Pulled Pork
Updated June 6, 2024
- Total Time
- 4½ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:8 to 12 servings
- 3tablespoons raw or brown sugar, plus more to taste
- 1tablespoon ground chipotle or other hot ground chile
- 1tablespoon onion powder
- 2teaspoons garlic powder
- 1teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1teaspoon ground black pepper
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 1(4-pound) boneless pork butt or shoulder roast
- 1large onion, chopped
- 2tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola
- 10dried guajillo chiles (2 to 3 ounces)
- 2teaspoons distilled white vinegar, plus more to taste
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)
299 calories; 12 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 37 grams protein; 494 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, chipotle, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, black pepper and 1 tablespoon kosher salt. If the pork came tied, untie it and unroll it. If it has a thick layer of fat, score the fat with a sharp knife. Rub the spice mixture all over the meat.
- Step 2
If you’d like to marinate the meat, place the pork fat side up in a Dutch oven or other heavy pot if the pot can fit in your refrigerator and cover. Or place the meat in a bowl and cover it, or set it in a resealable plastic bag. Refrigerate to marinate for as much time as you have, preferably overnight (and up to 1 full day).
- Step 3
If you’d like to give your meat a smoky flavor, you can smoke it for an hour or so in a charcoal grill set up for indirect grilling with wood chips strewn over the coals. Then, transfer it to a Dutch oven or pot, cover and bake as directed below.
- Step 4
If you’re not smoking your meat, you can cook it in the oven from start to finish. About 4 hours before you want to eat, heat the oven to 425 degrees. Take the pork out of the refrigerator and let stand while the oven heats. Uncover the meat. Set it fat side up, transferring it to a Dutch oven or pot if needed. Scatter the onion around the meat and sprinkle with salt. Drizzle the oil all over the meat and onion.
- Step 5
Roast until the onion browns and the pork fat crackles a bit, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, snap the stems off the chiles and discard them, then snap the chiles in half. Shake out their seeds and discard them.
- Step 6
Drop the chiles on top of the onion. Add 2½ cups water, cover the pot and reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees. Cook until the meat is tender enough to fall apart when speared with a fork, about 3½ hours.
- Step 7
Transfer the pork to a sheet pan. If you’d like the meat to have crispy charred bits, heat the broiler. Broil the pork until deeply browned in spots but try not to burn it. It will still be very tasty if you skip this broiling step. While the pork broils or rests, stir the vinegar into the hot cooking liquid in the pot. If you’d like, you can skim the fat off the surface of the cooking liquid. Transfer everything in the pot to a blender and blend until very smooth. Taste and add more sugar, vinegar and salt, if you’d like.
- Step 8
Slide the pork back into the pot and shred with two forks. Pour enough of the sauce over the meat to evenly coat and stir to combine. If the mixture has cooled, heat it over low until simmering. Serve hot, with any extra sauce on the side. This dish keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat, stirring now and then, in a microwave or over medium-low heat on the stovetop.
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Cooking Notes
loudon
I make an adovado paste with New Mexico mild red Chiles, ice it like a cake with this instead of a spice rub and lest it marinate overnight. No need for added liquid or onions (through whole carrots are nice). After the sear phase in the oven, I seal it up, set it to 215 and let it go for 13 hours. Lower and slower is always better. Never fails and makes its own sauce. Tacos or rice bowls for weeks for two.
Decatur Sarah
The recipe seems like a reasonable way to deal with a smaller portion of pork than is usually called for when making pulled pork. But that picture. I’m thinking that the stylist had no experience with southern pulled pork. I have lived in GA for 25 years; the picture with the recipe has nothing to do with the pulled pork I have eaten or made. Typically the cook does not add the sauce before serving (perhaps minimally with a vinegar based sauce) because sauce preferences are entrenched early on.
