Pulled pork

Name: Pulled pork
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 360 min
Total time: 540 min
Yield: 10 sandwiches
Cuisine: Southern US
Ingredients: 2.5 kg Pork, bone-in shoulder (Boston butt); 3 tbsp Brown sugar; 2 tbsp Smoked paprika; 1 tbsp Salt; 2 tsp Black pepper, coarsely ground; 2 tsp Garlic powder; 1 tsp Mustard powder; 0.5 tsp Cayenne pepper; 120 ml Apple cider vinegar, for the pot; 120 ml Water, for the pot; 250 ml Apple cider vinegar; 2 tsp Red pepper flakes; 1 tbsp Brown sugar; 1 tsp Salt; 1 tsp Black pepper; 2 tbsp Tomato ketchup, for the Lexington style; 0.5 piece White cabbage, finely shredded; 1 medium Carrot, grated; 80 g Mayonnaise; 2 tbsp Apple cider vinegar; 1 tbsp Sugar; 0.5 tsp Salt; 10 piece Bun, soft white burger buns

Pork shoulder with a paprika and brown sugar rub, roasted low for hours until it pulls apart, dressed with Carolina vinegar-pepper sauce and served on buns with slaw.

Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.

Start cooking

Prep: 30 min
Cook: 6 hr
Rest: 2 hr 30 min
Total: 9 hr
Difficulty: Easy
Spice: Mild
Cost: Treat yourself$28+ USD · indicative, not a store price

Know it before you cook it

Image coming soon

About

Pulled pork is shoulder, the fattiest and most forgiving cut, cooked low and long until the connective tissue melts and the meat falls apart under two forks. This home version rubs a bone-in shoulder with brown sugar, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, garlic and mustard, roasts it covered with a little cider vinegar for most of the day, then uncovers it so the outside darkens into a crust. The meat is pulled, mixed with the crust and the cooking juices, and dressed with a thin, sharp Eastern Carolina vinegar and pepper sauce. It goes on soft buns with cold, tangy coleslaw on top. Cook to temperature, not time; every shoulder is different.

What you'll need

23 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.

0 of 23 ready

10 servings

Pork and rub
Vinegar sauce
Slaw
To serve

Ingredients

Servings

Pork and rub

Pork, bone-in shoulder (Boston butt)2½ kg
Brown sugar44 ml
Smoked paprika30 ml
Salt15 ml
Black pepper, coarsely ground9.9 ml
Garlic powder9.9 ml
Mustard powder4.9 ml
Cayenne pepper2½ ml
Apple cider vinegar, for the pot120 ml
Water, for the pot120 ml

Vinegar sauce

Apple cider vinegar250 ml
Red pepper flakes9.9 ml
Brown sugar15 ml
Salt4.9 ml
Black pepper4.9 ml
Tomato ketchup, for the Lexington style (optional)30 ml

Slaw

White cabbage, finely shredded½
Carrot, grated1 medium
Mayonnaise80 g
Apple cider vinegar30 ml
Sugar15 ml
Salt2½ ml

To serve

Bun, soft white burger buns10

Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.

Steps

Step 1
Mix the rub ingredients. Pat the pork dry and rub it all over, working the mix into any folds. Wrap it and refrigerate for at least two hours, or overnight.
120 min
Step 2
Heat the oven to 150°C. Put the pork fat side up in a heavy lidded pot, pour the 120 ml vinegar and the water around it, cover tightly and roast for 4.5 hours.
270 min150°C
Step 3
Take the lid off and roast for another 60 to 90 minutes, until the outside is dark and crusted, the bone wiggles freely, and the thickest part reads 93 to 96°C on a thermometer.
80 min150°C
Step 4
While the pork finishes, stir the sauce ingredients together, with the ketchup if you want it Lexington style, until the sugar dissolves and leave it to sit. For the slaw, toss the cabbage and carrot with the vinegar, sugar and salt, then stir in the mayonnaise and chill.
10 min
Step 5
Rest the pork for 30 minutes, loosely covered. Pull out the bone, shred the meat with two forks, discard any large lumps of fat and mix the crust through. Skim the fat off the pot juices, stir a few spoons of juice back in, then about 100 ml of the vinegar sauce. Taste and add more sauce if it needs it.
40 min
Step 6
Pile the pork onto the buns, top with slaw, and put the rest of the sauce on the table.
5 min

Nutrition

Per serving · estimate

Calories: 803 kcal
Protein: 71.3 g
Carbs: 25.4 g
Fat: 44.5 g
Saturated fat: 14.4 g
Fibre: 3 g
Sugar: 13.7 g
Sodium: 1317 mg

Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.

