How To Make Pulled Pork In The Instant Pot

Making Easy Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork In An Instant Pot

An Insta Pot is one of the most popular brands of electric pressure cookers. They are easy to use and your Instant Pot can help you create these delicious Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork!

Since this is such an easy recipe, Ive gotten a number of repeat questions over the years. Heres what you need to know:

Can You Freeze Pulled Pork

I mentioned this earlier so you already know you can freeze pulled pork. Freezing excess Instant Pot pulled pork makes for delicious future meals. It will last for up to 8 months in the freezer.; ;Awesome, right??

As for how to freeze pulled pork, its super easy. All you have to do is

• transfer the pulled pork to freezer-safe meal prep containers or Ziploc or re-usable freezer-safe bags;
• leave a little bit of space at the top of the container or freezer bag because pulled pork extends while frozen;
• place the airtight containers or Ziploc bags in the freezer.

Can You Use A Bigger Pork Roast

Yes, of course, you can! Just make sure it fits in your Instant Pot. You need to ensure that you dont pack the pressure cooker full and go past the maximum fill line.

Use 60 minutes as a starting point and go from there. You can always check how tender your pork roast is after 60 minutes of cooking time. Then put it back in your Instant Pot for longer if its not quite there yet.

Approximate Instant Pot pulled pork cook time by weight:

4 pounds of pork = 60 minutes cooking time

5 pounds of pork = 1 hour 10 minutes cooking time

6 pounds of pork = 1 hour 15 minutes cooking time

ETC.

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What Is The Best Cut Of Pork For Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork

For best results in this Instant Pot pulled pork recipe choose a boneless pork shoulder.

In the grocery store, this cut is labeled a pork shoulder, a pork butt, or a Boston butt.

No boneless roasts? If you can’t find a boneless pork roast, buy a slightly heavier bone-in pork roast. Then remove the bone while you’re chopping up the roast into four pieces.

This is a very fatty cut of pork, so its amazingly tender when you cook it either in the pressure cooker or the slow cooker. I love pork shoulder for my Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos Recipe.

Trimming your roast. You may want to cut the excess fat off the pork before cooking. I usually leave it on as I find that the fat adds extra tenderness and keeps the meat nice and moist.

But thats up to you since pork butt is nicely marbled, so will cook up just fine with a little less fat.

What Liquid To Use

Liquid in your instant pot is necessary or else things will stick, burn and not be tender or moist.

You have some options here.

We chose to use 1 cup of water, ¼ cup apple cider vinegar, and 1 tsp liquid smoke. When pressure cooking in an IP, because you need to have liquid in the pot.;

If you dont want to use water, then use chicken or beef broth or bone broth. That will also bump up the flavor of the pulled pork.;

You can leave out the vinegar, or use white vinegar instead.

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Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork

Pressure cook the pork for 60 minutes on high pressure. If you are using pork tenderloin, cook it for 45 minutes on high pressure. When the cook time ends, let the Instant Pot sit for 15 minutes to naturally release most of the pressure. A natural release makes the meat more tender, and the pork will continue to cook during this time.

After 15 minutes, carefully turn the steam valve to venting and allow the rest of the steam and pressure to escape. Carefully open the lid of your Instant Pot and shred the pork. If desired, you can thicken the sauce with a cornstarch slurry. See the full recipe with ingredients and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.

How Long To Cook Pulled Pork In The Instant Pot

The amount of time you need to cook pork in the Instant Pot will vary based on the cut.

• Pork Loin. For a 4-to-5-pound pork loin, pressure cook for 40 minutes on high, then let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes.
• Pork Shoulder/Butt. For a 4-to-5-pound pork shoulder or pork butt, cook the pork for 1 hour on high pressure, then let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes.
• Pork Tenderloin. I do not recommend this cut for pulled pork, as it will be too dry. See more in the ingredients section below.

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How To Serve Pulled Pork

Theres so much you can do with this dish once youre finished cooking it. Whether youd like to serve it up in some delicious sandwiches or spoon it over some dreamy mashed potatoes, Im sure youll find a combination to fall deeply in love with.

• Slapped between two buns and topped with creamy coleslaw.
• Cook it into your breakfast omelette;tomorrow morning, oh;yeah;its amazing.
• Add it to my Baked Macaroni And Cheese and youll be on the way to flavor town.
• Forget beef, use pulled pork as the filling for a round of scrumptious empanadas.
• Use as the filling for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, or enchiladas. I can promise you wont run out of ways to transform these leftovers!