Gretchen
I have been making pulled pork since the 80's. With a smoker I smoked it for 4 hours and then finished in the oven as below for another 4 hours. BUT the surest way to get a "to die for" crispy crust and pull apart goodness all in the oven is to rub it with whatever, put it in a 250- 275* oven for 8-10 hours (190-200* internal temp). You'll slap your hand to keep from eating all the crust. Pull it, serve sauce on the side. Put slaw ON your sandwich!! That's Carolina BBQ.
lolly
It's our personal taste to not have blobs of fat in our pulled pork, so when shredding it, we try to get as much of the fat out as possible. It takes time but, for us, it makes our sandwiches taste so much better.
cedgemo
I use a pork shoulder with a big bone in. I use a standard webber grill.The trik is to use charcoal AND select white oak or red oak,soaked in a bucket of water till it barely floates.Now get a good deep sear on all sides xcept the fat side. place in slow cooker with good root beer.No hi fructose sugar.Set on LOW.When it falls aprt ladel off pan juice and add spice blend. shred, taste add BBQ sauce. No high fructose sugar. And you have perfect pork BBQ !
Nate
Texas Pulled Pork 1 4-5lb pork shoulder 3 roasted tomatillos (air fryer 10min) 12oz apple cider vinegar 2 Poblanos chopped 3 jalapeños 10oz salsa verde 1 bunch chopped cilantro 16oz apple cider 1/2c. brown sugar 1/4c. maple syrup 2 sliced tart apples -Jazz 1 red onion sliced 1 small can chipotles in adobo 1 bunch peeled garlic Red pepper flakes Salt & pepper Brown salted & peppered meat -pour in everything cook 7hr 225F then 20 min at 325F in cast iron pot w/lid
Chuck
A slow cooker generally produces a moister result than an oven or a barbecue. You won’t get the smoky, slightly charred “nubs” of the latter two but if a slow cooker is all you have then by all means go for it. I make slow cooker pork all the time and it yields a fine taco or sandwich. Here is a good starting point. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/92462/slow-cooker-texas-pulled-pork/
Michael "Elvis" Sierchio
If you want a smoky flavor, don't sneer at Liquid Smoke. "Flavor-wise, there's no reason you can't make good smoky food using liquid smoke," says J. Kenji López-Alt. There are numerous varieties available.
Neal
Everyone who regularly cooks pulled pork, including me, will have their favorite marinades, sauces, and embellishments. This is an excellent basic recipe that produces wonderful meat. Thanks!
Rachel G-S
This spice mixture is absolutely incredible. I cooked it @275°for 10 hours and OMG, best pork I’ve ever made. If it had been smoked, that would’ve been better but it was amazing.
Yvonne
This is fabulous made in the instant pot.
Judy
The easiest, most cost saving way to feed a crowd, is the pork butt usually weighing in at 7 to 8 lbs, often on sale here for 1$ per pound. I'm sure smoking adds lots of flavor, but putting on a good rub, cover with foil, cook 300 degrees per pound (that means you've got to remember to put it in early) gets the job done. And as another southerner mentioned, our sauce selection is very personal and sometimes has a great deal to do with if you live in the eastern or western part of the state.
Favorite
Good Super Bowl Snack on sliders with coleslaw; used chipotle peppers but didn’t use the sauce because too spicy. Good old Sweet Baby Ray’s to the rescue.
Michael Letourneau
Made this last night and it was amazing! Rave reviews from all those that indulged. Residing in San Diego and wanting some extra heat, I added 4 chili de arbol with the guajillo chiles. I also strained the sauce after pureeing it, but I'm sure it would be fine without straining. Didn't have white vinegar so used apple cider vinegar. Served on toasted brioche buns and coleslaw. Definitely, putting this in our routine rotation.
Michelle Damico
Delicious. I made it in my instapot and then blended the sauce. I added soy sauce and brown sugar. Would happily make again.
