Pulled Pork with Creamy Coleslaw

I bought a pork butt and was originally going to make pork carnitas. I had all the ingredients and at the last minute decided to switch it up to pulled pork. It was my first time making the pulled pork in my pressure cooker and with a pork butt. I’ve done a few times with a pork loin and in the crockpot but never this way.

You can definitely put this in a crockpot for low 8-10 hours or you can make low and slow in the oven. If you do in the oven it will probably take 8-10 hours as well on like 300°-325°. I used the pressure cooker because it took 90 minutes. It came out tender and falling apart and very easy to shred.

I got a pressure cooker a few years ago for Christmas and I love it. I love being able to cook foods so much faster and they come out much juicer than being in the crockpot. I just recently bought an instapot. I haven’t taken out of the box just yet because the next few weeks are super busy I want to be able to use it properly. I can’t wait though. Stay tuned for more information on that.

Now, back to the pulled pork. It came out delicious I can safety say I’m excited to eat these leftovers! When I think of pulled pork a lot of times I think of an excess amount of BBQ sauce. I honestly have very little BBQ sauce in this recipe. I think a lot of time the BBQ sauce drowns out the real flavor of the meat. So, this is what I did. It’s probably not traditional but it’s my take on pulled pork with just a simple coleslaw.

Pulled Pork with Creamy Coleslaw

Ingredients:
4-5lb pork shoulder/pork butt
8-10 large buns
BBQ sauce for topping (optional)

Sauce:
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup apple sider vinegar
¼ cup Worcestershire
2 T honey or brown sugar
3 T oil
3 T ketchup
3 T bbq sauce
½ T onion powder
½ T garlic powder
½ T cumin
½ T paprika
½ T chili powder
2 T salt
2 T pepper
3 C water

Rub:
1 ½ T onion powder
1 ½ T garlic powder
1 ½ T chili powder
1 ½ T cumin
1 ½ T paprika
2 t salt
2 t pepper

Simple Creamy Coleslaw

Ingredients:
14 oz bag of coleslaw mix
¾ cup light mayo
¾ cup light sour cream
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 small onion, diced
2 t onion powder
2 t garlic powder
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions: In a bowl mix together all ingredients for the sauce minus the water. Mix well to a smooth consistence and set aside. Cut the pork in 2 pieces. In a bowl mix together all ingredients for the rub. Rub mixture on all sides of the meat pieces; make sure to cover the meat well. Heat pressure cooker on high heat (Or a sauté pan if your oven roasting or using the crockpot.) Add in 1 T of oil and brown 1 chunk of meat at time, brown on all sides. Remove from the pan. Use 1 T of oil and do the same thing with the second chunk of meat.

Add both pieces of meat back to the pressure cooker and add in 3 cups of water and pour the sauce mixture over the meat. Cover the pressure cooker and bring up to pressure and cook on medium high heat for 90 minutes. Let pressure release naturally. If you are roasting in the oven, add the meat to a roasting pan and only add 1 cup of water and then pour the sauce over the meat and cook for 8-10 hours on 300°. Note, you can cook it less but it won’t be falling apart and super easy to shred. For the crockpot, add meat to crockpot and add in 2 cups of water and pour sauce over the meat and cook on low 8-10. Cook until the meat falls apart.

While meat is cooking make the coleslaw. To a medium bowl add the coleslaw mix and the onion. In a smaller bowl mix together the sour cream, mayo, apple cider vinegar and the garlic and onion powder. Add that mixture to coleslaw and mix well till fully coated. Season the coleslaw with salt and pepper to taste and add to the refrigerator until ready to use. Mix well before serving.

Once meat is cooked, (In whichever method you choose) Add to a large bowl and shred the meat completely. Spoon some of the juices from the pan into the bowl and mix well. To serve, add meat to bun and drizzle with some reserved juices and top with a dollop of bbq sauce (Optional: I didn’t do this as the meat flavor was enough for me and didn’t want to change it.) Either eat with coleslaw on the bun or on the side. The choice is yours! 🙂

Note: Double the coleslaw recipe if you’re going to make for a crowd or eat all within a few days. I only made one recipe as I was only eating half now and freezing the rest. Optional: Add the leftover juices to a container or a bowl and let side until the fat starts to separate from the juices. Once that happens, remove the fat that’s collected on the top and add the liquid to the meat mixture and mix well. This will keep the meat nice and juicy especially for leftovers or if you’re freezing any of the meat.