Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast
Discover the simplicity and rich flavor of a Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast, a budget-friendly alternative to the traditional beef classic. Use it in tacos, burritos, or put it on top of mashed potatoes or mashed cauliflower!
Mississippi pot roast is a savory, slow-cooked dish typically made from a cut of beef, such as chuck roast, combined with simple ingredients like ranch dressing mix, au jus gravy mix, butter, and pepperoncini peppers.
Can you make Mississippi roast with pork? Absolutely, you can make a Mississippi roast with pork, and it’s an ideal swap for several reasons. Cuts of pork, like pork shoulder or loin, are often more cost-effective than beef while still yielding a tender, flavorful result when slow-cooked. Pork’s mild flavor makes it the perfect canvas for the rich, savory seasonings used in Mississippi roast. Making Mississippi pork roast in crock pot is the best way to get the most out of your meal!
🐖Ingredients You’ll Need
- Pork Loin: You can use a variety of different cuts of pork for this recipe. I used pork loin but you could also use pork butt, pork shoulder roast, pork chops or even a lean pork tenderloin.
- Ranch Dressing Mix: One packet of ranch seasoning will give the pork so much flavor but feel free to use my recipe for homemade ranch seasoning mix.
- Au Jus Seasoning Packet or Brown Gravy Mix: This will help give the pork a deep umami flavor and help flavor the juices well.
- Onion: This gets placed in with the pork to give it a nice aromatic flavor as it slowly cooks.
- Pepperoncini Peppers & Liquid: You’ll need a jar of pepperoncini peppers for this recipe to give the pork loin a slightly spicy flavor and to help tenderize the meat.
- Stick of Butter or Ghee: This helps give a buttery flavor to the pork and helps soften the roast.
- Avocado or Olive Oil: This is used to sear the pork before putting it in the crock pot though this step is optional if you need to save time!
📖How To Make Mississippi Pork Roast
1️⃣ Prepare and sear the pork: Remove your pork roast from it’s package and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 4-6 large pieces. This helps the browning area become larger. If you are not browning your pork beforehand, you can skip this step. In a large skillet or Dutch oven, add 2 tbsp oil and sear the pork roast until they are golden brown on each side.
2️⃣Assemble the ingredients: Place in a 6-quart crock pot along with sliced onion. Sprinkle the ranch seasoning and Au Jus gravy seasoning over the pork pieces and toss with tongs to fully combine. Drizzle the pepperoncini juice over the pork and add the pepperoncini peppers and butter on top.
3️⃣Cover and cook: Add the lid to the top and cook on LOW for 8 hours or until the pork is fall apart tender.
4️⃣Shred and serve: Using two forks, shred the pork until it comes apart easily. Stir it into the juices and serve Mississippi pulled pork while hot.
🍲 Instant Pot Mississippi Pork Roast
This easy pork loin recipe can be made using an electric pressure cooker such as the Instant Pot. this will cut down the cooking time to 90 minutes which is great if you’re short on time.
1️⃣ Prepare the pork: Remove your pork roast from it’s package and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 4-6 large pieces. This helps the browning area become larger. If you are not browning your pork beforehand, you can skip this step.
2️⃣ Sear the pork: Using the sauté function, add 2 tbsp oil and sear the pork roast until they are golden brown on each side. This may have to be completed in batches depending on the size of your pressure cooker.
3️⃣ Combine ingredients: Add in the sliced onion and toss together, Sprinkle the ranch seasoning and Au Jus gravy seasoning over the pork pieces and toss with tongs to fully combine. Drizzle the pepperoncini juice over the pork and add the pepperoncini peppers and butter on top.
4️⃣Cook in Instant Pot: Pressure cook on manual HIGH for 90 minutes. Once finished, let the instant pot do a natural release before taking the lid off.
6️⃣ Shred pulled pork: Using two forks, shred the pork until it’s all pulled apart. Stir it into the juices and serve hot.
👩🏻🍳Chef Val’s Cooking Tips and Recipe Variations
- Whole30: When preparing a Whole30-compliant Mississippi Pork Roast, replace traditional ranch dressing mix with a homemade ranch dressing mix version free from sugar, dairy, and MSG, typically involving a mixture of dried herbs like parsley, dill, garlic powder, onion powder, and dried onion flakes.
- With onion soup mix: If you want to incorporate onion soup mix into your pork roast, substitute the Au Jus gravy packet with an equal amount of dry onion soup mix for an added depth of flavor, noting that this will introduce a distinct onion and umami taste to the dish.
- With vegetables: To make a more balanced meal, consider adding root vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, and onions to your slow cooker before placing the pork on top; these vegetables will absorb the meat’s flavors and the flavorful juices, becoming tender and flavorful sides to your roast. Add approximately one cup of liquid (water or broth) to the slow cooker when cooking with vegetables to ensure they cook thoroughly and become tender without becoming too dry or burnt at the edges.
