This gluten-free pulled pork on stove top is the perfect budget-friendly recipe, that is super tasty and always a crowd favourite. Made with a homemade BBQ sauce, it is healthy & easy to make. Ideal for batch cooking, to freeze portions, and to have leftovers for the entire week.
If you’ve been following my recipes, you know I am a BIG FAN of slow cooking meat. It comes out so tender and delicious, you can use cheaper cuts of meat, and cook a huge amount in one go!
This pulled pork on stove top recipe is very similar to my pulled BBQ beef brisket, but in pork version. If you love hearty meat meals, you might also want to try this slow cooker lamb ragu, this melt-in-your mouth slow cooker pork belly, these Spanish meatballs on onion-tomato sauce, or these 4-Ingredients boneless pork ribs.
Jump to:
- Ingredients
- What is the best cut for pulled pork?
- How to make pulled pork on stove top
- How long to let pulled pork rest
- Substitutions & variations
- Equipment
- Sides & recipes with leftover pulled pork
- Storage
- Top tip to make the best pulled pork on stove top!
- FAQ
- Related
- Pulled Pork On Stove Top (Gluten-free)
- See what other people think about this recipe!
Ingredients
Pork
- Pork shoulder
- Salt
- Ground pepper
- Brown onion diced
- Garlic diced
- Celery stalks diced
- Beef stock
- Gluten-free beer
- Bay leaves
BBQ sauce
- Tomato passata
- Tomato paste
- Honey
- Apple cider vinegar
- Balsamic vinegar
- Smoked paprika
- Cayenne powder
- Ground pepper
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
What is the best cut for pulled pork?
A fatty cut of pork is a must for pulled pork! The fat will melt during the cooking process and will make the meat extra tender. Pork shoulder is the best cut, and pork butt is also a good one!
How to make pulled pork on stove top
This gluten-free pulled pork recipe is super easy to follow. Plus you can do other stuff while the meat is slow-cooking. Don’t you love that? 😊
1- Season and sear the pork
Add the ground pepper and the salt to the meat and rub on both sides. Add a generous drizzle of olive oil to a pot on medium-high heat, and sear all sides until they’re nicely golden-brown (approx. 4-5 minutes per side). Remove from the pot and set aside on a plate.
2- Cook the veggies
Add the garlic and onion with a pinch of salt to the same oil where you cooked the pork. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the celery, stir to combine, and cook for another 15 minutes until both the celery and onion are soft.
3- Slow cook the pork
Put the pork back into the pot, add the bay leaves and pour the beer and the stock. Cover with a lid, and cook on medium-low (I use setting 3 of my electric stove) for 3,5 hours. The liquid should gently bubble. Flip the meat half way through the cooking time.
Once the time is up, check that you can easily pull-apart the meat with a fork.
4- Pull apart the pork
Remove the meat from the pot and transfer it to a large chopping board or plate. Using two forks, pull apart all the meat. Once finished, transfer the pulled pork back into the pot and combine with a timber spatula.
Bring the heat to medium (I use setting 5 of my electric stove) and cook without lid for 30-45 minutes, so most of the liquid evaporates. You should end up with a bit of liquid in the pot though.
As the pork rests, it will keep absorbing liquid, so be mindful of not letting all the liquid evaporate.
5- Prepare the BBQ sauce and add it to the meat
While the pulled meat is cooking as per the step before, prepare the BBQ sauce. Simply add all the ingredients to a medium pot with lid, and cook on medium-low setting, stirring occasionally. You can cook this sauce for as little as 20 minutes or the entire 30/45 minutes while the meat cooks.
Once the 30/45 minutes are up, add the BBQ sauce to the meat, stir to combine, and cook without lid for another 5 minutes on medium heat.
Hint: it’s important to not let all the liquid evaporate. Once the pork cools down it will absorb more liquid, and the sauce will thicken.
How long to let pulled pork rest
As with all slow-cooked recipes, I find the flavours deepen as the recipe rests for a while. My preference is always to cook it the day before.
Substitutions & variations
- Add other veggies – like leeks.
- Use a store-bought BBQ sauce – look out for low sugar content and no nasty additives!
- Make it hot – adding more cayenne pepper to the BBQ sauce. Add progressively though! Bear in mind that you can always keep adding, but you can’t rectify if you put too much.
- Skip the beer – add an extra 250ml of beef stock instead.
Equipment
- Knife & chopping board
- Timber spatula
- Big pot with lid
- Small pot with lid
- Forks
Sides & recipes with leftover pulled pork
This gluten-free pulled pork is such a handy dish to have in the fridge or freezer! It’s super versatile, and you can combine it with so many things. Here you are some of my favourites:
- Pulled pork salad: make it Mexican-style with some purple coleslaw, avocado and pickles!
- Leftover pulled pork tacos: without doubt one of my favourites!
- Pulled pork rice bowl: for a hearty and healthy dish!
- Pulled pork burrito: with some rice, black beans and avocado! Add some jalapenos for a spicy touch.
