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These tacos are filled with mouthwatering slow cooker pulled pork and creamy cilantro lime slaw. The pork is tender and jam packed with flavour, but simple to make with the help of a slow cooker. Easy, effortless and delicious! What more could you want?
Add our 5 Minute Blender Salsa Fresca or Black Bean and Corn Salsa to the mix to take these flavours even further!
Pulled Pork Tacos
Imagine juicy and tender – I mean melting in your mouth tender – pork wrapped in a soft corn tortilla. Then top it with some creamy cilantro lime slaw, maybe even a slice or two of velvety smooth avocado.
Go ahead throw in some cheese too if you like. I won’t judge you! You end up with one of the loveliest mouthfuls you’ll ever taste. How would you like if I told you cooking this amazing recipe takes no effort AT ALL?
That’s right your, slow cooker will take care of all work and it won’t heat your house in the summer!
How to make them
Making pulled slow cooker pulled pork tacos is the easiest part. Actually I take that back. Eating them is the easiest part!
Joking aside, anything made in a slow cooker is simple and that’s why we love using ours. In this case, just mix all ingredients together, load them in your slow cooker and hit cook.
The meat will be tender and juicy after 6 hours of cooking on HIGH or 8-10 hours of cooking on LOW. Slow cooking with low heat gives plenty of the time for the connective tissue to break down and the pork to tenderize while retaining maximum moisture. When your meat is ready, take two forks and simply pull it apart.
Recipe Tips and notes
- I used to sear meat before adding it to my crock pot but I’ve skipped the step in this recipe. Browning the pork doesn’t noticeably affect the taste and skipping it makes this recipe so much easier and mess free.
- The best cut of meat for pulled pork is boneless pork shoulder. The only thing I do is trim excess fat and cut it into quarters before mixing it with the seasoning, which makes shredding it, after it’s been cooked till tender, a snap!
- The recipe calls for beer to be used, with lager as the best option for this recipe. Beer not only adds earthy, toasty flavours to the pork, but also helps to break it down so it becomes even more tender. If you don’t want to cook with alcohol you can use no/low alcohol beer to keep the great taste or go with chicken stock instead.
- When slicing cabbage for slaw, it’s challenging to make the pieces thin enough. If possible, use a food processor or mandolin to achieve very thin and even slices.
- I’ve suggested a split between red and white cabbage for the slaw to get the best of both, but this isn’t essential. Using just one type is perfectly fine.
Serving Suggestions
One of the best thing about tacos are the delicious toppings. They can vary the taste so much. You will never get tired of eating them!
I love serving this pulled pork piled up on soft tacos together with crunchy cilantro lime slaw. Recipe included in the recipe card.
I use both red and white cabbage to make my slaw because I love the combination of flavours and the visual appeal. However, it could be made with just one type of cabbage or even using a pre-made slaw mix.
Another condiment, that is a non-negotiable taco companion in our family, is a freshly made guacamole. The first thing my kids ask about when tacos are on the menu if we have ripe avocados for it!
Also add this blender pico de gallo or black bean and corn salsa and a dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche. If you are looking for something less traditional, try my blackberry chilli lime salsa. Perhaps a little hot sauce if you are so inclined. You won’t regret it!
But don’t think for a second that the only way to eat shredded pork is in tacos. You can serve it in pulled pork sandwiches, pulled pork nachos, or served over rice and beans, or any number of ways. This tender pulled pork is a versatile as it is delicious!
Storage and leftovers
Pulled pork freezes beautifully, and it is just as tasty when served as leftovers as it is freshly cooked. If freezing, let it completely cool then place in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Reheat leftover pulled pork either in a microwave, or by placing in a saucepan over medium heat. There should be plenty of liquid present so no need to add more.
