Instant Pot Pulled Pork
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With only 5 ingredients, this Instant Pot Pulled Pork recipe will become a regular weeknight meal in your home. Not only does the Instant Pot cook it to perfection but it can be prepped in minutes.
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s EASY! Simply season the pork and cook it in the Instant Pot with Homemade BBQ Sauce (or whatever your favorite store-bought brand is).
- It’s freezer-friendly. Pulled pork is a great recipe to double and freeze before cooking. You can also fully cook it and freeze it in small portions.
- It feeds a lot of people. When served on buns, this recipe can easily feed 10+ people.
- It’s an Instant Pot Dump & Go Recipe. Drop in the ingredients, press a button, and dinner is (pretty much) done.
- It can also be made in different ways. Try our Crock Pot Pulled Pork or our Smoked Pulled Pork recipes.
P.S. Another super simple recipe you may like is our Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs.
Ingredients Needed
It’s hard to mess up pulled pork. In fact, pork shoulder is one of my favorite cuts of meat to cook in the Instant Pot! Coming from someone who has tested hundreds (yes, hundreds) of Instant Pot recipes, that means a lot.
The ingredients are SO simple! Here’s what you’ll need:
Tips for Success
In our testing, we learned a few things about making pulled pork in the Instant Pot:
- The pork shoulder cooks best when cut into 4 equal pieces. This helps the meat cook more evenly and faster. Whole pork shoulders are too big and may stay tough in the center.
- If using an 8 quart Instant Pot, add 1/2 more BBQ sauce. If you get a burn signal, add 1/2 cup beef broth or water.
- Return the shredded meat to the pot and stir it into the sauce. It picks up more flavor this way!
- You can brown the meat first for more flavor. Use the “Sauté” function to sear the pork chunks in batches. This adds great depth of flavor thanks to the caramelization.
What to Serve with Pulled Pork
My favorite way to eat pulled pork is as a sandwich. I serve it with more Killer Homemade BBQ Sauce on the side.
Some side dishes that go well with Pulled Pork are:
- Coleslaw for Pulled Pork or Asian Slaw
- Easy Hash Brown Casserole
- Grilled Corn on the Cob
- Veggies with Healthy Homemade Ranch Dip
Can I Freeze Pulled Pork?
YES! Like so many of our freezer meal recipes, Pulled Pork works great as a make-ahead freezer meal.
FREEZE FOR LATER: Follow steps 1 and 2 in the recipe below. Place the seasoned pork and 1 cup of the BBQ sauce in a gallon-size freezer bag or round container. Seal and freeze (if using a freezer bag, set it in a bowl or round container with a diameter similar to the Instant Pot so it will fit in the pot when frozen). Place the remaining 1/2 cup BBQ sauce in a small freezer bag or container and the buns in a separate freezer bag. Seal and freeze them alongside the pork.
PREPARE FROM FROZEN: Thaw the sauce and buns. Set the Instant Pot to “Saute” Transfer the frozen meal to the pot and cook for 5 minutes to release some liquid. Press “Cancel.” Follow step 4, but cook at high pressure for 45 to 50 minutes. (The frozen meat will cook in about the same amount of time as fresh.)
For more information, read our post on How Long to Cook a Frozen Pork Roast in the Instant Pot!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, a bone-in pork shoulder or pork butt will work fine.
Yep! Just add additional cooking time.
Any BBQ sauce will work! That is the beauty of this recipe. You can customize it to your liking.
If it’s already cooked, divide it up into small portions and freeze in an airtight container. It’s easy to reheat in the microwave on the defrost setting. Add a little extra BBQ sauce and/or maybe a little water when you reheat to add some moisture if you want.
The pulled pork is done when it easily shreds apart with a fork. The meat should be tender and moist. You can also use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature, which should reach around 195-205°F (90-96°C) for pulled pork.
