Growing up in the South, I’m pretty familiar with pork barbecue. I’m also familiar with the fact that most commercially available versions from barbecue places have high fructose corn syrup or other non-foods in their sauce.
Boston Butt is one of the easiest cuts of pork to cut and it is also one of the cheapest to buy. I’ve been able to find Boston Butt from pastured pork at great prices, and slow cooking this recipe makes it incredibly tender. It’s also an easy recipe to make on days when you are out of the house all day and need dinner to be ready when you get home.
For our family, one Boston Butt will easily spread 3-4 meals of leftovers and the kids love it. We’ve even done barbecue omelets with leftovers. If you’ve never tried Boston Butt before, I’d encourage you to try this recipe.
Slow Cooker Boston Butt Recipe
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 8 +
An easy slow-cooker barbecue recipe with flavors of pineapple and spices.
Ingredients
- A 4-5 pound Boston Butt
- One (15-ounce) can crushed pineapple, juice drained, or one (whole) pineapple
- 2 large sweet onions
- 1 tablespoon each of: Chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, sea salt, celery salt and basil
- 1 tsp crushed black pepper
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups of barbecue sauce of choice (find one without added high fructose corn syrup or sugar)
Instructions
- Thinly slice onions and place in bottom of a 6-quart or larger slow-cooker.
- Rinse the boston butt and place on top of the onions.
- Sprinkle with spices and pour the whole can of pineapple juice over it. If using fresh pineapple, peel core and thin chop the pineapple and place over pork.
- Put lid on crock pot and cook on low for 10-12 hours or until fork tender. Don't open until at least 8 hours and then check for tenderness.
- Shred with two forks to make pulled pork and top with barbecue sauce if using...
Notes
For the Instant Pot: Follow steps 1-3 as written. Instead of using a slow cooker, place in the Instant Pot and set on manual for 60 minutes. Let cook and let steam release naturally after cooking.
Courses Main
Cuisine Barbecue
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Are you a barbecue fan? What is your secret recipe? Please share below!
Looks delish!
I’m a little confused. Are you supposed to use a 15 oz can of pineapple or pineapple juice. The ingredients say one thing, but the directions imply another. Thanks.
*The 2nd sentence should have a ?
Thank you sooooo much for this recipe! I made it the other day and it was spectacular! This will become a staple in my house for sure.
This was delicious! It’s our new favorite pulled pork recipe. 😉
I’m making this today, and really looking forward to it. Your directions didn’t mention when to add in the ACV, so I just tossed it in with the pineapple juice…was that right?
That was right! Thanks for the heads up, I’ll try to edit that!
Delicious! I’m making it again this morning!
This is a huge tease for someone who is allergic to pineapple. Was planning on making a variation that uses apples/apple juice instead.
It would probably be delicious with Apple! You might want to swap out the basil for parsley, and use red onions.
Do you have a barbecue sauce recipe?
I would love a homemade recipe for BBQ sauce too 🙂
Blue Sky BBQ sauce is all natural if you can find it in your area.
How do you eat the pulled pork – by itself? We would normally eat it on a bun, so just wondering. It sounds really good!
Love it.
Hey there Wellness Mama, you rock! Whenever I go on Google to look for a recipe yours is always the best. So now I just look for your recipe and ignore the others. Thanks for your great taste.
google ‘shacks famous bbq sauce recipe’. It is delicious. Easy to make. The recipe will last you a year or more as It makes a gallon. And you can use organic ketchup and mustard to make it healthier.
I’m confused about the pineapple as well. Add a can of juice alone or a can of pineapple with juice? If calling for canned pineapple, what type?
Thank you!
Looks like previous questions about the pineapple juice vs canned pineapple have gone unaddressed, and I too am curious about this step. I guess I’ll try it with straight pineapple juice.
I used crushed pineapple in a can and just dumped the entire can in. It us so yum!!!
I’ve been making this one for quite a while. It uses only Hawaiian Sea salt and garlic (and a bit of bacon if you want, I omit it frequently). Always absolutely incredible and you can control how much sugar you want to add or what flavours by adding your favourite sauce. http://nomnompaleo.com/post/10031990774/slow-cooker-kalua-pig
What cut of pork is Boston butt? Here in the UK we don’t call it that.
This recipe was delicious! We will definately make it again.