Southern Style Pulled Pork BBQ- Slow Cooker Recipe
Are you hot enough yet? Join me this week as I bring you an entire menu for the fourth of July that doesn’t require an oven or a grill! Subscribe by email so you don’t miss a post! Gratefully, Christy
First of all, let me start this by stating that there is no such thing as bad barbecue! Whatever barbecue you have in your region, whatever barbecue is your favorite, whatever barbecue you think is the best in the world, I will stand up next to you and declare with my dying breath that you are absolutely right.
Pulled pork barbecue is pretty much heaven on a bun as far as I’m concerned and it seems every region has their own way of doing it. Where I am from, the barbecue is smoked and juicy, served as pictured here or with a little bit of clear mild vinegar sauce poured over it, perhaps some of our white bbq sauce. In my husband’s home its served slathered in a thick layer of sweet red barbecue sauce, like the bottled sauce you buy in the stores.
Last year I showed you how to make the barbecue sauce pulled pork in your slow cooker so if that is the kind you prefer, click here to visit that post (and you can make it with pork or beef). Today I’m going to show you how to make the juicy kind like we get in bbq places around my home, but instead of smoking it (because I can think of a few things I’d rather do than stand over a fire in this heat) we’re gonna cook it overnight in our slow cooker.
This is part of my mission this week to bring you an entire Fourth of July menu that doesn’t require an oven or a grill. In my next post I’ll be bringing you the vinegar slaw pictured on this sandwich and then we’ll wind the week up with a great dessert that can easily be made into a lighter version for those of us watching our sugar or fully sweet for those who just want to indulge.
Now, lets make barbecue!
You’ll need: A pork roast (about five pounds), salt, pepper, brown sugar, cider vinegar, crushed red pepper flakes, and hot sauce.
Don’t worry, this barbecue is not spicy, but you can make it spicy if you like.
Place your pork roast in the slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper.
Pepper wanted it’s picture in here too…
Pour in your cider vinegar over it and put lid on. Cook on low for twelve hours.
Now I know some of y’all are wondering if this bbq is going to have a vinegar taste to it and it really doesn’t. The vinegar helps to bring out the natural flavors of the meat beautifully though. Also, you’re not going to wake up to a vinegar smelling house. I only say this because I remember the first time I made it I was worried about that!
This is how it will look when it is done.
I like to cook mine overnight and then you can shred it and put it back in with the little sauce we’re going to make and just let it be on warm until lunch time. You can also store it in the fridge when you finish the last step and heat it in the microwave whenever you’re ready for it.
Take it out of the juices after twelve hours and shred with a fork. You’re going to be surprised at how it just falls apart.
Reserve two cups of the juices from the slow cooker and discard the rest.
To those two cups of liquid add hot sauce,
crushed pepper flakes…
(no this isn’t going to be spicy at all, just flavorful. If you want a spicier bbq, I suggest doubling the pepper flakes and tripling the hot sauce)
and brown sugar.
Stir that up well
Return shredded pork to the slow cooker.
Pour sauce mixture over it and give it a good stir.
Place lid back on and leave on warm until ready to serve.
Serve topped with vinegar slaw, that recipe is coming up on my next post!
I eat mine just like this but if you like you can serve it with white bbq sauce, your favorite bottled red bbq sauce (such as Kraft BBQ Sauce), or even ketchup. Whatever cranks yer tractor! There is no wrong way to eat good bbq!
Southern Style Pulled Pork BBQ
Ingredients
- Pork Roast (approximately 5 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar (that is one and a half cups, not eleven cups ~giggle~)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Put roast in slow cooker and sprinkle salt and pepper over. Pour cider vinegar over. Cover with lid and cook on low for twelve hours (I cook it overnight). Remove pork roast and shred with forks (this will be very easy). Drain juices from slow cooker, reserving two cups of liquid. Return pork to slow cooker. To the reserved liquid add: Brown sugar, hot sauce, and crushed pepper flakes. Stir well. Pour over shredded pork and place lid back on. Place on low or warm setting until ready to serve. Can be made ahead of time and refrigerated, reheating in the microwave.
- I estimate this to make enough for about eight sandwiches, give or take.
