Asian Sticky Pulled Pork

This Asian Sticky Pulled Pork is a delicious, melt-in-your-mouth dish that balances sweet, savoury, and aromatic spices. The long, slow cooking process ensures the pork is tender and caramelised, making it perfect for an impressive dinner or casual gatherings.

It couldn’t be quicker or easier to prepare and when you take it from the oven, you’ll have a melt in your mouth, sticky sweet pulled pork to enjoy. The zesty slaw is the perfect accompaniment to offset the sweetness of the pork so I highly recommend you make it. Sometimes we have this all piled into tortillas which is also extremely delicious.

Health benefits

Pork shoulder is a great source of high-quality protein and essential nutrients like B vitamins, zinc, and iron. The chicken broth adds gelatinous, gut healing goodness. The Asian slaw adds a fresh and crunchy contrast, providing fibre, antioxidants, and vitamins from the cabbage and apple. The use of fresh herbs like mint adds additional anti-inflammatory benefits.

Ingredients

The pulled pork recipe calls for a combination of aromatic ingredients such as fresh ginger, cloves garlic, and star anise to flavour the pork. Tamari or coconut aminos, along with your choice of sweetener (rice malt syrup, honey, or maple syrup), create a sticky, sweet glaze. The Asian slaw includes cabbage, apple or pineapple, capsicum, and mint, dressed with a simple lime and fish sauce vinaigrette.

How to make this Asian sticky pulled pork

To make this Asian pulled pork, begin by preheating your oven and placing the pork in a heavy, lidded pot (like a Dutch oven). Combine the ginger, garlic, chilli, star anise, tamari, sweetener, wine, stock, and Chinese five spice, and pour this mixture over the pork. Slow cook the pork for 3 hours, then increase the oven temperature to caramelise the pork until it becomes sticky. Meanwhile, prepare the Asian slaw by combining the salad ingredients and mixing the dressing just before serving. This is also great to make in a slow cooker, pressure cooker or instant pot too.

Serving suggestions and how to store

Serve the sticky pulled pork with the Asian slaw for a satisfying contrast of textures and flavours. It also pairs well with tortillas for an easy, handheld option. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days, or frozen for future use. Reheat in a low oven before serving.

Vary Asian sticky pulled pork to suit your dietary needs

For a wine-free version, substitute the wine with more stock or broth, plus a teaspoon of vinegar. If you’re soy-free, use coconut aminos in place of tamari. Seafood-free? Omit the fish sauce and use a tablespoon of sea salt instead. To make this fructose-friendly, use rice malt syrup as the sweetener. For a grain-free option, choose maple syrup. If you need it garlic-free, simply omit the garlic or replace it with garlic-infused oil if tolerated.

Other variations

You can make this shredded pork in a slow cooker by halving the liquid and extending the cooking time, but be sure to reduce the sauce afterwards for that perfect sticky texture. The Grab Bag Formula is another great way to prepare this dish ahead of time for easy, fuss-free cooking.

Take a look at the variations (below the main recipe) for suggestions to alter the recipe to suit any specific dietary requirements.

For more delicious, easy to make, healthy dinner recipes, click HERE.

Asian Sticky Pulled Pork

Prep 10 minutes minutes

Cook 3 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Total 3 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Serves: 6

This simple Asian Sticky Pulled Pork is so easy to prepare. The zesty slaw is the perfect accompaniment to offset the sweetness of the pork so I highly recommend you make it.

MetricUS Customary

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Ingredients

• 1 kg pork shoulder – or collar, boned, fat trimmed
• 3 tbsp ginger root – fresh and finely grated (approx. 50 g)
• 4 clove/s garlic – crushed
• 1 red chilli/s – long and halved (optional)
• 3 star anise
• 75 ml tamari – or coconut aminos (⅓ cup)
• 115 g rice malt syrup, honey or maple syrup (⅓ cup)
• 120 ml dry white wine (½ cup)
• 120 ml chicken broth or stock (½ cup)
• 1 ½ tsp Chinese five spice powder

Asian Slaw

• ½ red or white cabbage
• 1 green apple – sliced into matchsticks or a cup of diced pineapple
• ½ bunch/s fresh mint leaves
• 1 red capsicum/s – sliced

Dressing

• 1 lime/s – juice
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp rice malt syrup, honey or maple syrup
• 1 red chilli/s – optional and diced

Method

• Preheat oven to 160°C/ 320°F (fan-forced).
• Place the pork in a cast iron Dutch oven or casserole dish with a heavy or tight fitting lid (if not tight, place a layer of foil under the lid or wrap the dish tightly with foil so the pork steams).
• In a small jug mix the ginger, garlic, chill, star anise, tamari, sweeter, wine, stock and five spice and pour over the pork.
• Cook for 3 hours, turning after an 1½ hours.
• Remove the lid, break up the pork and increase the heat to 200°C (390°F) and cook for a further 20 minutes (uncovered) or until the sauce reduces and the pork is sticky and tender. Watch it carefully to get the caramelisation perfect.
• Make the slaw by mixing all the salad ingredients together. Mix the dressing ingredients together in a jar and shake well to combine. Dress the salad just prior to serving.

Serve

• Serve the pork with the salad.
• Great inside tortillas too.

Slow cooker

• This can certainly cooked in a slow cooker. However, as the speed and temperature varies between the many brands of slow cookers, base the amount of liquid you add and the cook time on a similar style of recipe in the guide book for your specific slow cooker. The general rule of thumb is to halve the liquid and double the cook time, but understanding your own slow cooker is the best guide.
• If you end up with a lot of liquid, you may need to reduce this on the stove top or in the oven to caramelise the meat and make it nice and sticky.

Make Ahead

• Re-heat in a low oven (covered) until just hot.

Store

• Store in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Grab Bag Formula Method

• If you've done the **Grab Bag Formula Short Course, this is the method to convert this recipe…
• Firstly place the pork shoulder then the remaining pulled pork ingredients into the Grab Bag.
• Carefully seal your Grab Bag. I close most of the seal then press out as much air as I can then complete the seal. Place the Grab Bag in the freezer.
• To cook, remove the Grab Bag from the freezer, place on a baking tray and thaw in the fridge overnight.
• Tip the contents of the Grab Bag into a large oven proof dish (with a tight fitting lid) or Dutch oven. It may still be a bit frozen; that’s okay.
• Place the lid on the pot, set your oven to 150°C/300°F (fan-forced) and cook for 3½ hours, turning halfway through.
• Remove the lid, break up the pork and increase the heat to 200°C (390°F) and cook for a further 20 minutes (uncovered) or until the sauce reduces and the pork is sticky and tender. Watch it carefully to get the caramelisation perfect.
• ** The Grab Bag Formula Short Course is available to purchase for just AU$46 HERE.

  OR

  If you are a full-access Well Nourished Family member, the course is included in your membership and you can access in the members portal – HERE.

Variations

Wine-free

Replace with stock or broth plus a tsp of vinegar.

Soy-free

Replace the tamari with coconut aminos.

Seafood-free

Replace the fish sauce with a tablespoon of sea salt.

Fructose-friendly

Choose rice malt as your sweetener.

Grain-free

Choose maple syrup as your sweetener.

Garlic-free

Omit or replace with garlic oil (if tolerated).

 

 

I’d love to hear how you like this recipe. Post a comment below and rate this recipe, thanks so much. 

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian

Author: Georgia Harding

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