Apricot Pulled Pork - The Best Recipe You Have to Try!

Apricot Pulled Pork is tender sweet and savory and perfect with baked beans or loaded potato salad!

Apricot Pulled Pork

This tantalizing pulled pork is made with a marinated and slow-smoked (or roasted) Boston butt roast... Misted with apricot nectar, shredded, and topped with a tangy apricot sauce in place of barbecue sauce!

Print this easy pulled pork recipe card at the bottom of this post, but read through everything first for more detailed instructions!

If you don't have a smoker, you can use a charcoal grill, (oven, crock pot or instant pot) just make sure to add more coals halfway through your cooking time and rotate the Boston butt every hour on the grill.

You can also roast your Boston Butt Roast in the oven, misting it with the apricot nectar solution every 30 minutes or so. Spraying the pork with the apricot nectar helps to flavor your meat and helps to keep it moist.

This pulled pork recipe is delicious on it's own, but it also makes for excellent pork sandwiches too!

Choosing Pork Cut

This recipe is made with a Boston butt, but it's also delicious made with a 6-pound pork loin, but it will be a bit drier than if you use the Boston butt.

Most people think that a butt roast comes from the butt of a pig. Interesting fact… A pork butt, or Boston Butt, is not actually the butt area of the pig at all… That’s the ham! The Boston Butt is actually just down past the head and above the shoulders of the pig in the neck area … (if pigs had necks lol.) Boston butt roast is the best cut of meat for pulled pork!

Get the butt roast instead of a boneless pork shoulder roast, or picnic roast because it’s a higher quality cut of pork. The shoulder or picnic roast tends to have more connective tissue (or gristle) in them than the Boston butt does. When you cut into a pork shoulder roast there will be more tendons and tissues holding the meat to the bone and together… The Boston Butt roast has much less of that and a nice marbled high-quality meat.

When you’re at the grocery store shopping for a Boston Pork Butt Roast, make sure to get one with the bone in and lots of visible excess fat on it! Believe it or not, the bone and the fat give all that meat a great flavor, and the fat keeps the roast moist through hours and hours of slow and low roasting!

Key Ingredients

6-6.5lb Boston Butt Roast - Look for a nice fat cap when buying one!
Fresh Garlic or Garlic Powder
Salt
Brown Sugar
Ground black pepper
Onion powder
Red pepper flakes
Apricot nectar
Apple cider vinegar
Apricot preserves (or apricot freezer jam)
Liquid smoke *optional

Tools

• You will need a way to cook your meat... I suggest a smoker, but you can also use a charcoal grill or oven.
• Large bowl and plastic wrap for marinating. (Or an extra large ziplock bag)
• (For Smoking) Wood chips... Peach wood chips are best for this recipe but apple, and cherry would also be great! If you are using a charcoal grill you'll need charcoals, of course.
• 9x13 pan, or dutch oven, if using your oven.
• Cooking spray bottle.
• Measuring cups.
• Cutting board or large plate
• 2 forks for shredded pork or pulling pork.
• Instant-read meat thermometer!

Directions

How to Make Apricot Boston Butt Pulled Pork Recipe:

This recipe has only a handful of simple ingredients, it's marinated overnight, then slowly cooked at 250 degrees F for about 8.5 hours till it reaches 190 degrees F internally.

Step 1 - First Make Your Dry Rub Marinade!

Make the spice rub by adding the following ingredients to a small bowl and mix well. Then rub generously all over your Boston Butt Roast. Place your seasoned roast in a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Let your roast marinate for 8 hours or overnight in the fridge.

• 3 cloves garlic chopped small or crushed and chopped, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (or more if you like spicy.)

Step 2 - Prep Your Smoker, Grill, Oven, Instant Pot or Crock Pot

Pulled Pork is always BEST when it's smoked... But if you don't have a smoker, you can also use your charcoal grill, just remember to add more coals when you are halfway through the cooking time and rotate your meat on different sides every hour.

If you don't have a charcoal grill or a smoker, you can make this recipe in your oven! Place your marinated roast into a 9x13 baking dish to help keep the oven clean, because you'll be misting it with apricot nectar in a spray bottle. But you can also use a basting brush to apply the apricot nectar through the roasting process.

Smoker - The Best Way To Make Pulled Pork!

My favorite way to cook pulled pork for the best end result is in a smoker! It ass so much flavor that you just can't quite get any other way.

Soak your wood chips for at least 30 minutes, and prep your smoker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Your smoker should be heated to 225 - 250 degrees F.

Then drain your wood chips, put your roast on the top cooking grate, and close the lid. Keep your smoker temperature between 225 and 250 degrees F. Add more wood chips as needed during the 8.5 hours it cooks.

Charcoal Grill

Get your charcoal grill ready by lighting coals and letting the grill heat to medium-high. Remember to add more coals after about 4 hours of cooking, and rotate your Boston butt roast every hour or so.

Place your roast directly on the grate and close the lid, and watch the temperature of your grill, keeping it between 225 degrees F and 250 degrees F. (Adding more hot coals as needed.)

Oven

Prepare your oven by preheating it to 225 degrees F. Move your oven rack to the middle of the oven. Then place your marinated roast into a 9x13 baking dish or dutch oven, and place it in the oven. Cook for about 8.5 hours or till it reaches 190 degrees internal temperature in the thickest portion of the roast on an instant-read meat thermometer.

