Recipe: 3-Ingredient Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork

Pork plus cola is a Southern phenomenon. I certainly never experienced it growing up on the West coast, but I have had my fill in the decade I lived in the South. Super sweet and just a bit acidic, cola is the perfect counterpart to rich, fatty pork shoulder. Here’s a secret, too: You can put a pork shoulder in the slow cooker with just a single bottle of cola — here, we’re using aromatic root beer — to create the easiest pulled pork that works brilliantly in sandwiches or served with rice and tangy slaws.

This three-ingredient slow cooker root beer pulled pork will totally convince you to give this Southern combination a try.

While you’ll finish this dish with a bottle of barbecue sauce, the whole cooking endeavor begins with just the pork, salt, and root beer. The flavor of the root beer doesn’t overwhelm the dish (in fact, it takes a back seat) to the pork, its fat, and the juices that cook out and braise the pork during its long cook in the slow cooker.

When the pork is tender, stir in some barbecue sauce if you plan on making sandwiches. Keep the pork plain if you want to fold it into tortillas or save for other dishes.