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BBQ Pineapple Pulled Pork is sweet, smoky, and incredibly tender – it’s the set-it-and-forget-it ultimate easy dinner recipe with incredible flavor! Slow cooked until it falls apart with a fork, this juicy shredded pulled pork combines tangy barbecue sauce with sweet pineapple for a tropical twist. Perfect for pork sandwiches, rice bowls, baked potatoes, tacos, or nachos.
BBQ Pineapple Shredded Pork (Easy Slow Cooker Pork Recipe)
If you’re looking for an effortless slow cooker recipe that delivers big flavor, with set-it-and-froget-it minimal prep work, this BBQ pineapple pulled pork checks every box. The pork roast cooks low and slow until perfectly tender while the pineapple adds natural sweetness that balances the rich barbecue sauce.
Similar to classic shredded pulled pork but this recipe has a sweet tropical twist thanks to crushed pineapple. The barbecue sauce provides smokey, tangy flavor while the pineapple juice and chunks or pineapple add sweetness that keeps the pork incredibly juicy.
Serve the pulled pork inside your favorite sandwich rolls, buns, or Hawaiian rolls. Other options inlaced a baked potato topping, nacho topping, bbq pork rice bowls, or even tacos. My family prefers eating this pork inside Hawaiian buns – similar to a sloppy joe style meal.
Why You’ll Love BBQ Pineapple Pulled Pork
- 🍽 Made with simple pantry ingredients like store-bought BBQ sauce, canned pineapple, and dried seasonings
- 🍽 Perfect blend of sweet, savory, and smoky flavors
- 🍽 Dump & Go style slow cooker meal – set it and forget it all day!
- 🍽 Perfect for sandwiches, sliders, tacos, or baked potatoes
Ingredients Needed
- Boneless Pork Picnic Roast : A picnic roast is a leaner cut of meat (pork shoulder) that comes from the lower part of the shoulder – so it’s not as tough nor does it have as much connective tissue as a upper shoulder cut does. A similar pork roast to use a boneless pork butt roast (or Boston butt roast) but it will not be as lean and have more connective tissues that will need to broken down during the low & slow cook time.
- Kosher Salt
- Ground Black Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Smoked Paprika
- Chili Powder
- Barbecue Sauce : Use your favorite barbecue sauce. Anything works! Sweet, spicy, smokey, pineapple, brown sugar, etc.
- Crushed Pineapple : A 20 ounce can of crushed pineapple undrained. Just pour all the contents inside the can into the slow cooker; juice and all.
- Light Brown Sugar
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Yellow Mustard
How To Make Crockpot BBQ Pineapple Pulled Pork Sandwiches (Printable Recipe Card)
Pat the pork picnic roast dry with paper towels. Place the roast on a cutting board or plate.
In a small bowl, mix together all the dried seasonings. Rub the seasoning mixture all over the picnic pork roast, making sure to coat the top, bottom, and sides. Gently press the seasonings into the pork roast to ensure they stay.
In a separate mixing bowl, mix together 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, crushed pineapple with juice, light brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and yellow mustard until combined.
Pour 1/2 cup of the pineapple barbecue sauce mixture into the bottom of a crockpot.
Place the seasoned pork roast into the crockpot. Then pour the remaining pineapple barbecue sauce mixture over top the pork roast.
Cover the crockpot with a lid and cook on LOW heat for 8-10 hours. The pork should should pull apart very easily with just a touch of two forks when it’s done.
Transfer the pork to a large cutting board or baking dish. Remove and discard any large pieces of fat or tough connective tissue pieces. Shred the pork with two forks.
Add the shredded pork back into the crockpot, and the remaining barbecue sauce from the bottle. Stir everything together well until the pork is covered in the sauces. If the pork looks saucier than you prefer, leave the lid slightly cracked and cook on high for about 20 minutes to thicken it back up. If the pork is not saucy enough, add some additional barbecues sauce and/or pineapple juice to loosen it back up.
