Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Braised Pork With Lime and Ginger Recipe (2024)

By Sarah DiGregorio

Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Braised Pork With Lime and Ginger Recipe (1)

Total Time
8 hours 20 minutes
Rating
4(3,401)
Notes
Read community notes

Here to save your weeknight life: a slow-cooker main that’s truly “set-it-and-forget-it,” with results that taste like they required significantly more effort. This rich and flavorful pork takes about 5 minutes to throw together in the morning. Before dinner, just simmer the sauce — a sweet-salty mix of soy and honey — until it’s syrupy, shred the meat, add a flurry of fresh herbs and you’re done. The meat is a wonderfully simple anchor, and you can build a meal around it: Add lettuce cups and kimchi or serve it over rice, whole grains or even tortillas.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings

  • 3 to 4pounds boneless, skinless pork shoulder, trimmed of big hunks of fat and cut in half
  • 8large garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 3tablespoons minced fresh ginger (from one 3-inch piece)
  • 1teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more to taste
  • 2teaspoons finely grated lime zest and 2 tablespoons juice (from 1 lime), plus more lime wedges for serving
  • 1cup tamari or low-sodium soy sauce (see Tip)
  • 1cup honey
  • 1tablespoon toasted sesame oil
  • Cooked rice, noodles or lettuce cups, for serving
  • Toasted sesame seeds, sliced scallions and chopped cilantro, for topping

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

668 calories; 38 grams fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 17 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 45 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 35 grams sugars; 38 grams protein; 1281 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Braised Pork With Lime and Ginger Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    Place the pork in a 6- to 8-quart slow cooker. Scatter the garlic, ginger, red-pepper flakes and lime zest over the top. In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the tamari, honey and sesame oil, then pour it over the pork. Using tongs, turn to coat all sides of the pork in the sauce, and spoon some over the top so that some of the garlic and ginger is on top of the pork. Cover and cook on low until the pork is very tender and shreds easily with a fork, 8 to 9 hours; it will hold well on warm. (If you are home and able to flip the pork once during cooking, that will help the flavors distribute evenly on the meat and make the color uniform. If not, it will be fine.)

  2. Using tongs, transfer the pork from the slow cooker to a serving platter or large, shallow serving bowl. Using a ladle, skim excess fat off the surface of the cooking liquid, if desired. Carefully pour the sauce into a large pot. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and let it simmer until reduced and slightly syrupy, 15 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, coarsely shred the pork using two forks.

  3. Step

    3

    Sprinkle the lime juice over the top of the meat. Drizzle about half the sauce over the top of the shredded meat, tossing to evenly combine. Serve over rice or noodles or in lettuce cups. Top with sesame seeds, scallions and cilantro. Pass the remaining sauce at the table, if desired, as well as extra lime wedges and red-pepper flakes.

Tip

  • Tamari, a gluten-free Japanese fermented soy product similar to soy sauce, is generally a little less salty than grocery store soy sauce, and it works slightly better in this recipe.

Ratings

4

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3,401

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Margaux Laskey, Senior Staff Editor, NYT Cooking

This kind of dish is why people love slow cookers: very low effort, max yum. My 5 and 7 yos love it over jasmine rice with sliced avocado and cucumbers on the side. I've made this with fresh or jarred garlic and ginger. Either works.

shell

The sesame oil should be added after cooking (at the end) or it turns bitter.

Meghan

To make this on the stove instead of a slow cooker: heat high heat oil in a Dutch oven. Cut meat in 2-3 pieces, season with salt and pepper, and sear on all sides until golden brown. Will probably take 15 mins. Meanwhile, chop your ginger and garlic. Remove the meat from the pan. Sauté aromatics. Add sauce to the pan, scrape up the burnt bits of pork, bring to a boil. Put meat back in the pot and bring to a boil. Cover and put in a 250 oven for 4 hours (for about 4 lb of meat).

Brett

I was confused by all the conflicting comments.So I cooked it per the recipe.It was fantastic.

Patricia Garcia

Sometimes, I can't believe some of the comments made here....Susan, chopping garlic and ginger is substantial pre-crockpot prep? Lordy girl, don't ever make a real braise, you'll be dog-tired. Guessing you don't cook a lot.

Stephen

Had great intentions of starting this in the morning to be ready for dinner in the evening... Needless to say I didn't get it all prepared until close to 3 pm. Luckily, this recipe worked a treat in our pressure cooker - 30 mins on high with 30 mins natural release. Made it per the recipe otherwise, and it was delicious!