Rotmanpr
I appreciate all the ideas and suggestions for variations but if you follow this recipe you will create an excellent example of pulled pork that’s different than the usual bbq-heavy versions often encountered. It’s a deep and tasty sauce perfectly seasoned and the meat itself comes out soft and beautifully tender. We also put it under the broiler for a bit of browning and char. A good idea. We’ll definitely make it a go to dinner. Bravo!
Claudia Scholtz
Was worried about the level of spicy with 10 guajillos but without the seeds, it was just right for us. Smoked for 1 hour, then into dutch oven + oven. At 3 hours, meat was falling apart and temp was 205-210 so I knew it was done. We kept the sauce separate so everyone can use their appropriate amount. The scent from the oven was roasted pepper deliciousness. Ran out of ground chipotle for the rub but our chili powder on hand was mostly anchos so I used that instead. Will definitely make again!
jl
Cook 4 hours on smoker, 1 hr at 225, then 3 hrs at 250. Move to 250 oven for 4 hours… wrap in foil after 1 hr or so.
Elise
Made with ancho chiles - good but had more of a kick than I expected! Wound up adding quite a bit more sugar vinegar and salt to the sauce. End result was great though.
Shoba
This was delicious! I made a few modifications - none of which seem to have detracted from the flavor. I did not smoke it on a grill. I used 3 dried Indian chilis instead of the guajillo. I shredded the pork after transferring it to the sheet pan so as to not scratch my pot. Instead of using the blender at the end, I whisked the liquid. Don't you love a dish that is very easy and really delicious?
paul stenquist
I make pulled pork in either my pellet smoker or the oven. If in the oven, the pork should be placed on a sheet pa, And whether smoker or oven, the method is the same: rub with mustard, salt, pepper, brown sugar and paprika. Cook uncovered at 235 degrees F for six hours, then q wrapped in butcher paper for an additional four to six hours until it reaches an internal temperature of 210 degees. That’s barbecue!
Gill G
I'd brought dried chillies and ground chipotle - not regular features in UK supermarkets - back from the States and was surprise to find shoulder cuts at nearly the right size, slightly under 4lbs. Go pulled pork Sunday! Made the recipe as written, didn't broil the meat, passed the sauce through a sieve after processing in a Magimix for a smooth texture. Served the meat reheated in sauce in soft tacos with coleslaw, with a squeeze of lime and baked sweet potatoes as a side. Pure deliciousness.
AlanL
Came out really well. I did smoke it on the grill for an hour, then 3.5 hours in the oven. I browned a yellow onion in the Dutch oven while the pork was smoking ( last 20 minutes), then added the dried chiles. I had about 4 ancho chiles instead of the 10 guallios the recipe calls for so that’s what I used. I added a chopped up fresh jalapeño with the onions to compensate plus a couple shakes of cayenne. I was worried the sauce wouldn’t be right but it came out great and will definitely make this
CatPigg
I use a pressure cooker to make mine; it takes a quarter of the time and produces a wonderfully moist pulled pork.
Claire Duncan
Cooked as the recipe directed - we had been gifted a 5lb shoulder of wild boar and thought this would be a wonderful way to use it for a pulled pork taco feast for family and friends. We didn’t do the broil part but still everyone thought it was moist and very flavorful. Delicious with quick pickled red onions, cilantro, and vinegar based cole slaw.
Robbie Burns
Did two hours on the charcoal grill at around 300-350 with cherry wood. Would maybe go hickory next time. Additional two hours in oven at 300 and pork was cooked perfectly. Not sure about the sauce made from braising liquid. Added rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, Japanese chili powder, and sesame oil for an Asian fusion. But the sauce was a bit too porky and rich to counter balance richness of the pork itself. Maybe just go with Stubs.
kichenbish
This description was written beautifully.
Favorite
Good Super Bowl Snack on sliders with coleslaw; used chipotle peppers but didn’t use the sauce because too spicy. Good old Sweet Baby Ray’s to the rescue.
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