I had to play around with this recipe for pulled pork sandwiches for a little bit. Most recipes call for cumin and my family finds cumin rather spicy. You can also purchase pre-packaged flavoring for pulled pork sandwiches but you never really know what you’re getting when you used a packaged mix.
Enter: these delicious pulled pork sandwiches! Better yet, they are made in the slow cooker!! Which translates into: easy, hands off dinner for mom. Who loves their slow cooker? This gal right here. (points finger at self) In all seriousness, bring on the slow cooker meals.
Why do I love these pulled pork sandwiches so much? Where shall I begin? I pulled a frozen pork shoulder out of the freezer, placed it in your slow cooker, poured a can of cola over top, dumped in the spice blend listed below, and cooked it. 20 minutes before it was time to eat, I removed any large pieces of fat that have not dissolved and pull the meat apart with a fork. I returned the meat back to the slow cooker and stirred it into all that delicious sauce that formed in the slow cooker while it was cooking.
I also cut up some buns and toasted them under the broiler for dinner. I tried something new this time – I made a small batch of easy coleslaw to serve on top of the pulled pork sandwiches. Wow! If you’ve never tried before, try it! You can buy the premade bag mix or just mix up a ¼ head of cabbage (red or green), peel and grate 1 large carrot and mix with a bit of mayonnaise until you reach your preferred creamy consistency. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I’ve seen many people eat pulled pork sandwiches like that before – now I know why.
Know why else I love pulled pork sandwiches? Not only does it make a fantastic freezer meal recipe, it makes a super easy meal to serve a crowd. Yes, I’m always thinking about feeding my guests. Pork is a great economical meat choice. Choose pork tenderloin if you prefer a leaner choice of meat. This meal is also fantastic to serve guests because you don’t have to monitor it while it cooks. Just like my sweet’n sour meatballs, you let your slow cooker do all the hard work.
Coleslaw is also very economical so it works as a fabulous side dish – as a straight up salad or as a topper for your pulled pork sandwiches. If you happen to have leftovers, never fear. The leftover pulled pork is fantastic on top of a cooked russet or sweet potato (pile it high!), reheated for more pulled pork sandwiches (cause really, can you ever really get enough pulled pork sandwiches?) and even better if you top your nachos with the pulled pork.
How do you use up your pulled pork? Or is that even an issue in your house?
Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 1 can 355 ml cola (pepsi, coca cola, etc)
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 large onions , sliced
- 1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce.
- 5-6 lb pork shoulder , or pork loin
Instructions
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Mix the spices together in a small dish.
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Place the pork roast in the slow cooker. Pour the cola overtop of the roast. Sprinkle the spice mix overtop of the roast, coating the outside of the roast as much as possible.
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Add the sliced onions to the slow cooker. Cook the roast for 4 hours on high, or 6-8 hours on low.
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20 minutes before you’re ready to serve remove the roast from the slow cooker and remove any large pieces of fat. Shred the rest of the roast with 2 forks.
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Add the bottle of BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray’s, its our family’s favorite) to the liquid in the slow cooker and return the shredded meat to the slow cooker. Stir the meat so it’s completely coated in sauce.
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Toast your buns if you wish and spoon the shredded pork onto the buns. Top with coleslaw if you like and serve.
