As you probably know, Kate and I both went on Hawaiian vacations this summer (you can see a little of Kate’s here, and a little of mine, here.) I think that has contributed to us both having tropical food on the brain lately. Kate posted her Kalua Pork last week and I’m not kidding; it’s one of my absolute favorite things to cook these days. The word Kālua, in Hawaiian, literally means, “to cook in an underground oven.” And in Hawaii, they use an Imu, which is basically a big pit, where they use koa wood and burning rocks to cook create a hot oven right in the ground. This photo is the remains of an Imu, right after the piggy was taken out.
Meat (like a whole pig, for example) is wrapped in banana leaves and packed into the hot hole. It’s covered up and the smoky wood infuses flavor while the insulated heat slow-cooks.
Kate’s short-cut version involves an easier-than-a-whole-pig pork roast and nothing but some salt, liquid smoke, and a slow-cooker which results in a tender, smoky meat without the fuss of digging that giant pit in your backyard and trying to locate banana leaves.
I know Kate and I both use the basic pork recipe in so many different ways, so we’ll probably reference it in different posts, showing you how to turn the basic meat into a huge selection of meals (like they do in Hawaii. Remember the Kalua Pork Pizza I posted about in this post? Still need to recreate that one…) This is one of my favorites these days; piled on sweet rolls with a sweet and tangy colorful slaw on top.
I wanted to utilize some tropical flavors, so I threw in some mango and pineapple. If you want, you could use all mango, or all pineapple. I like the combo of both. I chop it up with some bell pepper, cilantro, green onion, celery, and purple cabbage.
Chop it all up and suddenly you have a rainbow in a bowl.
For the dressing, I wanted to base the recipe on a traditional coleslaw, but infuse some brightness into it and make it not quite as heavy. So I just used a couple of tablespoons of mayo, just for a tiny bit of creaminess, and mixed it with some orange juice, and zest, a little cider vinegar and mustard and some seasonings. It’s a very light coating of dressing so the color and flavors of the vegetables really shine through.
Pour it right over those veggies and toss it all together. Since the fruit in the slaw adds moisture as well, you don’t have to let the slaw sit for a super long time; a few minutes while you’re prepping some other things is all it needs.
So while it sits and chills, bust open the rolls. I can’t imagine anything more fitting for these sliders that sweet Hawaiian rolls.
I love how fresh and soft they are (as long as you’re buying a fresh bag!)
Slice them in half and pile the tender, juicy pork on top. I like to be pretty generous.
And then top it with the sweet and tangy slaw.
Pile it high; it’s okay if it falls all over the place.
It helps to stick a skewer through them to keep them all together. These look great all lined up on a platter ready to serve (fun food for a baby or bridal shower- pair it with one of our tropical drinks and a big platter of fruit; yum!), or in separate dishes and people can assemble their own. They’re also really good with a little squeeze of BBQ sauce in there, too.
Kalua Pork Sliders with Pineapple-Mango Slaw
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Slaw
2 cups shredded purple cabbage (cut shreds into about 1″ pieces)
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 rib celery
1/3 cup sliced green onions
3 heaping tablespoons chopped cilantro
1/2 cup diced mango
1/2 cup diced pineapple
Dressing
3 tablespoons mayo
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 tablespoon sugar
1 heaping teaspoon orange zest
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1-2 dozen Hawaiian Rolls
1 Kalua Pork Roast, about 3 lbs (Click Here for the Recipe)
optional: bbq sauce
Note: Since you’re putting the slaw on a small bun, make sure to dice everything relatively small so you get a little of everything in each slider!
Combine all slaw ingredients and gently toss. Whisk dressing ingredients together. Add dressing to slaw and toss gently until everything is lightly coated. Chill for 15 minutes. Slice Hawaiian rolls in half, top with shredded Kalua Pork and a generous spoonful of slaw. Top with other half of bun. (If desired, you can squirt just a wee bit of bbq sauce over the pork. I don’t like to use a lot because it takes away from the simple smoky flavor of the pork, but if you have a sauce you really love, it’s pretty good in there.)
Yield depends on how full you make them. I would estimate 1 1/2 dozen very generously filled sliders and 2 dozen moderately filled ones. If you try these, let me know how many you got in a comment!
