Slow Cooker Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork is sweet and spicy. The perfect weeknight meal to pair with a side or can be turned into sandwiches!
The ultimate Slow Cooker recipe inspired by the Pioneer Woman herself. Try Coca Cola Pot Roast or Slow Cooker Root Beer Chicken too!
Sabrina’s Slow Cooker Dr Pepper Pulled Pork Recipe
This recipe is a take on one of the first recipes I ever made for the site, Spicy Cherry Pop Roasted Pork. One of the great things about this recipe is the spicy cherry flavors and the idea Ree had to use Dr. Pepper instead of the classic Cola roasted meat is genius.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 5 pound pork shoulder , "Pork Butt"
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 whole yellow onion , cut into 8 wedges
- 1/2 can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 8 ounces Cherry Dr. Pepper
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 cup maraschino cherries , including juice
- 1/4 cup sweet jalapenos
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker together, go in order of the list and cover the pork carefully with each item in order.
- Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
- If you’d like to serve with the leftover liquids, strain the fat first.
Nutrition
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Table of contents
About this Recipe
Slow Cooker Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork is an easy recipe to make, but it does include ingredients I wouldn’t normally use, mainly maraschino cherries and Cherry Dr. Pepper. I use them here because though I don’t use processed foods as a general rule, this recipe is delightful! If you’d like to skip these items you can swap beef broth for the soda and cherry preserves for the maraschino cherries (it will taste different of course, but still carry similar flavor profiles).
Ingredients
- Cherry Dr. Pepper: Fruitier than the original Dr. Pepper. I like the extra burst of cherry flavor for this recipe.
- Maraschino Cherries: This adds sweetness, color and a burst of flavor, they’re a lot of fun in this recipe.
- Hot & Sweet Jalapenos: I chose these for the sandwich because the main flavors here are sweet and heat and I didn’t want the bitterness of plain pickled jalapenos in the recipe. You can of course omit them altogether too as the adobo peppers are adding most of the heat.
- Adobo Peppers: This is where almost all the heat in the recipe is coming from and some smokiness too. These peppers are SPICY, so if you love spice use half a can, if you can tolerate it okay use a ¼ of the can and if you hate spice, just stick to the jalapenos for the mildest kick of all.
Serving Ideas
- Serve this like you would a pot roast with a side of Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Root Vegetables.
- Serve it in tacos or burritos like you would a Chipotle Barbacoa filling.
- Serve it in a sandwich like pictured above. Bonus points if you dip it in the liquid!
- Make it into a burrito bowl served with Stick of Butter Rice, a nice Easy Cole Slaw and Baked Beans.
- Top it on nachos or cheesy fries for a great game day snack.
- Serve it in little sliders, topped with cheddar cheese and the Crusty French Bread Rolls brushed with butter and cayenne for a little kick.
- For extra flavor add Dr. Pepper BBQ Sauce.
Frequent Questions
Yes! I actually did that in the original version, Spicy Cherry Pop Roasted Pork, in the oven.
I don’t typically recommend making dishes which require liquid ingredients in the smoker. You could of course cook the roast in the smoker, then finish it in the oven with the rest of the ingredients.
Related Recipes
More Slow Cooker Pork Recipes
Photos used in previous posts
This sounds so good!!! Do you have any recommendations for sides to go with this?
You could really pair it with almost anything but I would recommend a light salad like coleslaw, pasta salad or something like that. Enjoy!
I can’t eat anything spicy so I’d like to leave out both types of peppers. Will the recipe have any taste without them? Is there something I can substitute that will taste good without the heat?
You can leave them out and still have amazing flavor from the other ingredients.
I love your recipes and have tried several they never disappoint. I want to try this one but have a few questions can you tell me how big the can is for the chipotle peppers 7 oz or 16oz ? Is there a specific brand you use? I also looked everywhere at the grocery store tonight and could not find sweet jalapenos (what exactly are those and where do I find them) Is this recipe really spicy? If so is there a way to make it not as spicy? THANK YOU for your help.
I used the 7.5 oz can of Adobo – these are very spicy so I would use less than half a can or even just the sauce. If you click on the links in the recipe for the ingredients you will see which brands I use and recommend.
THANK YOU going to try this today
How did it turn out? Hope you enjoyed!
Excellent recipe!!!
So glad you enjoyed it, Jo!
I have made pork loin with honey and apple in my slow cooker. It was delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Hi ! Being diabetic, I’m always looking to eliminate sugar when I can. Do you think SugarFree Dr. Pepper would work ?
Thanks!
As long as you go into it knowing that taste will be different (reg vs sugar free Dr Pepper), I’d say go for it!
Back in the early 1970s my graduate school room mate drank Tab because there was no diet coke yet but I didn’t like it. Diet Dr. Pepper was the first diet soda I learned to drink because it tasted like the regular soda and wasn’t bad. You should try it.
Can you use chicken instead of pork?
Yes, and I would recommend using thighs for this recipe. Enjoy!
I love how easy this is to make in the slow cooker! Looks so delicious! Everyone will love this!
Thanks Erin!
That looks so juicy and delicious!
Thank you!
I’ve made a cherry coke pulled pork before, and it was delicious… so I can’t wait to try this Dr Pepper version!!
Oooh, that sounds pretty good too!
This looks so good! And perfectly fun for a summer BBQ. I’ve never tried this pork with Dr. Pepper – a must try!
Dr. P and Pulled Pork?! Count me in!