Serve the pulled pork on warm brioche buns, sweet Hawaiian buns, slider rolls, sandwich rolls, or in baked potatoes or as rice bowls with some coleslaw or pasta salad. Enjoy!
How To Store Leftover Pulled Pork
Transfer the cooled leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
To freeze, let the pulled poker cool completely to room temperature, then store in freezer-safe bags or containers for up to 3 months. Freeze it with the extra sauce from the crockpot so it stays moist when reheating.
To reheat, warm the pork gently in a saucepan or covered skillet, over medium-low heat, adding a splash of liquid (water, broth, bbq sauce, pineapple juice) if needed. You can also reheat it in the microwave in short intervals, stirring between each one.
This recipe is a great make-ahead meal because the flavor gets even better after it sits. You can cook and shred the pork 1-2 days ahead, refrigerate it in the sauce from the crockpot, and reheat the cooked pork in the crockpot until warmed. I like adding a splash of pineapple juice and bbq sauce when reheating in the crockpot. The shredded pork stays really nicely on the warm setting for several hours.
Pro Tips From The Test Kitchen
- It’s best to use crushed pineapple because it’s blends into the barbecue sauce and gives the pork a sweet pineapple flavor in every bite without large chunks taking over. Of course, you can substitute pineapple tidbits or pineapple hunks, but crushed pineapple is recommended.
- The poke is ready when it shreds easily with very little effort. If it feels tough, it simply needs more time in the crockpot.
- Traditionally, pork is safe to eat at 145°F but pulled pork is much different – the pork needs to cook for much longer to become tender enough to shred easily. For the best texture, the pork should be closer to 210°F in temperature for it to shred and pull apart easily with a fork. Low and slow is the name of the game when it comes to shredded pulled pork that is ultra tender. I always cook this recipe for the longer cook time of closer to 10 hours.
- Use your favorite barbecue sauce – any flavor works in this recipe. I love using a sweeter barbecue sauce such as a Hawaiian barbecue sauce or brown sugar. You can also use a spicy one or regular works as well. I prefer the flavor of the Kinders brand of barbecue sauce.
- A pork picnic roast is the best cut of pork roast to use for this pulled pork. It’s a cut of meat from the lower part of the shoulder, which means that it is more tender and lean, without all the connective and fatty pieces of a regular pork roast. If you want a fattier cut of roast then use a boneless butt roast (also called a boston butter roast).
- Serve the pulled pork on sliders, brioche buns, buns, potato buns, or Hawaiian buns as a pulled pork sandwich. Can also serve with extra barbecue sauce and/or pineapple rings.
Side Dishes and Serving Suggestions For Pulled Pork
There are so many different ways to serve this sweet bbq pineapple pulled pork. Here are some ideas to get you started and the way my family loves to eat this great recipe!
- Sliders : Buy some slider buns and serve the pulled pork as slider sandwiches. Take it up a notch, and toast the sliders, add a slice of cheese and then some pork, and broil the little slider sandwiches in the oven.
- Buns : Use your favorite hamburger buns, brioche buns, or potato buns and serve the pulled pork ‘sloppy joe style’. This is how my family loves to eat pulled pork.
- Pulled Pork Taco : Serve the pulled pork inside flour tortillas with some toppings such as thinly sliced green onions, fresh cilantro, and coleslaw.
- Pulled Pork Baked Potatoes : Use the pulled pork (this is great for leftovers) and top a baked potato with the pork, some coleslaw, and green onions.
- Lettuce Cups : For a lower-carb serving option, serve the pulled pork inside lettuce cups or lettuce wraps.
- Fresh Pineapple : Grill some fresh pineapple for a great side dish or add some fresh pineapple when eating the shredded pulled pork.
- Baked Beans
- Copycat Chick Fil A Mac and Cheese
- Pasta Salad : This is the perfect side dish – try my Ranch Pasta Salad, Coleslaw Pasta Salad, or this Deviled Egg Pasta Salad.