- *This sauce is not spicy. If you prefer a spicier sauce double the hot sauce and crushed red pepper flakes. Add more to taste.
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Ingredients
- Pork Roast (approximately 5 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar (that is one and a half cups, not eleven cups ~giggle~)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Put roast in slow cooker and sprinkle salt and pepper over. Pour cider vinegar over. Cover with lid and cook on low for twelve hours (I cook it overnight). Remove pork roast and shred with forks (this will be very easy). Drain juices from slow cooker, reserving two cups of liquid. Return pork to slow cooker. To the reserved liquid add: Brown sugar, hot sauce, and crushed pepper flakes. Stir well. Pour over shredded pork and place lid back on. Place on low or warm setting until ready to serve. Can be made ahead of time and refrigerated, reheating in the microwave.
- I estimate this to make enough for about eight sandwiches, give or take.
- *This sauce is not spicy. If you prefer a spicier sauce double the hot sauce and crushed red pepper flakes. Add more to taste.
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The Power Of Kindness
It’s easy to act with kindness and understanding toward those who have been kind to you. Yet the real power of kindness comes when you give it even to those who don’t deserve it.
Acting with cruelty in response to cruelty only drags down everyone involved. With kindness, you have the opportunity to lift up yourself and others. Being kind does not mean allowing others to take advantage of you. On the contrary, your kindness can give you the positive, undeniable power to make sure that everyone’s best interests are served.
Yes, there are those who will not respond well to your kindness. Act toward them with kindness and understanding anyway, and even though they won’t benefit from your kindness, you yourself still will.
Think of your kindness toward others as a valuable gift you give mainly to yourself. If anyone else is enlightened enough to accept and appreciate it too, that makes it even better.
– Ralph Marston
Submitted by Kolene. Submit yours here.
Posted by Christy Jordan
on Jun 29 2010. Filed under Main Course.
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I made this for our church get together on the 4th. It was great! We added bbq sauce as we ate it and I gotta tell ya it was delish!!! Thanks for a winning recipe! It goes in my regular cookin’ book!
Miss Christy,
Can you use pork butt/ shoulder in this recipe?
Thanks so much!
Sandra J
Yes Ma’am!
I’m posting again about this recipe, but this time with a twist. I used this same recipe, but used bone-in chicken breasts. It didn’t take as long to cook it. I did everything about the same. I did take out the fat and bones, of course. I added 1 extra tablespoon of brown sugar and added a couple of tablespoons, I didn’t measure, of mayo (to make a “white sauce”). This was GREAT with chicken.
Hey Christy,
I cooked mine last night and always get a migraine when I cook meat in a crockpot. I’ve got it simmering in the sauce right now and am hoping it tastes like Lawler’s. Also hoping it’s worth the migraine : )
Christy, my family thinks it tastes even better than Lawlers!
Wow! It’s not even all the way done yet and tastes terrific! Thank you so much for this recipe. Can’t wait to try some more from this site!
I just made this for dinner. We are really enjoying it. Can’t wait to get your book. Hope I can catch you at a signing.
[...] Try this: Slow Cooker Pulled Pork BBQ (Click for recipe) [...]
I fixed this barbeque for supper .It was wonderful .The very best barbeque I have ever made .It’s not dry and it’s flavored just right .I also made the slaw that Christi recomended. I served barbeque,slaw and potato salad .Yummy !
[...] cubes of squash… But the balsamic vinegar and butternut squash together are delicious) and Southern Style Pulled Pork with Spicy Mexican Slaw with Lime and Cilantro (see what I mean with Kalyn’s Kitchen?!). [...]
It turned out alright, but the house smelled like ACV, and the pork also tasted tasty like cider vinaigre
YUMMY! We just finished eating our pulled pork sandwiches…topped with a bit of bbq sauce and my husband made his granny’s slaw…One winning combination!
Yummmy!!
[...] Slow Cooker BBQ with Slaw from Southern Plate [...]
I made this recipe tonight and it was the best thing I have eaten in a long time. I live in China and good southern food is impossible to find. This was so easy and delicious. Even the slaw was to die for. Thank you for giving me a lot of southern comfort far from home.
Wow, you are a long way from home! I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe and it was able to bring you some long-distance comfort.