Allergens

Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.

Eggs
Wheat

Dairy-free
Nut-free

Adapt this recipe

The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.

Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.

Substitutions

Eastern Carolina vinegar sauce → The tomato and molasses sauce from the barbecue ribs
Kansas City style. Thicker and sweeter, and a long way from the Carolinas.
Bone-in shoulder → Boneless shoulder
Cooks about an hour faster. Tie it with string so it holds together.

Tips

Slow cooker: rub as above, cook with the 120 ml vinegar and no water on low for 8 to 10 hours. There is no crust, so spread the pulled meat on a tray and put it under a hot oven grill for five minutes to crisp the edges.
A 2.5 kg shoulder loses about 40 percent of its weight in cooking and fills eight to ten buns.
Leftovers freeze well with some of their juice. Reheat covered, with a splash of the vinegar sauce.

History & culture

Pulled pork is the barbecue of the Carolinas, Tennessee and much of the South. In eastern North Carolina it is whole hog with vinegar and pepper; in Lexington and the Piedmont it is shoulder, and the sauce gets some ketchup. In Memphis the slaw goes inside the sandwich. It is what gets cooked for church fundraisers, family reunions and anyone feeding thirty.

Pigs did well in the colonial Carolinas and Virginia, often left to forage in the woods, and roasting whole hogs over pits became a community event. The pit work was mostly done by enslaved Black cooks, whose skill shaped Southern barbecue. Vinegar and pepper sauce is one of the oldest American sauces. Lexington's tomato-touched dip arrived in the 20th century, along with the town's barbecue restaurants.

Modern adaptation — Pit and smoker pulled pork cooks for 10 to 14 hours at about 110°C over hickory or oak. The smoke leaves a pink ring under the surface and a smoky taste all through, and the long dry cook builds a thick bark the oven only partly copies; smoked paprika is standing in for the wood. Eastern North Carolina tradition is whole hog, not shoulder. This is honest home barbecue, not pit barbecue.

Provenance: Editorial adaptation.

Questions about this recipe

Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.

How long does Pulled pork take?

9 hr all in — 30 min prep, 6 hr cook, 2 hr 30 min rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.

How many does it serve?

The recipe is written for 10 sandwiches. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.

How hard is it?

Easy.

How spicy is it?

Mild.

What allergens should I watch?

This recipe is labelled for Eggs, Wheat. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.

Does it fit a diet?

The published recipe is labelled Dairy-free, Nut-free.

10 more questions

What does it cost to cook?

Treat yourself — about $28+ USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.

What equipment do I need?

Dutch oven, Oven, Mixing bowl, Chef's knife.

How much salt do I put in?

The recipe lists Salt at 1 tbsp.

How much brown sugar?

3 tbsp of Brown sugar.

How much brown sugar?

1 tbsp of Brown sugar.

How much sugar?

1 tbsp of Sugar.

What can I use instead?

Eastern Carolina vinegar sauce → The tomato and molasses sauce from the barbecue ribs. Kansas City style. Thicker and sweeter, and a long way from the Carolinas. Bone-in shoulder → Boneless shoulder. Cooks about an hour faster. Tie it with string so it holds together.

Any tips from this recipe?

Slow cooker: rub as above, cook with the 120 ml vinegar and no water on low for 8 to 10 hours. There is no crust, so spread the pulled meat on a tray and put it under a hot oven grill for five minutes to crisp the edges. A 2.5 kg shoulder loses about 40 percent of its weight in cooking and fills eight to ten buns. Leftovers freeze well with some of their juice. Reheat covered, with a splash of the vinegar sauce.

Can I prepare this ahead?

Leftovers freeze well with some of their juice. Reheat covered, with a splash of the vinegar sauce. Mix the rub ingredients. Pat the pork dry and rub it all over, working the mix into any folds. Wrap it and refrigerate for at least two hours, or overnight.

Can I use an air fryer?

This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.