Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
This is the batch-cook answer to four different meals. A three-pound Kirkwood pork shoulder goes into the slow cooker with BBQ sauce and a splash of water, comes out shreddable six hours later, and feeds four as sandwiches with coleslaw — with enough left over to fill tacos, quesadillas, or baked potatoes later in the week. The whole thing costs about $11.21, which works out to $2.80 a serving, and almost all of it is unattended time. It is the recipe for a work-from-home day, a Sunday, or any afternoon when you want dinner finished before you are. The slaw is not optional; the crunch against the sweet sauce is the point.
6 hrs
4
$11.21
$2.80
Ingredients
Estimated Aldi prices for the amount this dinner uses, based on regular shelf prices and the current weekly ad.
Steps
- 1Season the pork shoulder with salt, pepper, and a pinch of smoked paprika; place in the slow cooker.
- 2Pour half the BBQ sauce over the pork and add 1/4 cup water to the pot.
- 3Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours (or HIGH for 4) until the pork shreds easily with a fork.
- 4Remove the pork to a cutting board and shred, discarding large fat pieces.
- 5Skim the fat from the cooking liquid, then return the shredded pork to the pot with the remaining BBQ sauce; stir and keep warm.
- 6Toss the coleslaw mix with dressing. Pile pork on buns and serve slaw on top or alongside.
Tips & swaps
- Pork shoulder, butt, or picnic roast all work — aim for 3 pounds and cook until it shreds.
- Skip the bottled sauce and use a cup of salsa plus a teaspoon of cumin for a taco-friendly batch.
- Freeze half in its cooking liquid; it keeps three months and thaws into a fast dinner.
- Toss the coleslaw with lime juice and salt instead of dressing for a sharper sandwich.
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Put Slow Cooker Pulled Pork into your week
Add it to a plan built around this week's Aldi deals, or browse all 50 cheap dinner ideas and pick the rest of the week yourself.
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