- A side of oven-baked potatoes: for a quick and simple meal.
- Serve with cauliflower mash for a low carb dish option.
- Make a sandwich or burger: with a bit of lettuce and slices of tomato.
Storage
How long does pulled pork last in the fridge?
You can store the pulled pork in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
How to freeze pulled pork
This recipe is great for batch cooking and to freeze portions to enjoy later!
Store portions in the freezer in airtight containers for up to 3 months.
Top tip to make the best pulled pork on stove top!
A fatty cut of pork is a must to ensure the meat ends up extra tender! If you feel like the meat you bought has too much fat, feel free to trim a bit, but make sure to leave some!
FAQ
Yes! This gluten-free BBQ pulled pork recipe is healthy. It is made with a homemade BBQ sauce that is low in sugar content. Pork is high in protein.
The amount of pulled pork per person will depend on what you’re eating it with (salad, burrito, tacos…). I usually aim for 120g-200g per person!
Related
Pulled Pork On Stove Top (Gluten-free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 295 minutes
- Total Time: 5 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 10 - 12 servings 1x
- Category: Main course
- Cuisine: Australian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This gluten-free pulled pork on stove top is the perfect budget-friendly recipe, that is super tasty and always a crowd favourite. Made with a homemade BBQ sauce, it is healthy & easy to make. Ideal for batch cooking and freeze portions, and to have leftovers for the entire week.
Ingredients
Pork
1.2kg pork shoulder
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
1 large onion / 2 medium diced
5 garlic diced
2 celery stalks diced
1 cup of beef stock
33 cl gluten-free beer
2 bay leaves
BBQ sauce
1 cup of tomato passata
3 tbsp of tomato paste
3 tbsp of honey
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp smoked paprika
⅛ tsp cayenne powder
¼ tsp ground pepper
¼ tsp salt
Instructions
-
Start by seasoning & searing the pork: Add the ground pepper and the salt to the meat, and rub on both sides. Add a generous drizzle of olive oil to a pot on medium-high heat, and sear all sides until they’re nicely golden-brown (approx. 4-5 minutes per side). Remove from the pot and set aside on a plate.
-
Cook the veggies: Add the garlic and onion with a pinch of salt to the same oil where you cooked the pork. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the celery, stir to combine, and cook for another 15 minutes until both the celery and onion are soft.
-
Slow cook the pork: Put the pork back into the pot, add the bay leaves and pour the beer and the stock. Cover with a lid, and cook on medium-low (I use setting 3 of my electric stove) for 3,5 hours. The liquid should gently bubble. Flip the meat half way through the cooking time. Once the time is up, check that you can easily pull-apart the meat with a fork.
-
Pull apart the pork: Remove the meat from the pot and transfer it to a large chopping board or plate. Using two forks, pull apart all the meat. Once finished, transfer the pulled pork back into the pot and combine with a timber spatula.
-
Cook the pulled pork with the sauce: Bring the heat to medium (I use setting 5 of my electric stove) and cook without lid for 30-45 minutes, so most of the liquid evaporates. You should end up with a bit of liquid in the pot though. As the pork rests, it will keep absorbing liquid, so be mindful of not letting all the liquid evaporate.
-
Prepare the BBQ sauce: While the pulled meat is cooking as per the step before, prepare the BBQ sauce. Simply add all the ingredients to a medium pot with lid, and cook on medium-low setting, stirring occasionally. You can cook this sauce for as little as 20 minutes or the entire 45 minutes while the meat cooks.
-
Add the BBQ sauce to the meat: Once the 45 minutes are up, add the BBQ sauce to the meat, stir to combine, and cook without lid for another 5 minutes on medium heat.
- Enjoy!
Notes
It’s important to not let all the liquid evaporate (step 5). Once the pork cools down it will absorb more liquid, and the sauce will thicken.
As with all slow-cooked recipes, I find the flavours deepen as the recipe rests for a while. My preference is always to cook it the day before.
A fatty cut of pork is a must (pork shoulder or pork butt) to ensure the meat ends up extra tender! If you feel like the meat you bought has too much fat, feel free to trim a bit, but make sure to leave some!
Clara says
A super tasty recipe, it saves you any meal of the week or a dinner with friends. It has a lot of possibilities, with vegetables, pasta, rice, tacos... it’s perfect and very soft.
alicia gonzalez tome says
Thanks for the comment Clara! Happy to see you are finding lots of options to use the pork 🤗
Marina says
Increíble receta, me salvo de una cena con amigos. La carne me quedo super tierna y con mucho sabor! 😋 Gracias!!
alicia gonzalez tome says
Que bien Marina! Gracias por el comentario 🙏😊
Will says
This one wins! I made a big batch and had enough for burritos for lunch. Delicious!
Joseba says
Really delicious and very easy to cook. With the meat I made afterwards some tacos and they were a total success!
Cynthia says
Best pulled pork ever! And so easy to cook 😍 I love it!
Marta says
Realy delicious, and all my children love it.