More Instant Pot Recipes You Might Like
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Instant Pot Pulled Pork
Instant Pot Pulled Pork has it all. It’s super easy, budget friendly, makes a large batch, and freezes beautifully. The Instant Pot cooks pork shoulders beautifully. I have no doubt this recipe will be in your regular rotation.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 (3- to 4-pound) pork shoulder (also known as Boston butt), trimmed
- 1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce, here’s our homemade recipe
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Instructions
Make It Now:
- In a small bowl, combine the onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- On a cutting board, cut the pork shoulder into 4 equal pieces (don’t miss this step!). Pat the pork dry with paper towels and rub the pieces with the seasoning mix to coat all sides. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
- Place the seasoned pork in the 6-quart Instant Pot. Pour 1 cup of the BBQ sauce over the meat and stir.
- Lock and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 45 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes (or longer, if you prefer), then quick release the remaining pressure. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and shred the meat. Return the meat to the pot and stir it into the sauce.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer the meat to the toasted buns and top with the remaining BBQ sauce as desired. Serve.
Freeze For Later:
Follow steps 1 and 2. Place the seasoned pork and 1 cup of the BBQ sauce in a gallon-size freezer bag or round container. Seal and freeze (if using a freezer bag, set it in a bowl or round container with a diameter similar to the Instant Pot so it will fit in the pot when frozen.) Place the remaining 1/2 cup BBQ sauce in a small freezer bag or container and the buns in a separate freezer bag. Seal and freeze them alongside the pork.
Prepare From Frozen:
Thaw the sauce and buns. Set the Instant Pot to “Saute” Transfer the frozen meal to the pot and cook for 5 minutes to release some liquid. Press “Cancel.” Follow step 4, but cook at high pressure for 45 to 50 minutes. (The frozen meat will cook in about the same amount of time as fresh.)
Notes/Tips
- Pulled pork is done when it easily shreds apart with a fork. The meat should be tender and moist. You can also use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature, which should reach around 195-205°F (90-96°C) for pulled pork.
- Bone-In Pork Shoulder will work for our pulled pork recipes.
- We instruct you to quarter the meat because this yielded more even cooking times.
This was an easy Christmas dinner recipe enjoyed by 10 adults. I doubled the recipe and used 2 Instant Pots, just because. I LOVE my Instant Pots!! I especially liked your instructions and used your BBQ sauce recipe as well. I really appreciate the wholesome ingredients. Now we have left overs to freeze.
We love to hear about feeding groups and freezing leftovers! So glad you enjoyed the recipes Lisa. We appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment.
Do you add any liquid besides the bbq sauce?
Hi Sarah. I went back to look at all the testing notes from our instant pot pork and beef recipes to double check this. We didn’t add any additional liquid to our 6 quart IPs. The meat releases a lot of liquid when cooking and mixes with the thicker BBQ sauce. That being said, if you want to hedge all bets against getting the burn signal or having a problem with it coming to pressure, go ahead and add a thin layer of broth or water to the bottom of the cooker before adding the other ingredients. I hope that helps!
I just got the dreaded burn notice.
Ugh! The worst! I, personally, have an 8-quart, while Rachel and Polly have 6-quart Instant Pots, so I often put some water on the bottom of the pot with some of the recipes to avoid the burn signal.
We haven’t eaten this yet, but I tasted a bit before I put it into the freezer and it is delicious! I used BBQ sauce I had on hand, but the added seasonings in the recipe take it up a notch and then some! I used a pork just over 4 lb and it made enough for 2 meals and probably extra for my family of 4.
So glad you liked it and took the time to leave a review Tiffany. Having extra is always a plus!
I’d like to make this for a lunch for about 10 people. Can I make it to the point of shredding it the day prior and then just reheat it in the instant pot on the day of the party? If so, what setting would I use on the instant pot to reheat it? Thank you!
Yes, you can. Be sure to save the juices it cooked in so you can rewarm the meat in them. It will help it stay moist. And/or add more BBQ sauce to help it stay moist. To reheat in the Instant Pot, I’d probably turn on the Saute setting to the lowest setting and stir the meat around until it’s heated through. Then, I’d switch to the Warm setting. I hope that helps!