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–+ servings
Sous Vide Pulled Pork on an open sandwich, topped with BBQ sauce
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4.34 from 3 votes

Sous Vide Pulled Pork

Make the most perfectly tender and juicy pulled pork using the sous vide method of cooking. This sous vide pulled pork is a perfect meal that is both budget friendly and freezer friendly. Sous vide pulled pork can pair with any side for a quick and easy dinner. It makes great leftovers too!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time18 hours
Total Time18 hours 10 minutes
Course: Sous Vide
Cuisine: American
Keyword: pulled pork shoulder sous vide, pulled pork sous vide 24 hours, reheat pulled pork sous vide, sous vide bbq pulled pork, sous vide pulled pork
Servings: 12 Servings
Author: Valerie Skinner

Ingredients

  • 3-5 lbs Pork Shoulder or Pork Butt
  • ¼- cup BBQ Dry Rub Seasoning or Seasoning of choice
  • 2 tsp Salt
  • NOTE: If dry rub seasoning already contains salt adjust your additional salt to taste

Instructions

  • Prepare Water Bath: grab a large pot and fill with enough water to cover the pork. Using your sous vide, heat the water bath to 165 degrees.
  • Prepare The Pork Shoulder: remove from package and pat dry with paper towels. Decide whether or not it needs to be cut into smaller pieces in order to fit in vacuum seal bags for even cooking. 
  • Season Pork Shoulder: season pork with a generous coating of your favorite dry rub. Use a bbq seasoning blend or a simple seasoning of salt, pepper and garlic powder. 
  • Seal Seasoned Pork: once your pork is dried and seasoned seal in vacuum seal bags or a freezer ziploc bag using water displacement method (see below)
  • Add Pork To Water Bath: cook for 18-24 hours at 165 degrees. When it's finished, remove from bags and shred with 2 forks, meat claws or use your stand mixer. If you'd like to crisp up some pieces, layer on a baking sheet and place under broiler for 3-4 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. 
  • If you're keeping it for later use: add to an ice bath for 15 minutes in order to cool down enough to add in fridge safely. 

Notes

Can you freeze pulled pork? 

Absolutely! Sous vide pulled pork maintains good quality for two to three months after freezing. If stored in a vacuum sealed bag, pulled pork can last for two to three years. Since you’re already making the best sous vide pulled pork, make a double batch and freeze the second. 

Can I reheat pulled pork in a Sous Vide?

Absolutely! I always make extra sous vide bbq pulled pork, freeze it, and reheat it. If reheating from the refrigerator, it will only take about 30 minutes. From frozen, I recommend allowing 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Vacuum sealer or water displacement method?

Using a vacuum sealer removes all the air from a bag, and heats the edge to seal it closed. The water displacement method involves using a freezer-safe resealable food storage bag and while the bag isn’t fully sealed, slowly lowering the pork shoulder into the water to force the air out. Either method would work fine but for a couple reasons, I prefer a vacuum sealer. 
While there isn’t a safety issue if you do remove all of the air with the displacement method, it is challenging to remove all the air. Too much air causes can cause off putting flavors or spoilage. At higher temperatures or longer cook lengths, the seals on the sides and bottom of a freezer-safe resealable food storage bag could possibly fail, causing a mess and ruining the cook if left unattended.