Susan

Giving just 2 stars. First the pre-crockpot prep is not an easy 5 min. There is some substantial chopping and dicing to do. All that would have been worth it for a delicious braising sauce to spoon over the meat at the end. I did not like this sauce. Meat came out fine, but sauce tasted burnt/bitter. I tried to doctor it w rice wine, apple cider vinegar, more honey. Nothing helped the bad aftertaste.

Kathy

I followed some of the suggestions: 1/2 cup of honey and added about 1/2 cup of water . I had plenty of sauce. With many comments about it being too salty, I used Trader Joe’s Soyaki sauce for the soy sauce and thinking was a great alternative.Pork was tender, sauce was delicious and the scallions, sesame seeds and limes added great texture and color. I didn’t use any grated lime due to other comments and don’t think it was missed. Will definitely make again!

Kait

This was an enjoyable meal that allowed the meat to get some nice crispy edges while still being moist and flavorful. However, given the calories and effort required, I have to recommend the Skinny Taste Banh Mi Bowl recipe over this one. Virtually the same flavor payoff (my fiancé didn’t realize it was a different recipe) with less work and fewer calories. Highly recommend serving both recipes with rice, cilantro, jalapeños/Serrano peppers, pickled carrots, cucumbers, and a sriracha aioli.

Mama Fontana

I’ve made this twice, once with a pork roast and once with a beef roast. Both times baked in a Dutch oven for 2-3 hours. The beef was much better than the pork!

Heather

I initially rated this three stars, but I took the leftovers out of the freezer last week and used them in a stir fry, and they were delicious. I simply froze hunks of the cooked meat in the sauce, and then I used the sauce in the stir fry. Bumped it up to four stars and will definitely make it again!

Payal

I used an Instant Pot and it worked well! Cooked on high for 30 minutes and then natural release (it was over an hour before I opened it up). It was tender and there was no burned taste. I also used coconut aminos instead of tamari or soy sauce and it was not salty at all. I used a lot a red chili powder instead of the flakes and it came out with a nice spice balance of sweet and spicy. I would have used much less sesame oil since the sauce at the end was too oily.

Lindsey

Due to coronavirus shortages at the grocery stores, I had to settle for pork tenderloin instead of pork shoulder. I know that's a completely different cut of meat. I still followed all of the instructions and slow-cooked it on low for about 6 hours. Was still able to shred it (although it was a bit dry). We ate it with white rice and had the leftovers as pork fried rice the next day.

Amanda

I enjoyed this. No burnt flavor as I followed other reviewers’ advice and swapped 1/4 cup of brown sugar for the honey. I only added lime as a garnish at the end and didn’t use much of the sauce. We ate it with squeezed lime juice, scallions and cilantro over white rice and it was pretty delicious.

Jen

6 pound pork roast in 300 degree oven for about 5 hours, basted a couple times; used olive oil instead roasted sesame oil for the roast, based on previous comments; then added a drizzle of sesame oil at the end while reducing the sauce. In addition to the suggested garnishes, I served this with quick pickled veggies (carrots and cucumbers, radishes next time) - the pickled veggies really added brightness to the dish as a whole.This was terrific and easy - great combo! Will be on repeat.

Cedar

I used about half the amount of soy and honey called for (only because honey is expensive and my last bottle of soy sauce is madly salty) and brought the liquid level up with a half cup of leftover sake. Fabulous recipe, incredibly easy and delicious.

Lucy N

I found this recipe appealing to read, but too strong for eating. There was so much "flavor" one couldn't tell it was pork! Thanks anyway.

YogiCook

5 stars with VERY small changes! Halving the recipe was plenty for family of 4 with leftovers.Went lighter on soy/tamari and made up difference w/ coconut aminos.Kept most sauce, 2/3, on side for individual preferences. Skimmed some fat before simmering down the sauce. Used mostly honey with some brown sugar too.If you don't have a microplane zester, get one. Used the stainless steel tool for the lime and ginger.This is a winner.

Ty

4 stars. Followed the recipe exactly. The pork was perfectly tender and tasted great after shredding. I knocked 1 star because like others have commented, the sauce turned bitter. My assessment is that it is not due to the lime zest, but the amount of honey. The honey is what over caramelizes during the 8 hour cook causing the bitter flavor even when stirred. Reducing the braising liquid at the end further exacerbated the bitterness. I did not pour the sauce over the shredded pork due to this.

