These tacos are filled with mouthwatering slow cooker pulled pork and creamy cilantro lime slaw. Easy, effortless and delicious!
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 pulled pork 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 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. When your meat is ready, take two forks and simply pull it apart.
Julia’s Tips
I used to sear meat before adding it to my crock pot but I’ve skipped the step in this recipe as I often do nowadays. Browning the pork doesn’t noticeably affect the taste and skipping it makes this recipe so much easier and mess free.
The only thing I do is cut the large pork shoulder into quarters before mixing it with the seasoning, which makes shredding it, after it’s been cooked till tender, a snap!
Serving Suggestions for Tacos
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. You won’t regret it!
More delicious taco recipes to try:
- Ground Beef Tacos
- Fish Tacos
- Pulled Lamb Birria Tacos
- Chicken Tacos (Use the chicken recipe to fill tacos)
This recipe was originally published in 09/2013. Updated and republished in 07/2020.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs pork shoulder skin and fat removed
- salt
- 125ml½ cup 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
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- 1-2 tbsp chipotle paste
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 onion
- 3 cloves garlic
For the Cilantro Lime Slaw
- ½ 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.
Tammy Morgan says
Do you think this could be cooked in an Instant Pot rather than a slow cooker? If so, any adjustments besides time?
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
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.
Martha says
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?
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
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.
Carrie says
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!
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Best review ever! Thank you so much, Carrie! 🙂
Meg, Happy Kids, Inc (@happykidsinc) says
I’m going to try this in my slow cooker and sub root beer. Thoughts?
Vikalinka says
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.
Mom's Dish says
I love this recipe. Tacos are close to my heart. I worked at a Mexican restaurant for a few years. 🙂
Vikalinka says
I love Mexican food so much, unfortunately there isn’t much of it here in London so I have to make my own!