How long to cook pork shoulder in instant pot

Q: Why is my Instant Pot pork shoulder tough?

Cooking Time Note: If you cook the meat 60 minutes and its still tough and not fork tender, it is NOT done cooking! Usually, when a meat is tough its often considered overcooked,” (think steak or a pork chop) with cuts of meat like pork butt, you need to cook it LONGER.

This is the best damn pulled pork recipe i’ve ever made. Yes, you read that correctly. And it’s made in an Instant Pot electric pressure cooker!

Table of Contents Show

Start with a good rub
Sear the meat
Pressure cook with Chicken Broth
Pull the Pork
Add favorite BBQ Sauce and Serve
Description
How many minutes per pound do you cook a pork shoulder?
How long does pork shoulder take to cook?
Is pork shoulder better in Instant Pot or slow cooker?
Why is my Instant Pot pork shoulder tough?

Pulled pork is something you always see on those barbecue competition shows where people go to great lengths to prepare and cook with all kinds of methods. Most often, these methods require huge pieces of equipment, lots of space (outdoor space), and a ton of time and commitment to make. Now don’t get me wrong, you have an opportunity to sink you teeth into pork that’s been cooked this way, it’s an experience that’s simply a festival of flavor you’ll never forget. Many of the best real BBQ joints will start making their pulled pork days ahead of time and when it’s ready to eat, people line up. And when these places run out of food for the day, that’s it until next time.

In the last couple of years, along comes electric pressure cookers such as the Instant Pot and people go crazy for these things! And there’s a reason for that – because they open up all new possibilities for making incredible food. Pulled pork is tops on my list of favorite foods to make with an Instant Pot. From start to finish, it can be done in under 2 hours. No kidding!

We start with a pork butt roast. You can get either bone-in or boneless. If you find ones that are vacuum packed and the packaging indicates that the pork contains a 12% solution, this means that the roast is brined. Those are the best to use. Meat is brined this way to maintain tenderness and juiciness. You can always make your own brine, but that’s a topic for another day. Go with the brined meat if you can. If the meat has a noticeable fat layer on it, you’ll want to cut that off. I generally like to use a roast that’s 4lbs. I cut the meat into 4 pieces of equal size, cutting out the bone if it has one.

Start with a good rub

Our pulled pork will be getting it’s flavor start by applying a rub. We use simple ingredients that include brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, ground mustard, salt, pepper and a dash of cayenne. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl and add the pieces of pork. Use your hands and toss it all together for a couple of minutes. Make sure that seasoning mixture is well incorporated into the meat.

Sear the meat

Barbecue flavors can be complex and one of the keys of great BBQ is the slow roasting/smoking of the meat. Since we can’t do that, we’ll create complex flavors of our own by searing the meat. We do this by adding 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the Instant Pot and setting it to the saute mode. Once it’s hot, we carefully add our chunks of pork. I generally like to do 2 chunks at a time. It’s just much easier to work with in batches like this. Use tongs and gently place the chunks into the hot oil. Let the meat sear for about 2 minutes and turn over to get the other side for another couple of minutes. Get the sides too if possible. After searing the meat, remove from Instant Pot and set aside on a plate. We then need to deglaze the pot. This is very important! After sauteing, press cancel and add ½ cup of chicken broth to the pot. Use a wooden spoon and scrape all the bits off the bottom of the pot. It should take about a minute or so. Make sure to get it all and do not discard anything! All this goodness is part of the flavor for our pulled pork.

Pressure cook with Chicken Broth

Chicken broth is the perfect liquid for pressure cooking pork. It adds flavor that you simply cannot get with water. To round out the flavors, we’ll be adding some Worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke. These flavors work together to bring about a boldness and savory aspect that you’d normally get from the smoking/slow roasting methods of traditional BBQ. Naturally we’re going to emulate those flavors and the combination of Worcestershire and Liquid Smoke in the pressure cooker works wonders.

After you’ve deglazed the pot, add the rest of the wet ingredients and place the chunks of pork directly into the liquid. Don’t stack it, spread it out as best possible. Secure the lid, close the vent and pressure cook on high for 1 hour. After the hour is up, let the pressure release naturally for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes you can quick release any remaining pressure.

Pull the Pork

Carefully remove the chunks of pork from the Instant Pot to a large bowl. The pieces may fall apart and that’s just fine. Once all the pork pieces are in a bowl, use two forks to shred the pieces.

Add favorite BBQ Sauce and Serve

At this point, your pulled pork will already be full of flavor. Just try a piece and you will be amazed! You can serve just like this (with some of the juice from the pot drizzled in). Or, you can add your favorite BBQ sauce. Add the sauce in small amounts to start. You don’t want the pork swimming in the sauce, but rather the sauce complimenting the pork.

One of my very favorite ways to enjoy pulled pork is with some BBQ sauce and heaped onto a good piece of white bread. Use a fork to enjoyed this open-faced sandwich approach. Add a little coleslaw on top too for added flavor and texture. Be sure to have some pickle slices on the side too.

Want to try this recipe with chicken? Check out our recipe for The Best Damn Instant Pot Pulled Chicken!

Description

The most amazing, tender, juicy and delicious Instant Pot pulled pork recipe.

4lb Pork Butt Roast, boneless or bone-in
3 tbs light brown sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground mustard
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 tbs olive oil
½ – 1 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce.

Trim fat from pork roast and cut into 4 same size chunks.
Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk together. Add pork roast chunks to rub mix and coat well.
Add 2 tbs olive oil to Instant Pot and set to saute. Once it indicates hot, add 2 pieces of the pork. Sear on each side for about 2 minutes each. Remove pork and set aside on a plate. Repeat with remaining pork pieces.
Once pork is seared and removed from pot, press cancel and add ½ cup chicken broth. Use a wooden spoon and deglaze the bottom of the pot. Make sure to scrape up all the bits. Then add remaining chicken broth. Worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke.
Place pork chunks directly into the liquid in the pot, spacing out as best possible. Secure lid and make sure vent is set to sealing. Pressure cook/manual on high pressure for 60 minutes.Then let pressure release naturally for 20 minutes or until pin drops.
Remove pork to a large bowl and shred with 2 forks. Add your favorite BBQ sauce as desired. Or use the juice from the Instant Pot – it’s loaded with awesome flavor!

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 60 mins
Category: Dinner
Method: Pressure cooker
Cuisine: American BBQ

Keywords: instant pot, pulled pork

How many minutes per pound do you cook a pork shoulder?

Cook 30 minutes per pound total, or until the internal temperature as measured with a meat thermometer is 160° F. Remove the pork from the oven and allow to rest 15 minutes before carving, discard onions. Serves 8-10. The less tender shoulder cut is given a long slow cooking time to create a tender meal.

How long does pork shoulder take to cook?

Set the meat on a rack set into a roasting pan. Roast for 20 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the shoulder reads 185 degrees F, about 4 hours. Remove the pork from the oven and let stand until cool enough to handle, about 30 minutes.

Is pork shoulder better in Instant Pot or slow cooker?

Slow cooking the meat means it never has the chance to toughen up and will be extra silky and tender. Pressure cooking is faster, though you may lose a little bit of the tenderness. If you're going for the pressure cook method, be sure to get a pork shoulder or pork butt, as opposed to a pork loin.

Why is my Instant Pot pork shoulder tough?

Cooking Time Note: If you cook the meat 60 minutes and it's still tough and not fork tender, it is NOT done cooking! Usually, when a meat is tough it's often considered “overcooked,” (think steak or a pork chop) with cuts of meat like pork butt, you need to cook it LONGER.