More delicious taco recipes
Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos with Cilantro Lime Slaw
Ingredients
- 1.5kg/3 lbs pork shoulder, skin and fat removed
- salt
- 125ml1/2 cup This is an affiliate link.tomato passata/crushed tomatoes
- 125ml/1/2 cup beer, lager is preferable but chicken stock could be used instead
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 2 tsp dried coriander
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 1-2 tbsp This is an affiliate link.chipotle paste
- 1 This is an affiliate link.bay leaf
- 1 onion
- 3 cloves garlic
For the Cilantro Lime Slaw
- 1/2 head small cabbage, I used a combination of red and white
- 20g/1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 lime, juice only
- 125ml/1/2 cup sour cream/creme fraiche
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the pork shoulder by cutting away the skin and any visible fat, then cutting it into four large pieces. Rub the pork with salt generously, then place it on the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Mix together the crushed tomatoes, beer, cumin, oregano, dried coriander, chilli powder and chipotle paste. Pour over the pork, then add the chopped onions, crushed garlic and 1 bay leaf. Mix, cover with a lid and cook on HIGH for 6 hours or on LOW for 8-10 hours. By the end of the cooking time the pork should be easily pulled away by a fork.
- With a slotted spoon remove the pork to a large bowl and with two forks pull the meat apart, cover and set aside until later. Set the insert of your slow cooker on the stove top (but only if it's made for it!), turn the heat to medium high and reduce the liquid by a third. Alternatively, you can pour the liquid into a saucepan if your slow cooker insert is not metal and not made for the stove top.
- Add the shredded pork to the reduced liquid and mix the meat in with the juices.
For the Cilantro Lime Slaw
- Slice the cabbage thinly. (I like using either a food processor or a mandolin for this task.) In a large bowl combine the sliced cabbage, chopped cilantro, freshly squeezed lime juice and sour cream. Salt to taste.
Assemble the Tacos
- For best results warm up soft tacos before filling them with pulled pork. (I prefer cooking them briefly on a dry frying pan but you can also use a microwave.) Then fill with pulled pork and cilantro lime slaw. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
We are constantly looking for more recipes that use pork shoulder, and found this one today. We don’t use our slow cooker often. So between morning duties and afternoon obligations, I put everything in the slow cooker, turned it on, and hoped for the best. We were gone for about 3 hours, and when we got back, it was clear that the slow cooker was doing what it was supposed to be doing – the house smelled heavenly!!
I decided to just use shredded cabbage rather than making a slaw (my one modification). I paired the tacos with Spanish rice. And the entire meal was very well received by my wife.
The pork was fork-tender, of course (which is kinda the whole point of pulled pork…). And the sauce gave it enough body to go over the tacos very nicely. A lime wedge made the meal complete, and this is definitely a keeper!
Highly recommended.
Somehow, this was too soupy and lacked the flavor I wanted. Maybe, double the spices for the pork and half the lime juice and sour cream in the slaw. Overall, a good start.
Slow cookers usually produce more liquid. That’s pretty common and expected when choosing this convenient method of cooking. There are instructions in the recipe on how to reduce that extra liquid.
I love this recipe, we’ve made it so many times. I was hoping to cook for friends at the weekend but there’s 15 people so was going to double the recipe but my slow cooker is too small. Can I make it in the oven instead? Thanks
Hi Amita, yes you can definitely make pulled pork in your oven at 325F/160C for 2.5 hours-3 hours.
Do you think this could be cooked in an Instant Pot rather than a slow cooker? If so, any adjustments besides time?
Absolutely! I have done so many times. No adjustment to the ingredients but cook on high pressure for 45-50 minutes. If you end up with too much liquid, you can reduce it by using a sauté button.
Yummy!!! So easy to make in hot weather! However, the only question I have, recipe says it serves 10. For nutrition, how many tacos is that per serving?
Hi Martha, it’s impossible to say exactly since I don’t know how much meat you put in each taco. The nutritional information in this recipe is an approximation. It simply takes the calories calculated from the entire recipe, as in ingredients listed, and divides it by 10.
The mouth-watering smells drifting out of our kitchen made the waiting almost unbearable- but it was so worth it. Absolutely amazing, melt-in-your-mouth flavor. The cilantro lime slaw was the perfect accompaniment. Awesome recipe. Thanks!
Best review ever! Thank you so much, Carrie! 🙂
I’m going to try this in my slow cooker and sub root beer. Thoughts?
Meg, definitely try slow cooker. I haven’t tried root beer but I did use coke in the past. I say go for it! 🙂 and let me know how it goes.
I love this recipe. Tacos are close to my heart. I worked at a Mexican restaurant for a few years. 🙂
I love Mexican food so much, unfortunately there isn’t much of it here in London so I have to make my own!