredded pieces back to the slow cooker. In another bowl, mix barbecue sauce and beef broth; pour into the slow cooker and cook for another 2 hours. With a spoon transfer the pulled pork on hamburger buns and serve.

These are few easy to cook and delicious pulled pork recipes that you can prepare using a slow cooker. As these slow cooker recipes remain warm for a longer period, you can prepare them for potluck or weeknight meals.