[...] Slow Cooked Pulled Pork BBQ [...]
I have a very similar recipe and it is AWESOME. I live in Northern Ohio and it is difficult to get true pulled pork that meets this Southern Gal’s standards!! I add just a touch of liquid smoke to the mix and it comes out with that smokey taste like it’s been smoking outside over hardwood for 12 hours!!! Delish!!! Best thing you can make in a crock pot!!!
A friend gave me this easy recipe. Pork roast and a large bottle of A1 Bold & Spicy. Put roast in crockpot, pour A1 over the roast. Cook on low 6 to 8 hours.
Delicious!
I am not sure what I did wrong with this recipe but the hubby & I just couldn’t eat it. Maybe I used to much apple cider vinegar we just couldn’t get the vinegar taste out of the meat. I used the sauce you made plus added tons & tons of bbq sauce and it was still a vinegar taste. I may try it again, I was so bummed I messed it up.
Just add more sugar. Sugar counteracts the vinegar taste. I actually ended up adding agave nectar to mine because it was a little too vinegary for me as well (and I was raised on NC bbq) and that added a wonderful flavor. I also found I had to add some water because it wasn’t going to be enough liquid. Also be sure to cut the vinegar if you are using a smaller roast.
Thank you, I will have to give it a try again.
I was so excited to find your site and especially this recipe. I was raised in Trinity AL, now living in San Antonio TX where pork barbq is not to be found. I miss Whitts so bad! I also have your steaks in the fridge to grill tonight and this pork in the slow cooker soaking up the finishing sauce. it is going to be a good week for food in my house! off to check out the rest of the recipes. Thank you for bringing us the best part of southern cooking.
Can’t wait to get your recipe book, reading the index was like going to a church potluck or to Mama Lucy’s [grandma] for a family dinner. I’ve had a recipe for white sauce for 40 years – given to me at a church barbq when I was 13, so I am eager to compare.
Does the pork roast shrik a lot ? 5 lbs = 8 sandwiches ?????
Depends on how hungry you are.
if you’re lucky they’ll be enough left over to make the BBQ joint stew recipe on this site 
[...] Click here to get my recipe for Southern Style Pulled Pork BBQ in the Slow Cooker [...]
Proud to say that this was already on my menu for the weekend! I bought the pork roast, cabbage and buns on Monday so we could have our bbq and slaw! This is one of our favorites, thanks Christy!
Buenas Dias from the tropical beaches of Costa Rica, Christy! Sometimes, I think it is almost downright “sinful” to have to plan and cook so many meals for my family….But, your wonderful recipes make it so much easier and YES, less “sinful”.
I keep thinking next time my husband ask me, “What did you make for dinner”, I am going to say “RESERVATIONS”….!! HAHA!! Thanks so much again for these wonderful recipes!! You are the best! I give you FIVE stars!! Sharon
Christy,
I use a little Liquid Smoke in mine to give it that smokehouse flavor. Yummy!
Oh great idea Tanya!! Thanks for sharing.
Because I don’t have a crock pot I used my large iron dutch oven and used my oven at 275. It dried out and was tough. What time and temperature would you suggest when cooking it that way? Thanks!
I would cook it in a big stock pot instead with the juices just covering the meat and simmer it until you can pull the meat apart, then it should be close to the crock pot but cooked much faster and you might want to add more of the juices(water, cider vinegar, brown sugar etc) if it gets low. Simmering and keeping it covered should do the trick. This is how you cook carnitas in the pan and then you finish off in the oven so I don’t see why it wouldn’t work for the pulled pork.
[...] Virginia Edmunds Hamburger steaks, tater tots casserole, pulled pork. [...]
Almost as good as Whitt’s that I grew up on.
[...] – Crockpot pork, Alabama White BBQ sauce, Coleslaw, Elvis Pressley [...]
I love this recipe!! It’s easy, and everyone loves it. What a blessing you are.
Thanks, Lori
The family really enjoyed it. I made pulled pork and chicken with the same recipe.
Made this for dinner tonight and the slaw too. Very good. I didn’t add the red pepper or the hot sauce, instead, I added the brown sugar to the juices and I served it with our favorite BBQ sauce from Rudy’s Restuarant. Yumm. Thanks for another fantastic recipe Christy.