You can cook this with the lid on or off... If you cook it with the lid off the crust will develop a "bark that is crusty and brown and delicious, if you cook it with the lid on it will cook faster but does not develop that crust or "bark" that everyone loves.

Crockpot

If using the crock pot, season and marinate your Boston butt as above, then place it into your crock pot and add the misting apricot nectar to the bottom of the slow cooker.

Cook on high for 8 hours till it is falling apart and easy to pull with forks. Drain off liquids, make the apricot sauce below, and use 2 forks to pull the pork apart. Serve with homemade apricot sauce below! (This will be one of your favorite slow cooker recipes!)

Instant Pot Pulled Pork

You can also make this recipe in the instant pot or pressure cooker. Follow the instructions above for dry rub and marinate. Place Boston Butt Roast into the instant pot, add the apricot nectar and water mixture, and cook on high for 2 hours.

Let the pressure come down, and drain liquids into a bowl. Make the Apricot sauce, use 2 forks to pull your pork apart, and serve with sauce!

Step 3 - Misting Pulled Pork

If you are using the instant pot or crock pot you will not mist your roast... But you will add it into the pot before you start cooking it.

This tantalizing pulled pork is made by adding 1 cup apricot nectar and ½ a cup of water to a spray bottle, then misting your Boston butt roast every half hour to every hour throughout the cooking time of 8.5 hours.

Misting your smoking meat (or roasting meat) every 30-60 minutes will help keep the meat moist and add delicious flavor!

Smoking Pork Butt

Smoking Your Boston Butt Pulled Pork - Keep your Boston Butt roast smoking or cooking for 8.5 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F in the thickest part of the roast.

(This should take about 8.5 hours for a 6 - 6.5 pound Boston Butt Roast.)

Mist your cooking Boston butt roast every 30-60 minutes with the apricot nectar mixture.

Step 5 - Remove Boston Butt From the Smoker, Grill, or Oven

This will cook for a long time... About 8.5 hours. After the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F., remove it from the smoker, grill, or oven. Place it on a large cutting board or place and cover it with aluminum foil to rest.

Step 6 - Rest Your Boston Butt Roast

I know... You've been waiting so long... But, let your smoked (or cooked) Boston Butt roast rest for at least 15 minutes. This allows the internal juices to redistribute so they keep your roast moist and don't run out onto your cutting board, which leaves your meat dry.

Step 7 - Cook Your Apricot Sauce!

This sweet and savory apricot sauce is a great recipe that makes this pulled pork different from traditional pulled pork with homemade bbq sauce.

While your meat is resting, make the apricot sauce! To a small saucepan add:

• 12 ounces of apricot jam or apricot preserves. I like to use Apricot Freezer Jam!
• ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (add ¼ teaspoon more if you like spice!)
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
• dash of salt

Cook apricot preserves, seasonings and vinegar over medium-low heat, stirring often (to prevent burning) till the preserves melt and the mixture is smooth.

Step 8 - Shred Boston Butt Pulled Pork!

After your pork butt roast has rested for at least 15 minutes, use two forks to shred it on your cutting board. (2 forks are the best tools for shredding pork!)

Serving

You can serve this recipe in 2 ways... You can either pour the apricot sauce over pulled pork before serving or just plate the pulled pork and drizzle it with the apricot sauce!

Either way... It's delicious! Serve with hamburger buns or kick it up a notch with homemade sourdough rolls!

ENJOY With

There are so many sides that go well with Apricot Pulled pork! I'll just suggest a few:

The Best Loaded Potato Salad – Old Fashioned Recipe (Easy!)

Soft Sourdough Rolls

BBQ Baked Beans

Pasta Salad

Apple Waldorf Salad

Texas Sheet Cake!

Green Bean Casserole

Recipe Card

How to Store Leftovers

Apricot Pulled Pork is even better the next day! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (if it lasts that long!) Leftover apricot pulled pork makes excellent pork sandwiches for lunch!

You can also freeze leftovers for an easy premade meal. To freeze leftovers, place pulled pork into a gallon-sized zip-lock bag (with or without apricot sauce), and remove the air as you seal it closed.

Place that ziplock bag into another gallon-sized zip lock bag for extra protection from freezer burn. Freeze for 2 months or more (if you freeze this longer than 2 months, you may get some ice build up in the bag, but it should be protected from freezer burn for up to 1 year in a deep freezer.

CAN YOU OVERCOOK PULLED PORK?

Yes, it's possible to overcook pulled pork… If you forget it for a long period of time it will overcook....

However, overcooking Boston Butt pulled pork is harder than overcooking pork loin pulled pork because Boston Butt has more fat to keep it moist.

THAW BOSTON BUTT PORK ROAST SAFELY

There are three safe ways to thaw pork: in the refrigerator, in cold water (in an airtight or leak-proof bag) and in the microwave. But, do not thaw pork at room temperature on the counter.

INTERNAL TEMPERATURE FOR PORK ROAST

Fall apart pork butt roast is best at 200ºF. However, according to the USDA’s website, all pork must be cooked to 145 ºF to be safe to eat. They say

Roast Recipes

Prime Rib Roast

Sirloin Tip Roast

Rump Roast Recipe

Boston Butt Pork Roast Recipe

Pot Roast Dinner

Top Round Roast Recipe

Oven roasted Tip Tip

Smoked Chuck Roast Recipe

Perfect Picnic Roast

Smoked Pork Loin

Fresh Ham Roast

Sources

FDA

USDA

Culinary Institute of America

National Pork Board