- Choose the Right Cut of Pork: For a tender, flavorful Mississippi Pork Roast, select a cut like pork shoulder or pork butt, as these have a good balance of meat and fat, ensuring a moist and flavorful result after slow cooking.
- Browning is Key: Although optional, searing your pork pieces in a skillet before adding them to the slow cooker can greatly enhance the flavor of the final dish. The caramelization provides a depth of flavor that slow cooking alone won’t achieve.
- Shredding the Pork: For best results, shred the pork while it’s still warm. You can do this directly in the slow cooker and let the pork absorb the juices for an additional 10-15 minutes before serving, ensuring moist and flavorful meat.
- Balance the Heat: If you’re sensitive to spice, reduce the number of pepperoncini peppers or the amount of pepperoncini liquid. Conversely, if you enjoy the heat, consider adding a bit of pepperoncini brine or more peppers.
🍽What To Serve With Mississippi Pork Roast
There are so many ways you can use this tender pork roast. Add it to a bun to make it a sandwich, use it for tacos, burritos, or even nachos. It also makes a great protein served over rice, vegetables or any cooked grain.
- Riced Cauliflower Stuffing
- Sous Vide Mashed Potatoes
- Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese
- Keto Southern Squash Casserole
- Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Green Beans
❔FAQ
Can this be made in a Ninja Foodi?
As long as your Ninja Foodi has a pressure cooking function, you can make this recipe easily. You can also use the slow cooking function if you have more time.
Do you put water in the slow cooker with pork?
Generally, at least a ½ cup of liquid is needed to keep the pork from burning. The pepperoncini juice in this recipe takes care of that.
Why is my Mississippi Roast Tough?
Generally when your roast is too tough, it means it was cooked at a temperature that was too high and too fast. Roasts are best cooked low and slow.
Can I slow cook pork roast on high?
While you can slow cook pork roast on high, it’s preferable to cook it on low. Cooking on low allows the pork to cook more slowly, which breaks down tough muscle fibers and connective tissue more effectively, resulting in a roast that’s much more tender and flavorful.
Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast
Equipment
- Crock Pot or other slow cooker
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Pork Roast Boston butt, pork shoulder or pork loin
- 1 Onion cut in 2 inch slices
- 8 tbsp Butter 1 stick
- 1 packet Ranch Seasoning
- 1 packet Au Jus Seasoning
- 10 Pepperoncini Peppers
- 6 oz Pepperoncini Juice
Instructions
- Remove your pork roast from it’s package and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 4-6 large pieces. This helps the browning area become larger. If you are not browning your pork beforehand, you can skip this step.
- In a large skillet, add 2 tbsp oil and sear the pork roast until they are golden brown on each side.
- Place in a 6-quart slow cooker along with sliced onion. Sprinkle the ranch seasoning and Au Jus gravy seasoning over the pork pieces and toss with tongs to fully combine.
- Drizzle the pepperoncini juice over the pork and add the pepperoncini peppers and butter on top.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours.
- Using two forks, shred the pork until it’s all pulled. Stir it into the juices and serve hot.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Cut pork into pieces. Using the sauté function, add 2 tbsp oil and sear the pork roast until they are golden brown on each side. This may have to be completed in batches depending on the size of your pressure cooker.
- Add in the sliced onion and toss together, Sprinkle the ranch seasoning and Au Jus gravy seasoning over the pork pieces and toss with tongs to fully combine. Drizzle the pepperoncini juice over the pork and add the pepperoncini peppers and butter on top.
- Pressure cook on manual HIGH for 90 minutes. Once finished, let the instant pot do a natural release before taking the lid off.
- Using two forks, shred the pork until it’s all pulled apart. Stir it into the juices and serve hot.
What an awesome recipe!! We can’t have pork at our house so I used a beef roast. So tender and perfect. Thanks so much for providing these wonderful recipes!
Thank you so much, Becky! I’m imagining this recipe with beef, and now my mouth is watering.
Oh my goodness! Made the crockpot version and was seriously one of the best meals ever. Served it over mashed red potatoes. So, so good!! Definitely a keeper.
Love the recipe! It’s in crockpot now Ma has been for about 5-6 hours and it is really greasy and liquidy, I didn’t add any other liquid except peppercinis juice and ghee not much . It’s also on the verge of being mushy so I turned it off . It is a pork shoulder . Any help? I want to serve with rolls for family!
Can I substitute the au jus with a packet of bron gravy?
I made this tonight for dinner. It is AMAZING!!!!
I am keeping this one for my favorite list. Thank you so much!I
Can the juices be thicken to make a gravy?
Yes! That’s a great idea. Try to remove as much fat as possible from the liquid.