Instant Pot Pulled Pork Cooking Time

Course: Main course

1. 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

2. 2 teaspoon paprika

5. ¼ teaspoon cayenne

6. 2 teaspoons garlic powder

7. 2 teaspoons onion powder

;8. 1 teaspoon salt

9. 2 cups BBQ sauce, divided

10. 1 ¼ cup chicken or beef broth

11. 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

12. 3 pound boneless pork roast

13. 2 tablespoons olive oil

14. cup apple cider vinegar.

All ingredients can be added to your shopping list.

Step by step instructions

1. Mix together the cayenne, cumin, brown sugar, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.

2. Season the cubed pork with the spice mixture and set aside.

3. Whisk together the apple cider vinegar, together with the hot pepper sauce , 1 cup of broth and 1 cup of the BBQ sauce in a large bowl.

4. Turn your instant pot to the sautesetting.

5. Add the olive oil and allow it to get hot.

6. Add half of the cubed pork to the hot oil and saute for just 5 minutes. Make sure it turns brown on all sides.

7. Now remove the browned pork to a plate and repeat the same process with the other half of the cubed pork.

8. Turn off the pot. ;Use the remaining ¼ cup of beef broth and a wooden spoon to scrape off the brown bits from the bottom of the pot.

9. Add all of the meat together with the BBQ sauce mixture to the instant pot.

10. Close the lid and set to sealing.

12. Carefully remove the meat from the instant pot and shred. ;After youve done that, add the rest of the barbeque sauce and serve on buns.

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Pulled Pork Recipe For A Crowd

A common question people ask, is how much pulled pork will serve a crowd.

From our research and understanding, we have found that you should expect to prepare a;half pound of meat per person.;

The meat shrinks as it cooks and the fat also cooks off the meat, so there is a lot of shrinkage.

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Why Youll Love This Recipe

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Different Variations Of This Recipe

Instant pot shredded pork is very versatile and there are a few variations that will change up the taste a little bit.

• No Sauce Pulled Pork Just seasoned meat without any BBQ sauce.;;;;;;
• Carolina Pulled Pork Made with vinegar sauce and crushed red pepper for an extra kick.
• Pulled Pork Carnitas Made with a sweet or tart citrus fruit juice such as orange or lime, along with garlic and onions.

How To Double Or Half The Recipe For Instant Pot / Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork

I have gotten a number of questions about doubling our reducing the size of the recipe. You can increase the meat without adding more liquid, just be sure not to fill the pot more than 2/3 full and make sure there is space around the sides of the pot so that it can come to pressure.

If you are using a smaller piece of meat, you will still want to use the same cook time, but just use half the barbecue sauce called for when cooking.

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How To Reheat Pulled Pork

Heres the tricky part. Many people avoid pulled pork meal prep because reheating pulled pork is problematic, to say the least. Pulled pork tends to dry out when reheated. Sigh. No one wants to lose the tenderness and juiciness of pulled pork. And you dont have to.

Remember when I told you not to throw away the leftover sauce? That leftover sauce is the secret to reheating pulled pork and keeping it tender and juicy.

Pulled Pork In Instant Pot Vs Slow Cooker

Both the instant pot and slow cooker are good tools for making great pulled pork. Here are some of the details for each cooking method:

Instant Pot:

• You can sear the pork butt in the pot itself as the first step in making instant pot pulled pork.
• It only takes a small amount of liquid to assure a juicy piece of instant pot pork.
• Because the meat cooks under a lot of pressure it achieves that tender and juicy texture in a lot less time than it takes to cook in the crock pot.
• The instant pot lives up to its name.it cooks food in a lot less time than by other means, which is good when you do not have hours to cook dinner.
• Not everyone has an instant pot in their home, but my recommendation is to buy yourself one because there are so many yummy things that can be made in it besides instant pot shredded pork.

Slow Cooker/Crock Pot:

• The meat does not need to be seared before adding it to the crock pot, which is one less step to do.
• You can cook the pulled pork on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours. The slower you cook it and the lower the temperature you use, the more tender the meat will be.;
• The slow cooker is good because once you do the initial prep work, it cooks all on its own while you are at work or at home doing other things. You dont have to stand over it and watch it. Just set the timer and it will even turn itself to warm or off until you are ready to eat.
• The crock pot has found a place in many homes over the years.

