Best Dutch Oven Pulled Pork Recipe

Cooking pulled pork in a Dutch oven is the perfect way to slow things down, and spend some quality time together as a family. I’m a huge fan of giant reward for little effort, and that’s exactly what this mouth-watering pulled pork is.

This simple recipe means everyone will be happy and full – and you won’t need to spend the entire day in the kitchen. In my book, that makes this the perfect campfire meal.

If you’re new to cooking with a Dutch oven, check out our post on Dutch Oven Campfire Cooking for Beginners to get you started.

How to Make Pulled Pork in Your Dutch Oven

To make the juiciest, tastiest pulled pork, cook the pork (neck or shoulder of pork both work well for this) with garlic, onion, tinned tomatoes, stock and a selection of spices.

And for the most flavorsome, tender meat, you’ll need to cook it low and slow – over the campfire in your Dutch oven for about 6 hours. But once it’s on, you just need to check it occasionally and top up the water in the pot. In the meantime, you can get on with enjoying the rest of the day outdoors while your pulled pork cooks to perfection.

We usually have our pulled pork in homemade burger buns, with a side of coleslaw (also homemade 🙂 ). It’s also delicious in a freshly-baked bread roll.

1. Dry the pork meat off. Mix all the dry ingredients together.
2. Rub the dry spices on the meat.
3. Roughly peel and chop the onions and garlic.
4. Put the meat into your Dutch oven. Add the onions and garlic, tinned tomatoes, stock and barbecue sauce of your choice.
5. Add water until the meat is covered, and keep coming back to it as it cooks to make sure it doesn’t go dry.
6. Once the meat falls apart when you pull on it with a fork, it’s done! This will take about 6 hours.

What is Pulled Pork?

Pulled pork is a true American classic. Traditionally the pork meat was smoked over wood until tender. Pulled pork was originally created by the Spanish settlers and inspired by the way the natives cooked their meat over a fire. Pulled pork is a slow process and the fire is what gives this soft, flaky meat its distinctive (and delicious) smoky flavor.

If it’s not a day for the campfire, you can cook your pulled pork in a slow cooker. This recipe also works well in a clay cooker for the oven, just set the oven to 260F (125C) and follow the recipe as normal.

What You Need to Cook Pulled Pork in Your Dutch Oven

You’ll need to combine all your ingredients ahead of time, so get started at least 6 hours before you want to eat. This recipe is cooked over a fire, so you will need access to a fire pit. If you need some help getting set up, here’s a post that’ll show you how to build a campfire.

You will also need a Dutch oven. We have cooked this several times, both using firewood and charcoal. Charcoal is easier to manage because you can have a set amount of coal around the Dutch oven at all times. Firewood is a little trickier, it can burn at different rates and temperates and so is harder to control, but it’s definitely possible.

TIP: When we’re on a camping trip, I mix the dry ingredients together at home before we leave. If I’m cooking the recipe within the first two days of the trip, I’ll even chop the garlic and the onion and bring them in a small bag or container. This saves time and cuts down on mess and fuss. It is super easy to transfer everything into the Dutch oven once we’re at the campsite.

Other than that, it’s pretty simple. You just need to spend a day by the campfire. Check in on your pulled pork now and then, making sure that it’s covered with water at all times.

How Long Does It Take to Make the Best Pulled Pork?

For this recipe, the clue is in the name. Pulled pork needs to be cooked for a long time at a low temperature until it’s tender enough for you to pull it apart.

My father usually says that it’s tender enough that you can chew it with your eyebrows. That’s not (quite) true, but this recipe does make the meat come apart nice and easily when you pull on it gently with a fork. It takes about 6 hours over the fire or in the oven for the meat to be tender. If it doesn’t come apart when you check, try giving it another 30 minutes.

TIP: If you have a lot of meat and there’ll be some left for another day, don’t pull it all apart today. Keep the leftovers as a whole piece of meat. This way it’ll be easier to reheat and will retain moisture better.

Here is the full recipe for the best pulled pork cooked in a Dutch oven:

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5 from 2 votes

Dutch Oven Pulled Pork

Pulled pork cooked over your campfire, in a Dutch oven. This is slow food at its best, and you do not need to spend time cooking, all you need do is watch as it turns into the most tender pulled pork you have ever had. 

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword Dutch oven pulled pork, dutch oven pulled pork camping, dutch oven pulled pork recipe, pulled pork dutch oven, pulled pork recipe dutch oven

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 5 hours

Total Time 5 hours 15 minutes

Servings 10

Ingredients

• 4,5 lb Neck of Pork
• 2 tbsp Salt
• 1 tsp Freshly Ground Pepper
• 2 tbsp Smoked Paprika
• 3 Onions
• 1 Garlic
• 1 lb Smoky Barbecue Sauce
• 1 cup Chicken Stock
• 2 tins Tomatoes
• Water
• Olive oil (or other suitable vegetable oil)

Instructions

• Light a fire, or start about 20 charcoal briquettes.

  TIP: The charcoal will make it easier to control the temperature of the cooking. You need about 12 pieces of charcoal underneath and about 8 on top, and you should aim for a temperature of around 260F (125C)
• Dry the meat off.

  Mix all the dry ingredients together.
• Rub the dry spices on the meat.
• Roughly peel and chop the onions and garlic.
• Add a couple of tablespoons of oil to the bottom of your Dutch oven. (It burns off quickly over the fire, so I tend to use a bit more than when I'm cooking it in a conventional oven.)
• Place the meat in your dutch oven.

  TIP: if there is more fat on one side of your meat than the other, then place the fat side down in the Dutch oven. This will help stop your meat sticking and burning.
• Add the onions and garlic.
• Add the tinned tomatoes, stock and barbecue sauce of your choice.

  If you have your own tomatoes from the garden they will work just fine too, just roughly chop them up and add them to the pot. You will need 4-6 tomatoes to replace a tin, depending on the size of your tomatoes.
• Add water until the meat is covered, and keep coming back to it over the next 5 hours to make sure it doesn’t go dry.
• Once the meat falls apart when you pull on it with a fork, its done. This will take about 6 hours.
  

This is the perfect way to spend a day by the fire. Together with good friends sharing a delicious, no hassle meal while you chat into the night. The kids also love this for supper when we go “backyard camping”.

Try it for yourself and let me know what you think, I’d love to hear from you.

Until next time,

XO Malene.