[...] Susan – Slow cooker pulled pork. [...]
Slow cooker pulled pork with a little Liquid Smoke added to it!!!YUM
So easy to do and a huge hit at our house!!! First time I made this was the day we had open house for all three boys. Knowing I would be busy I looked online for a pulled pork recipe to do in my crock pot. Found yours and everyone loved it!! I’m doing it again today and I know it will be just as good as the first one
Thank you for such a great recipe!
This was a meal i had at a friend of mine house. I could not get enough of this BBQ. It was so wonderful! It had just the right spices and flavor and ended up eating two sandwiches. Great recipe. I making it for a get to gather i am having in a few weeks!
[...] Slow Cooker Pulled Pork BBQ [...]
two suggestions. First sprinkle some flour over the pork and brown in a skillet or dutch oven to give the pork some “bark”. Then pour the vinegar in first, then season, otherwise the seasoning washes off the pork.
Christy, I made this for Labor Day. I put it all in the crock-pot on Sunday night. When my 2 kids (Maylin, 7 & Danny 5) got up on Monday morning, they immediately ran into the kitchen to see if the meat was done. It was! They went up and just sniffed the crock-pot. You would think they had never had anything to eat! They were so excited and wanted some now! I made a pan of bisquits and cut some slices off and that is what they had for breakfast. After that I shredded half of it, and then sliced the rest. They kept telling me how wonderful a cook I was, there was never a better “cooker” than me! It is so cute when they do that. Course when I make a peanut butter sandwich, I hear the same thing. But that’s part of my kids charm. They love everything. I am very lucky in that. Thank you for the recipe. I will definitely be making it again and again.
I live in NC and I’m such a huge BBQ snob. I like it with a vinegar tang, I like it spicy and I’ve never found a place that makes it to suit my tastes (since my one and only favorite BBQ place closed down over 10 years ago).
However… I like you. I like your recipes. I’m gonna give this one a try
.
Ok I HAVE to share this with you. Pork Tenderloin, 1 can of root beer. Pour in crock pot, cook for 5 hours. Drain. pour in bbq sauce cook for 1 hour. I’m not kidding it is SO good. and SO easy. Gates BBQ sauce is my fav here in Kansas!
Christy, since grilling out was just not an option with all the rain from T.S. Lee, we made this and it was a hit. My mom thought it was as good as Big Bob Gibson’s and Whitt’s. It was pretty tasty. Will definitely do this one again.
oops. Meant to say, grilling out for Labor Day.
Christy – What kind of pork roast do you suggest? I went to the store last night so excited to get this in the crock pot, but all they had was pork loin and a picnic which they labeled oven roast. I went ahead and bought the picnic but I am worried it won’t be as good.
[...] Slow Cooker Pulled Pork BBQ [...]
[...] and ideas to make something I thought M and I would love. My two main inspiration recipes were from Southern Plate (of course) and Martha Stewart. We both really liked how it turned out. It’s very tender and [...]
I made this last weekend and it was very well received by all who tried it (most had seconds). However, the vinegar smell in my house was so overwhelming it woke me up several times throughout the night. It might be the crock pot I’m using, but I definitely didn’t expect that.
I didn’t like this the first night–thought it tasted vinegary…however the 2nd day we made it into wraps and it was DELICIOUS! My husband and I ate on this for days! This will definitely be a new staple for us.
I am so glad you ended up liking it Mary!!!
[...] Slow Cooker Pulled Pork BBQ [...]
[...] love this recipe form Southern Plate. It is super simple and can be done by even the most novice chef. Being predominately a baker I [...]
Christy,
I do a similar thing, but instead of the 1 1/2 c. of vinegar, I use a jar of sliced banan peppers. They cook down to practically nothing. Try it that way sometime!
Lizabeth.
Did this yesterday. It was so simple and so good. My husband could not get enough. Thank you for yet another great recipe.
I like mine with creamy cole slaw. Thanks for sharing, can wait to try this.
I want to try this recipe again. I used a pork loin and the vinegar was so strong. The vinegar taste was all through the meat. I even diluted it down and it helped a little. I’m going to try it again but with a different cut of pork next time.