- Roasted Potatoes : My family loves these Parmesan Roasted Potatoes or make my Garlic Parmesan Roasted Sweet Potatoes or Ranch Potatoes.
More Must Try Pork Dinner Recipes
- Maple Garlic Pork Chops (Marinated Pork Chops)
- Slow Cooker Pork Roast (Easy Slow Cooked Pork Recipe)
- Easy Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pork Chops
- Easy Ranch Pork Loin Recipe (In The Crockpot)
- Easy Delicious Brown Sugar Pork Chops (Oven Baked)
Crockpot BBQ Pineapple Pulled Pork
Ingredients
- 3-4 pounds boneless pork picnic roast
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 bottle (18 oz) barbecue sauce divided
- 1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple in juice do not drain
- 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Instructions
- Pat the pork picnic roast dry with paper towels. Place the roast on a cutting board or plate.3-4 pounds boneless pork picnic roast
- In a small bowl, mix together all the dried seasonings. Rub the seasoning mixture all over the picnic pork roast, making sure to coat the top, bottom, and sides. Gently press the seasonings into the pork roast to ensure they stay.2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- In a separate mixing bowl, mix together 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, crushed pineapple with juice, light brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and yellow mustard until combined.1 bottle (18 oz) barbecue sauce, 1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple in juice, 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- Pour 1/2 cup of the pineapple barbecue sauce mixture into the bottom of a crockpot.
- Place the seasoned pork roast into the crockpot. Then pour the remaining pineapple barbecue sauce mixture over top the pork roast.
- Cover the crockpot with a lid and cook on LOW heat for 8-10 hours. The pork should pull apart very easily with just a touch of two forks when it's done. *I prefer low & slow for the most tender, fall apart pork, I always cook it for 10 hours
- Transfer the pork to a large cutting board or baking dish. Remove and discard any large pieces of fat or tough connective tissue pieces. Shred the pork with two forks.
- Add the shredded pork back into the crockpot, and the remaining barbecue sauce from the bottle. Stir everything together well until the pork is covered in the sauces.*If the pork looks saucier than you prefer, leave the lid slightly cracked and cook on high for about 20 minutes to thicken it back up. If the pork is not saucy enough, add some additional barbecues sauce and/or pineapple juice to loosen it back up.
- Serve the pulled pork on warm brioche buns, sweet Hawaiian buns, slider rolls, sandwich rolls, or in baked potatoes or as rice bowls with some coleslaw or pasta salad. Enjoy!
Notes
- It’s best to use crushed pineapple because it’s blends into the barbecue sauce and gives the pork a sweet pineapple flavor in every bite without large chunks taking over. Of course, you can substitute pineapple tidbits or pineapple hunks, but crushed pineapple is recommended.
- The poke is ready when it shreds easily with very little effort. If it feels tough, it simply needs more time in the crockpot.
- Traditionally, pork is safe to eat at 145°F but pulled pork is much different – the pork needs to cook for much longer to become tender enough to shred easily. For the best texture, the pork should be closer to 210°F in temperature for it to shred and pull apart easily with a fork. Low and slow is the name of the game when it comes to shredded pulled pork that is ultra tender. I always cook this recipe for the longer cook time of closer to 10 hours.
- Use your favorite barbecue sauce – any flavor works in this recipe. I love using a sweeter barbecue sauce such as a Hawaiian barbecue sauce or brown sugar. You can also use a spicy one or regular works as well. I prefer the flavor of the Kinders brand of barbecue sauce.
- A pork picnic roast is the best cut of pork roast to use for this pulled pork. It’s a cut of meat from the lower part of the shoulder, which means that it is more tender and lean, without all the connective and fatty pieces of a regular pork roast. If you want a fattier cut of roast then use a boneless butt roast (also called a boston butter roast).
- Serve the pulled pork on sliders, brioche buns, buns, potato buns, or Hawaiian buns as a pulled pork sandwich. Can also serve with extra barbecue sauce and/or pineapple rings.
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