Okay, so I think I’m about to be mocked here. I’m all Miss Foodiepants and everything, but up until about a year ago, it had never even dawned on me to put coleslaw and pickles on BBQ pork sandwiches. Seriously. I was at one of those roadhouse-style restaurants where you can pick your own steak and throw peanuts on the floor and I ordered the pulled pork sandwiches on a whim. And I nearly died of food happiness. I like BBQ pulled pork, I like coleslaw, I like pickles…but together, it was on a completely different plane of food awesomeness. Turns out I was kind of in the dark and that this is a common practice. I felt like I did in 4th grade when everyone else was singing “Step By Step” by New Kids on the Block while my parents made me listen to Judy Collins and Art Garfunkel.
For the sauce, we recommend using your favorite BBQ sauce–Cattleman’s is a great, inexpensive national brand, or you could try picking up some from your favorite local BBQ joint.
3 lb. boneless pork shoulder
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Smoked paprika or liquid smoke
About 12 oz. of your favorite BBQ sauce
About 12 high-quality rolls
Memphis-Style Coleslaw
Thick-cut dill pickle slices
Instructions:
Rinse pork roast well in cold water and trim of excess fat. This is important because sometimes, boneless pork shoulder (and bone-in pork shoulder, for that matter) can take on kind of an icky fishy odor and a lot of that smell is in the juices and the fat. Pat dry. Sprinkle roast with liquid smoke and seasonings and place in your slow cooker. Add about 1/2 inch of water and cook on low for 8-10 hours.
FREEZER INSTRUCTIONS: Prepare meat through the seasoning step. Instead of placing in the crockpot, place seasoned meat in a freezer-safe container. When ready, follow the same cooking instructions. Just make sure that you have BBQ sauce, pickles, and rolls on hand. Because coleslaw isn’t freezer-friendly, if you’re not up to making homemade coleslaw, just pick up a container from KFC or your favorite BBQ restaurant.
Questions & Reviews
This recipe Rocks! It reminded me of Kalua pork before you add the BBQ sauce. I never thought to make Kalua pork in the crock pot, I’ll have to tell mom.
Sister, you nailed it on the head with this recipe. The slaw was good too. I used 1 tsp. caraway and 1 tsp. dill seed instead of the celery seed. It was great! I love it when it turns out like that. Thanks sister, many blessings.
At April: I used 2-3 Tlbs. of liquid smoke.
I made this for a party the other night, and it turned out great! I had a little trouble finding the boneless shoulder, but asked the butcher at Vons (safeway) and he pulled the bone out of one for me. We cooked ten pounds in our large-ish (5 quarts?) crockpot and it cooked well. We used a bottle of Stubbs BBQ and a bottle of Trader Joes BBQ sauce and it was tasty. Thanks for the great recipe! 🙂
Hi, I was wondering at what point you put the liquid smoke in? At the beginning with the seasonings or at the end with the BBQ sauce? About how much liquid smoke to use also? Thanks so much.
Thanks Sara, obviously I am not the brightest, I looked for it my last 3 trips to the store and couldn’t find it. I sent my husband, and he was in and out in 10 minutes with liquid smoke in hand. 🙂
I have all of the ingredients to make this except for the liquid smoke, (or smoked paprika). What is it and where can I find it? I live in Arkansas which is Walmart land so I don’t know if they don’t carry it or if I just am looking in the wrong aisles. Help!
Hi Rachel,
Walmart should carry liquid smoke for sure, I buy it there all the time. It’s usually near the bbq sauces and it’s easy to miss because the bottles are small and there’s usually not a whole lot of them! Sometimes I’ve seen it near the salad dressings and vinegars too. The smoked paprika may be hit or miss. Check the spice isle- I usually buy that one at Sam’s Club.
Never tried coleslaw or pickles on my pulled pork but I will now!
One thing we do differnt is we use Root Beer instead of water to cook the pork in. It adds just a little extra oomph to the flavor. Yum
I made this the other day with the coleslaw recipe you provide and I just have to say that I am now addicted to it. Wow!!! At first I wasn't sure how I would like it so I put a forkful on and took a bite. Um, that was it. I had to pile the coleslaw on and also the pickles. LOVE it. Thanks for sharing!!!
I am so excited to try this recipe. I'm going to make it for my son's second birthday. I was wondering, how much does this make using the 3-4 lb pork? I need to feed around thirty people. Thanks!
Thanks so much for the recipe…We have a small Cafe in a tiny little town in the thumb of MI. I have been searching for a perfect pork sandwich. This sauce from Country Bobs sounds perfect! I would love to try it. Thank you so much for your web site and all the wonderful information on it. We very much appreciate it.
Laura–Try 1 tsp. of each except for the black pepper (use 1/2 tsp.)
I was going to make this last night, but I realized there aren't any amounts for the seasonings. I've tried to make other BBQ pork sandwich recipes before and they've turned out blah, so I'd really like some specific amounts. Thanks!
