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As we’ve written before, you can’t go wrong with ANY recipe from the Pioneer Woman. My theory (tested about a dozen times) is that The Pioneer Woman gets such high marks because she is a master at adding one or two ingredients to her recipes that give them a much needed zing. With her homemade pancakes, it’s the lemon zest and sour cream. With her chicken tortilla soup, it’s Rotel tomatoes and corn meal. By adding a couple of interesting additions, her recipes go from good to great in one bite, with the end result tasting fabulous.
Now for the butt! Two ingredients: Dr. Pepper and Adobe Chilies, which create a melding of flavors that make this recipe divine.
This recipe calls for five simple ingredients: pork, onions, Dr. Pepper, brown sugar and chilis. Can it get any easier? Add anything else to build your taco.
Before you give thumbs down to the Dr. Pepper, I promise you that the addition of this one ingredient makes today’s recipe special. I know there’s been lots of hoo-rah-rah lately about sugary sodas and how bad they are for Americans. And I completely agree, but one Dr. Pepper does not make a darn difference when it comes to your waistband. One huge piece of advice–Do NOT make this recipe with Diet Dr. Pepper. Even the butt will protest.
It only took about 3 mintutes to chop the onion and dump the ingredients into the pan.
With a minimum of six hours in the oven, you get a wonderful, slow-cooked pork.
This recipe is so easy. Just pop it in the oven and forget about it for 7-8 hours. It works wonderfully as an entrée with baked beans and slice tomatoes, or makes a “killer” pork taco as witnessed by the photo below. Let your guests build their own tacos by giving them the option to add sour cream, tomato, chopped jicama, cilantro, black beans and guacamole.
Have fun building a pork taco with cilantro, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese and sour cream.
I’m a big admirer of Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman. She understands, as women, we’re all so busy, that popping dinner in the oven, heading to the pool for the afternoon and taking credit for the smell of pork butt wafting through the air when your cowboy walks through the door is what makes us giddy (as in giddy up and go get a pedicure while the butt is cooking).
I want to leave you with a Texas quote as a tribute to the Pioneer Woman and women everywhere!
“If you’re ridin’ ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.” (Author unknown)
- ■1 whole Large Onion
- ■1 whole Pork Shoulder (“pork Butt”) – 5 To 7 Pounds
- ■Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- ■1 can (11 Ounce) Chipotle Peppers In Adobo Sauce
- ■2 cans Dr. Pepper
- ■2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Peel the onion and cut it into wedges. Lay them in the bottom of a large dutch oven.
- Generously salt and pepper the pork roast, then set it on top of the onions in the pan.
- Pour the can of chipotle peppers over the pork (include the sauce.) Pour in both cans of Dr Pepper. Add brown sugar to the juice and stir in.
- Place lid tightly on pot, then set pot in the oven. Cook for at least six hours, turning roast two or three times during the cooking process. Check meat after six hours; it should be absolutely falling apart (use two forks to test.) If it’s not falling apart, return to the oven for another hour.
- Remove meat from pot and place on a cutting board or other work surface. Use two forks to shred meat, discarding large pieces of fat. Strain as much of the fat off the top of the cooking liquid as you can and discard it. Return the shredded meat to the cooking liquid, and keep warm until ready to serve. (You can also refrigerate the meat and liquid separately, then remove hardened fat once it’s cold. Then heat up the liquid on the stovetop and return the meat to the liquid to warm up.
- Serve on warm flour tortillas. Top with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, grated cheese, avocado slices, salsa, and whatever else you’d like.
Happy 4th of July.
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18 Responses to “Pork Butt and Dr. Pepper–YeeHah!”
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I saw PW (as she often refers to herself) make this on her show and was quite intrigued. I will definitely try it with your recommendation. I never cook, and my personal chef (aka husband) is pretty stringent about ingredients so I will have to start cooking this while he is gone and keep the recipe a secret.
Love PW!
Could you do this in a crock pot?
we think so as that makes perfect sense!
Can this be made in a crockpot overnight with the same results?
We think so. Makes sense!
A similar recipe, and one that my kids loved growing up, is ham and coca cola. Nigella Lawson has this in her cookery book “How to Eat” (pg. 293, White Trash Lunch for 6). Again, it requires full sugar Coke, and Pepsi doesn’t cut it. The leftovers make great grilled ham, Swiss, and raspberry preserve sandwiches. I can’t wait to try the pork recipe!
Sounds great! Do you think you could use a crockpot as opposed to your big oven?
I bet you could….
Doing this next weekend. Love anything that I can prepare, toss in, cook slowly and come in the house to a meal about to happen. Wonderful recipe!
This looks awesome, I make Pioneer Woman recipes all the time. But it also reminds me of a Real Simple recipe I have made a few times that is just about as easy and SOOO good. I’ve made it a few times and everyone who has tried it has loved it. http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/pulled-pork-tacos-00000000008021/index.html
Can’t wait to try this as a modified version of our family favorite using apricot jam, garlic and soy sauce – crock pot friendly, too. The versatility of the recipe is what my family loves: over rice, in a tortilla with sharp cheese, on sliders, etc.
Carolyn, your family favorite sounds yummy. Would you mind sharing the recipe?
Adding Dr. Pepper to apple juice and heating it makes a fun wintry cider. Add spices (and spirits) to liven it up even more.
I actually made this after seeing it featured on Pioneer Woman’s Food Network TV show. It couldn’t be easier and it’s absolutely DEE-licious. Just a word of warning: The Chipotle Peppers in Adobo sauce makes it VERY HOT & SPICY. Those smoked jalapenos add a serious kick. And I’m from Texas where we love it hot!! Not for the kiddos is all I’m saying unless they like peppers.
She adds a coleslaw with cilantro mayo that really helps cool it down too and serves the meat shredded on a bun BBQ style. A favorite for our days on the golf course.
It sounds yummy as is but any suggestions for a substitution for the chipotle peppers? I’d love to make it more kid-friendly.
It does have a kick, not doubt. If you add 1/2 can it may be less spicy, but if you make it without the peppers, it should work.
Clearly, a winner. We just returned from being out of town for 8 days and as I was catching up on emails, voicemails, etc. I thought how easy to let this cook all day as I laundry, calander manage and reunite with reality?
Thanks Liza and Elizabeth. Yummy!
I comment to add this idea. If you are leaving town and want a home meal upon return, please use this. We did full strenth with the chipotle and was lovely. However, maybe since the kids were born and spent most of life in Austin, possibly their spice threshold is skewed. I digress….. So darn good and the best kind of good, effortless.
Best,
Dana