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Are you ready for some football? Ok, even if you aren’t a huge football fan you gotta love the food. These barbeque pulled pork sliders with pickled red onions are the perfect bite whether you are watching football or your favorite show.

The best part is the pork is cooked low and slow in the slow cooker so this meal practically makes itself. Place ingredients in the slow cooker, turn it on, and go about your day. After eight hours it’s time shred and assemble.

I developed this recipe for the KitchenAid Kitchenthusiast blog, in my lovely KitchenAid slow cooker. It is a very high tech slow cooker compared to traditional slow cookers. I have definitely been putting it to good use and will be sharing more slow cooker recipes that are easy to prepare, budget-friendly, and most of all scrumptious.

The sweet and smoky barbecue pork combined with the tangy bright pink, crunchy, and piquant flavor of the pickled red onions in a crusty, chewy, ciabatta roll is an explosion of flavors in every bite.

Get the step-by-step instructions on the Kitchenthusiast blog »

This recipe was created in partnership with KitchenAid®. All opinions are my own.

Barbeque Pulled Pork Sliders with Pickled Red Onions

5 (1 rating)
 These barbeque pulled pork sliders with pickled red onions are the perfect bite whether you are watching football or your favorite show. The best part is the pork is cooked low and slow in the slow cooker so this meal practically makes itself. Place ingredients in the slow cooker, turn it on and go about your day. After eight hours it’s time to shred and assemble.

Ingredients

Pickled Red Onions:

  • 2 large red onions, sliced 1/8 inch thick
  • 1 cup fresh lime juice, about 5 limes
  • 2/3 cup fresh orange juice, about 2 oranges
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Pork Sliders:

  • 2 white onions, thinly sliced
  • 4 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 14.5-ounce can low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
  • 4 pounds bone-in pork shoulder
  • 1 cup barbecue sauce
  • Pickled red onions
  • Ciabatta rolls

Instructions 

Pickled Red Onions:

  • Scoop the onions into a glass bowl. Pour enough boiling water to cover the onions, wait one minute, and then pour the onions into a strainer. Return the drained onions to the bowl, add the lime and orange juice, and stir in the salt. Cover and set aside until serving time.
  • The onions will last for a week or more in the refrigerator.

Pulled Pork Sliders:

  • Place the onions and garlic in an even layer in a slow cooker and pour in the chicken broth.
  • Combine the sugar, chili powder, salt, cumin, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Pat the pork dry with paper towels.
  • Rub the yellow mustard and spice mixture all over the pork and place the meat on top of the onions and garlic. Cover and cook until the pork is fork tender, about 6 to 8 hours on medium-high.
  • Turn off the slow cooker and transfer the pork to a cutting board.
  • Set a fine-mesh strainer over a medium heatproof bowl. Pour the onion mixture from the slow cooker through the strainer and return the solids to the slow cooker. Set the strained liquid aside.
  • Remove and discard the bones. Using 2 forks, shred the meat into bite-sized pieces, discarding any large pieces of fat. Return the shredded meat to the slow cooker, add the barbecue sauce and mix to combine.
  • Taste and season with salt if needed.
  • Place pulled pork on bottom halves of ciabatta rolls. Top the pork with pickled red onions. Cover with the top halves of the rolls and serve.

Notes

Feel free to spread some sriracha mayo on the bottom halves of your buns. 
Calories: 389kcal, Carbohydrates: 48g, Protein: 28g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 74mg, Sodium: 1744mg, Potassium: 625mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 353IU, Vitamin C: 20mg, Calcium: 47mg, Iron: 2mg