Questions & Reviews
I made just the slaw and served it with brats and sausages. So, SO yummy! I did modify the recipe a little, it seemed like too much onion, so I chopped just 2 green onions. I think I also added a little extra OJ, as I was squeezing an orange and didn’t want to waste the orange half. I am not a huge coleslaw fan, but this was sweet with just a little spice and the cabbage taste wasn’t strong like in coleslaw. Thanks for a cool new summer fave!
These are delicious!
I’ve made this recipe twice now and our family loves it! I used the Hawaiian rolls recommended in the recipe above, however, I’m wondering if anyone has tried any other types of rolls that don’t get soggy so quick. Even when you eat them right away, I feel like it becomes a soggy mess rather quickly. Thanks!
This is an excellent recipe! While in Oahu I had something very much like these. Thank you!!!!!!!
This slaw was amazing! I substituted plain yogurt for the mayo to lighten it up a tad more.
We had this tonight with the kalua pork (that I made yesterday) and loved it! I kind of fudged my way around the slaw just to buy a few less ingredients and do a little less chopping. I used a bag of broccoli slaw and it went well. Thanks for another great recipe!
Have any of you made the slaw in advance and kept it in the fridge? Maybe diced everything and kept the dressing seperate? I’m making these sliders for a party this weekend and want to have as much prep work done before the day of as possible! (hopefully, I’ll save my fingertips from frantic-chopping-knife-slips if I get it done early…) Any tips would be GREATLY appreciated 🙂
Just FYI, I chopped everything and had the dressing ready to go the night before – didn’t combine until right before the party and it was perfect. I don’t know that I would mix everything the day before, but having the components ready to go made it simple 🙂
I very much enjoyed making both the pork and the slaw! Very fun, pretty, and most of all, YUMMY! Just had it again this morning, for…breakfast! 🙂
Made these last night from leftover Kalua pork. I LOVE the slaw. All the chopping was a bit more labor intensive than my usual weeknight meal, but it was so worth it!!
Oooh! This looks delicious. There is something so enticing about a food item that is so colorful. It makes you want to eat it that much more. I think I will give this a try sometime soon! Found you blog not too long ago, and it is beautiful Love the layout. Thanks for sharing!
~Laura Muir
You can find me at:
Fresh Cooking=Happy People
http://www.freshcookinghappypeople.blogspot.com
Why post if you are going to be rude! Awful attitudes are toxic and not appreciated! Thanks ladies for posting ALL types of food for us to enjoy reading about, passing along and/or trying! I chose to eat pork and believe in a loving God! I bet he still loves me no matter what I eat!
The bible very clearly states you are not suppose to eat pork. Its a little shocking that you would post recipes that go against your faith but ok. Can you substitute another type of meat? Thanks
Yikes! Please post only kind comments. All you really needed to post was your question (minus the other comment). And yes, of course you could use another meat such as chicken thighs.
Hi Aliya, I’m not interested in a Biblical debate, but like most Christians, we do eat pork! Like another commenter suggested, you could try this with chicken thighs- that would probably be really good! Hope you enjoy it!
Delicious idea and great photos!! Love this post and these sliders!
Brilliant. What a beautiful and delicious looking recipe! We do a lot of kalua pig around here, so I will be sure to try this next time. 🙂
Okay, so that photo of the smoked pig is a little shocking/disgusting!! 🙂
Emily, I prefer my pigs pre-shredded for me too, haha 😉
I have never heard of a rib of celery! Ha! Totally had to google that one! 😉 Learned something new for sure! This looks so good! Going to try it!!
Haha, Hilary- what do you call it??
Um, maybe a stick of celery! Ha! Or a celery stalk but never a celery rib! Oh but you better believe I will be calling it a celery rib from now on!! 🙂
My husband would love these for dinner!! So perfect and totally going on the menu 🙂
I’ve been making BBQ pulled pork with a pork loin (got the idea from Paula Deen’s son …). It’s not quite as delicious as a pork shoulder, but healthier. If you put enough sauce / toppings on your sandwich it doesn’t matter. Will this recipe work with a loin or would I need to add some liquid into the slow cooker and maybe use less salt?
You’d have to experiment Kate, but I’m guessing you might need a little liquid. I’m not a fan of pork loin for pulled pork so I’m not much help!
Hmm.. These look really great. Going to have to try them for the next family get together.
Mmm! I LOVE these!! I cannot get enough tropical foods in my life!