Oh my gosh! I used to work at the Smokehouse (in Provo and Orem) and I love their BBQ pork more than anything I've ever had in the South! (and their baked beans and mac and cheese eaten together… or mac and cheese with the sweet bbq sauce on it, haha). Man, I gasped out loud when you mentioned them. Seriously, I miss the Smokehouse (food) SOO bad! I wish they'd sell that stuff online! haha. I haven't found any restaurant's bbq sauce to be as good (even in glorified BBQ-land Texas.)
Yum!!! I have a pork roast just waiting to be turned into sandwiches this week, just need to choose (and buy) a new bbq sauce. Yum!
Peri–Nope, no change in cooking time necessary! 🙂
Would I need to change the cooking time if I used a different cut of pork? Do you recommend any other cuts? I can only find 9 lb pork shouders. Hoping to use something closer to 3lbs.
Hi, could you provide the measurements of the spices? I have never made anything like this before but don't want to over do it on the spices and would like to make it for Father's day. Thank you for sharing with us your wonderful blog.
I just bought a huge pork roast at costco. I will be needing some good BBQ sauce for it! 🙂
I actually have a question on the proportions of spices – what are they? 1:1 ratio for all, or should I lean to more paprika and less garlic…?
I've never done anything like this, but I'm an American trapped in the Netherlands and I've not had a pulled-pork in a decade! This is my pre-4 July project!
I'll buy a slow-cooker and an expensive hunk of pork to find out, but I would like some idea of spice balancing. I'm a newbie to all this-here cookin' stuff…
I ordered some Country Bob's from their website and it was well worth it! The shipping was free! I made this for my son's 2nd birthday party today and it was a hit. I also made the coleslaw and I put it and pickles on my sandwich and it was delicious! We also had the rainbow cupcakes! Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes and talents with us!
Nedrys–My next best, I think, is Stubbs. Way yummy, especially on ribs! 🙂
Do you ladies have any suggestions for a bbq sace to use if one cannot get Bob's All Purpose Sauce? I thought about Sweet Baby Rays, but it can be on the sweet side. I am having my sons 2nd birthday party in a week and I want to make this, along with the coleslaw, but they don't sell Country Bob's in the Seattle area. At least, that is what their website says. Any thoughts an a almost as good alternative.
As always, thanks for your wonderful recipes! You guys are the best!
Hi, April! You know, I don't really have specifics because pork can vary so widely in size. Just sprinkle it with liquid smoke; you don't want it soaking wet or anything, but you want it to be completely covered. As far as the sauce, just taste as you go and add as much as you like! Sorry I can't be more specific! 🙂
Thanks for the great recipe! What are the measurements on all of the ingredients? I want to make these tomorrow. Thanks!
My husband loves it and calls it "sloppy porkslaw".
I made this for dinner last week and first off let me say wow. The one downfall to it was that i was so full and ready to throw up but wanted to eat more. I want to make it again for dinner in a couple of weeks. I ate it every day till the coleslaw was gone. I ate it for 3 days and after it was all gone I wanted to cry because I didn't have anymore to eat. We all loved it in our family. My husband hates coleslaw and even when he ate it the next day for lunch I watched him put the coleslaw back on it. Thank you so much for this new favorite in our home. Only thing now is that I have order me some of that BBQ sauce.
OK, I've never used liquid smoke in a recipe before. How much should I add??? It seems pretty strong…
Thanks Kate!
So when I saw this post I was just so excited to try the recipe I jumped right to the recipe and misunderstood… anyway when I was down in Provo/Orem the other day I stopped by Smokehouse and asked for their BBQ sauce…
I'm glad I was confused because we just had the SmokeHouse's BBQ sauce with our pulled pork and WOW… amazing! (I LOVED the Sweet bbq sauce and I LOVED the spicy too!)
So if you ever want it with the Smokehouse's BBQ sauce they will sell it to you for about $3 for a pint–$3.23 with tax.mmmmm…
I can't wait to try it with Country Bob's sauce too.
Thanks for the recipe and all the hard work put into this blog! We are soo lovin it!
mmmmm…. mmmmm…. delicious!
Cheri, I loooooooooooove Smokehouse! 🙂 Seriously, I could just drink all of their BBQ sauces!
just saw the link for country bob's… opps. So just the question about Smokehouse pizza and BBQ remains.
Thanks
So I am a little confused with what you are saying about the Smokehouse in Provo… now in Orem. You do or do not like their BBQ sauce with this recipe?
And where do I purchase Country Bob's All Purpose sauce… Walmart? the grocery store?
Thanks! This pulled pork tasted great… but our homemade BBQ sauce was not the right flavor to hit the spot… so I want to get the good stuff (Country Bob)! 🙂
not sure if i'm commenting on time, but my mouth is watering after reading this post, so i figured i had to at least TRY to win!