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Quick Tips For Best Results

• Different types of pressure cookers may have different results. Id suggest the first time you try to make this to leave yourself some extra time just in case you need it.
• The beef broth really gives a nice flavor to the pork and more so than water. Use it if you can.
• Dont overcrowd the Instant Pot and make sure you have enough liquid in there.
• If youre not familiar with your Instant Pot or pressure cooker, be sure to read the directions and try it out first.
• If you are new to the Instant Pots or use yours for a wide range of recipes. Id suggest getting more silicone rings if you havent already. The pork does leave a smell in the bands and if you are planning to make any non-meat recipes extra rings come in handy so your desserts dont taste like pork or other strong flavors.

Instant Pot Tasty Pulled Pork

• prep time:5min
• total time:1 hr10 min
• serves:6people
• calories:3071 serving

This recipe for Instant Pot® Tasty Pulled Pork only takes 5 minutes to prep!; It’s one of those set-it-and-forget-it dishes that makes home-cooking easy, even on your busy days.; Your Instant Pot® cooks the pork perfectly until fork-tender but not dry.; Condensed tomato soup is foolproof in the;Instant Pot®- all you need is a few other pantry ingredients to make a sweet and tangy sauce for the pulled pork.; Serve Instant Pot®Tasty Pulled Pork with whatever you have on hand- on buns or biscuits, as a filling for tacos or quesadillas, even over rice!

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How To Shred The Pulled Pork

Once the pressure cooker pulled pork is done cooking, then its time to shred the meat, which is the fun part.;

Just take 2 large forks and stick them in the meat, close by each other and pull the meat apart over and over again until it is all shredded into bite-sized pieces.;

If there are any large pieces of fat then feel free to discard them.

NOTE: If the meat does not shred easily, then stick it back into the pot and cook it for another 10 minutes.

Want To Maximize Flavor Try Brining Your Meat

Brining your pork shoulder overnight will not only lock in flavor, but it will ensure a really juicy and moist end product.

Brine solution

• 3 tablespoons of your dry rub mix

Brine your pork

In a big pot prepare the brine solution and add the pork shoulder to the brine, throw in a couple bay leaves, cover the pot and put in the fridge overnight. You can also place the brine solution and pork in a big ziploc bag. In the morning, take the meat out and pat it dry. Put the meat in your Instant Pot and start rubbing in the dry rub all over the meat.

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Can You Overcook Pork In The Instant Pot

Although its possible to overcook pork and other meats when pressure cooking, usually if the meat isnt tender enough its because it wasnt cooked long enough. 4-5 pounds of pork shoulder needs about 90 minutes of cooking time at pressure. This might seem like a long time, but if you consider how long it would take cooking it another way, 90 minutes isnt really that long.

Is It Pork Butt Or Pork Shoulder

So what do your buy at the store to make pulled pork: pork butt, pork shoulder, or Boston butt? Bone-in or boneless?

Buying any of these options will result in the same flavorful pulled pork. Butt, shoulder and Boston butt are pretty much the same thing.. confusing, isnt it!?

All three are actually cut from the shoulder, hence pork shoulder. The pork butt, also known as Boston butt, comes from the same area but is a little higher on the foreleg.

Buying boneless or bone-in is up to you. Both will cook perfectly fine in your Instant Pot. Since you will be cutting the pork butt into cubes, you could cut the bone out if you prefer, but it is not totally necessary.

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Instant Pot Pork Shoulder Recipe

If you are looking for a delicious & simple meal, you will want to try my Instant Pot Pulled Pork recipe ASAP! This recipe only uses a few ingredients and doesnt require a lot of effort BUT it makes a flavor bursting dish that everyone in your house will love. What more could you ask for from a recipe?!;

The Instant Pot has been a trendy kitchen tool for the last few years & Ive quickly become a huge fan. My Instant Pot has allowed me to create tasty, affordable & easy recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

In the beginning, I felt a bit uncomfortable and overwhelmed at the idea of using the Instant Pot. However, I soon realized that there was nothing to be afraid of, its super easy. You will be an Instant Pot pro by the end of this recipe!

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How To Make Pulled Pork In An Instant Pot

• Pour beef broth into the bottom of your Instant Pot.
• Add the pork tenderloins to the bottom of the Instant Pot over the broth to form a single layer of pork as best you can. Sprinkle desired seasonings on top of pork such as salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
• Close Instant Pot. Select manual setting for high pressure for 40 minutes.
• When 40 minutes is done, let the Instant Pot naturally release pressure for about 10 minutes. Then carefully manually release pressure until done.
• Remove lid from Instant Pot. Using tongs or a large slotted spoon, remove pork and place on cutting board. Using two forks, shred pork as desired.

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