Slow Cooker Apple Butter Pulled Pork
Apples and pork are a classic combination, and this slow cooker apple butter pulled pork recipe brings them together in a stick-to-your-ribs sandwich!
Servings: 16 servings
Calories: 267kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 cups apple butter
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup honey
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 3 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon sriracha hot chile sauce
- 6-7 pound pork shoulder roast
- Buns and slaw for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan over high heat. Add in the garlic and onion, and cook until just tender and fragrant, about five minutes.
- Add in the apple butter, apple cider vinegar, honey, water, paprika, mustard, salt, worcestershire sauce, and chile sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until the thickness of a barbecue sauce (about 15 minutes). Reserve about one cup of the sauce for serving.
- Place the shoulder roast in a large slow cooker, pour over the remaining barbecue sauce, and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or high for 6-8, or until the pork is tender enough to shred.
- Shred pork with two forks. To serve, pile on top of buns, then drizzle with reserved barbecue sauce and top with slaw.
Notes
I personally like to toss my pulled pork in barbecue sauce before placing on the bun, but some folks prefer it with less sauce (or, gasp!, even none at all). So if you're serving to a crowd. Keep the barbecue sauce separate and allow folks to divvy it out as they wish. Put it in a squirt bottle for easy serving!
Because pork shoulder roasts tend to be large, this recipe makes a ton! No worries, pulled pork freezes well. Just let the amount you want to freeze cool, toss with barbecue sauce and then freeze in gallon-sized zip-top freezer bags. Defrost in the fridge overnight, and then heat in a saucepan over medium heat (you might want to add a touch of water to keep it from sticking). Or microwave until warm.
You'll need a large slow cooker to fit a pork roast. I highly recommend this one.
To keep this recipe gluten-free be sure to use gluten-free worcestershire sauce and gluten-free buns.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 267kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.001g | Cholesterol: 70mg | Sodium: 458mg | Potassium: 458mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 450IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 2mg
