Chipotle-Pulled Pork Sandwich
Sweet, savory and a touch spicy, this Chipotle-Pulled Pork Sandwich is easy to put together – especially when using a slow cooker. When topped with our creamy coleslaw, it helps to balance the spiciness of the pork and creates a tasty crunch with every bite.
Into blender combine onion, peppers, lime juice, garlic and cumin. Process until smooth, adding just enough of the cola until mixture is smooth. Stir in remaining cola.
Place roast into slow cooker and pour mixture over. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours, or on high 4- 5 hours.
Using two forks, pull apart the meat into shreds, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
Remove liquid from slow cooker and pour into a sauce pan (can remove some fat if desired, using one of these separater type measuring cups). Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered, until it is reduced to your desired consistency (about 10-15 minutes). 
Stir in shredded meat, stirring until fully coated and heated throughout. Season to taste with salt if desired. To serve, top split buns with pulled pork mixture and some coleslaw.
Did you know a Pressure Cooker can work just like a slow cooker? Here are some setting conversions:
For the Instant Pot:
Low = keep warm on a traditional slow cooker.
Medium = low on a traditional slow cooker.
High = medium high on a traditional slow cooker.
Chipotle-Pulled Pork Sandwich
Ingredients
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 1-2 canned chipotle peppers in GF adobo sauce
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 12 oz can cola
- 3 lb boneless pork shoulder or butt
Instructions
- Into blender combine onion, peppers, lime juice, garlic and cumin. Process until smooth, adding just enough of the cola until mixture is smooth. Stir in remaining cola.
- Place roast into slow cooker and pour mixture over. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours, or on high 4- 5 hours.
- Using two forks, pull apart the meat into shreds, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
- Remove liquid from slow cooker and pour into a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered, until it is reduced to your desired consistency (about 10-15 minutes). Stir in shredded meat, stirring until fully coated and heated throughout. Season to taste with salt if desired.
- To serve, top split buns with pulled pork mixture and some coleslaw.
Notes
Cola adds sweetness as well as a rich caramel flavor. However, in place of cola you could always use:
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp GF Dijon mustard
¾ cup white vinegar
1/3 cup GF ketchup
2 tsp GF Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup brown sugar
+ water to make mixture up to 12oz
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I love your story about the slow cooker. I will tell you what I did. I
put chili powder on a bowl of expensive gluten free cereal in
stead of cinnamon the jars were both the same brand. you could
imagine my first spoonful. would I be able to use a pork
tenderloin instead in your chipotle pulled pork sandwich.
thank you. Pat
Ha ha. At least you only ruined a bowl of cereal and not $15 roast like me! I don’t think pork tenderloin would work, the cut of meat is important when doing ‘pulled’ type sandwiches. The meat needs to have long muscle strands that will pull part when cooked (chicken will do it too), like in the shoulder or butt.The muscle configuration in the tenderloin isn’t long strips (which is also why its so tender), so it won’t pull apart into strips.
Thank You Again. Pat.
As to using cola in the recipe, cola contains caramel color which contains gluten. So, if you want this dish to be truly gluten free, you should use the alternate ingredients and make the sauce instead of using cola.
Pepsi and Coca-Cola in the U.S., Canada, and the UK have gluten free cola. Although caramel coloring can be made from barely, it is now made mainly from corn or cane sugar. If wheat/barley was used, it would be included on the ingredient label as per the new labeling laws.
All other brands of cola, such as no-name or those produced in other parts of the world, is where you need to be concerned of caramel coloring being derived from wheat products. In those cases you’ll need to contact the manufacturers, since labeling laws in those areas may not require gluten to be listed on the ingredient list. Some cola’s that claim to be gluten free can still be using wheat-based caramel coloring, however after all the processing that the product goes through the gluten levels are less than the 20ppm which is what the FDA/CFIA consider to be gluten free. However, if you are one of those people who are ultra-sensitive to gluten, then you may still react to these types of gluten free sodas, and they should be avoided. I included a flavor substitute in the recipe if you prefer not to use cola at all.
I disagree. I have been doing slow cooker pulled pork for years and always use tenderloin cut into large chunks. After cooking on low heat all day it pulls apart easily and eliminates the need to separate the fat which you get with other cuts. Coleslaw crunchiness is a great idea, thanks!
If you need to freeze this before hand, can you add the sauce to the roast, freeze and then put in crock pot????
I’ve never tried, but I think I would shred the cooked meat first, stir it in with the sauce and then freeze all that together once it’s cooled.