I slow cooked a 4lb pork shoulder in BBQ sauce, chicken broth, mustard and other spices. I wanted to shred it to make pulled pork BBQ. After 6 hours on low it came out looking like this. Incredibly tough and unable to be shred. Could barely cut through it with a knife.
Am I using the wrong cut of pork? Cooked too long? Thanks!
by totallyasian
33 Comments
cook it longer. slow cooking has to be long enough to break down the connective tissue.
I brine pork before cooking usually to avoid it turning tough. About 1/4 c kosher salt to gallon of water for about an hour. Hope it helps next time.
6 hours on low isn’t long enough to achieve that.
When I cook pork shoulder, I usually aim for 10 hours on low. I’ll start checking around 8 hours, but it’s usually still a little tough at that point.
Go 10 hours on low.
It takes me 8-10 hours on low for pork shoulder to become shreddable. I also use some orange or pineapple juice to help it along.
It looks ultra lean which is unusual for a shoulder. It also looks overcooked for a roast and nowhere near breaking down for pulled pork
Because it was cooked to death…
225° for 8- 10 hours, internal temp of 135°
I’ll bet, your ambient temp and internal temp were the same..
PS always cut your meat cross grain not with the grain…
What was the temperature when you took this off? I did one Sunday and one Monday. Took them off around 203 then put it in the cooler for 1 – 3 hours and it fell apart.
That’s an extremely lean looking shoulder, but assuming you got the right cut, it’s clearly not done yet. The fat isn’t broken down yet and it probably needs a few more hours.
Also – careful you’re not boiling your meat. No reason to add chicken broth.
Buy a insta read thermometer from thermoworks, eat your jelly bellies, and completely change everything you cook for the rest of your life for the better.
Pork doesn’t start breaking down until about 202 internal.
You MUST let the meat “rest” before you cut it. Meaning, remove from heat source after cooking, cover, let sit at least 10 minutes. If you cut it too soon it will be very dry. Letting it rest gives the juices time to absorb back into the meat.
Aim for an internal temperature rather than a time. Mine usually take 13 hours to do correctly and I do it with coals.
Does slow cooking pork cause it to get harder before softer?
I do 10-12 hours on this cut
not enough fat on it
It sounds as more time might be required. Generally, it takes 8 to 10 hours on low for pork shoulder to get tender enough to shred. Next time, try cooking it for a longer period of time.
That’s a tough lesson to learn. I learned a hard lesson when I tried to make guacamole with hard avocados. Some things you just gotta know the details
6 hours is not nearly enough time. You need it in there for at least 10 hours. I generally cook it for closer to 12-14 hours.
Also you need some sort of acid in there to break down the connective tissue. I prefer apple cider vinegar, but wine or tomato paste are also excellent
Cook to temp, not to time.
I cook it overnight
Either cut it up before or cook for way longer, I do about 2.5lbs for 8-10 hours to get it really melt apart
Wrong cut of pork for slow cooker. Need dark meat
Water, aqua, moisture. Whatever you would like to call it it needs stock, covering, and slower longer cooking
Definitely not long enough. Also maybe not enough moisture?
that looks more like pork loin than shoulder
Try a whole day on high and keep it in liquid
It shreds about 195 to 205 F
Could be like most people here are saying, cook it longer. But it’s worth checking how hot your low setting is actually coming up to. Lot’s of slowcooker “low” setting is actually too hot.
Look how they massacred my boy
Cooked it too fast and doesn’t seem to have much fat for a pork Shoulder.
Chicken is nice in the slow cooker for a 4-6 hour range. For beef/pork, I typically want a 10hr window to cook it.