Corinne

Super easy to make, but even with the tamari, this was waaay too salty for us. If you make it, consider adjusting the quantities.

Elaine

Smelled great - sauce was bitter as some others have mentioned.

Caroline

We were really looking forward to eating this dish. However it was way too salty and intense. I should have known when I saw that the recipe called for 1 cup of tamari. I didn’t even use a full cup but about 2/3 C. I love tamari and I use it but never in such quantity, We couldn’t finish it but I have saved it so that I can do something else such as dilute it with broth. We also substituted maple syrup for honey.

Ben

Needs more heat and acid I think. Next time maybe a tablespoon of gochuchang red pepper and a little rice wine vinegar. Not bad though.

Meag

Made this with pork tenderloin because that’s what I had. I cut the soy with bone broth to reduce saltiness, but otherwise stuck close to the recipe. Very good, very easy! Served in lettuce cups with avocado, green onion and chopped cashew.

Orange

Gack! So bitter/burnt-tasting we ended up throwing it away. We did accidentally add the lime juice BEFORE cooking so this may have had some impact...

Eliza

I agree with several commenters: I followed the instructions but it was WAY too salty! Next time I’ll use 1/4 cup of tamari and use water for the rest, then balance it out when the meat is cooked and set aside. I’d quadruple the lime juice and add more honey.

Dee

Made it exactly as written using lower-sodium tamari and sprinkled with scallions and cilantro. The additional lime wedges when serving are absolutely essential. So delicious! A big hit with the family.

H Turner

The lime is not making the dish bitter. Honey, lime and ginger is an amazing flavor combination found in a number of recipes. You really miss out by using brown sugar instead of honey. Dicing the ingredients just doesn't take that long, you don't have to be a chef to get your own technique for chopping or dicing. I, too, used a bone in pork roast, no problem. I could just about drink the broth.

Vivienne

What if I only have a 3.5 quarter slow cooker? Appreciated the instructions for the stove top and oven method.

bevgs

This was too salty for me! I expected to like it better, it was just okay.

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Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Braised Pork With Lime and Ginger Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Do I need to add liquid to slow cooker pork? ›

You don't technically HAVE to add liquid into your slow cooker for pulled pork because the pork will generate moisture. However, we do recommend adding some kind of liquid to the crock pot to make sure things stay nice and moist.

Do you take string off pork before cooking in a slow cooker? ›

Remove strings and cut into pieces as needed so that it will fit into the crock pot. 2 tablespoons Smoked Paprika or your favorite pork rub. Smoked Paprika will help to give it that little smokey flavor!

How long to slow cook pork per pound on high? ›

How long to cook a pork roast in a slow cooker
  1. 2-4 pounds: 7-8 hours on low or 5 hours on high.
  2. 4-6 pounds: 8-9 hours on low or 6 hours on high.
  3. 6-8 pounds: 9-10 hours on low or 7 hours on high.
  4. 8-10 pounds: 10-11 hours on low or 8 hours on high.
May 19, 2021

Should I remove fat from pork shoulder before slow cooking? ›

Remove some of the fat. Pork shoulder has a decent amount of fat on the surface. It's a good idea to cut away this excess fat prior to cooking, but do leave a small amount as it adds to the flavour.

What is the best liquid to cook pork in? ›

Aside from barbecue sauce, something tangy and sweet is a good go-to for slow-cooked pork. Apple cider vinegar has the right amount of acidity to break down the fattiness and is equipped with a bright flavor that pairs beautifully with pork. Using liquids you would normally drink is also a good choice.

What happens if there is not enough liquid in a slow cooker? ›

Most recommend filling a crockpot one-half to two-thirds of the way. Overfilling it may cause the contents to boil over, while not enough liquid may burn your dinner.

Do you have to brown pork before slow cooking? ›

"Browning, or caramelizing, meat before putting it into a slow cooker isn't 100 percent necessary, but it is well worth the effort for the most flavorful and full-bodied end result," he says. "The caramelized surface of the meat will lend rich flavor and color to the finished dish."

How do you keep pork from drying out in a slow cooker? ›

Cooking a lean roast like pork tenderloin in a slow cooker is tricky because it can quickly turn overcooked and dry. We discovered that nestling two tenderloins side by side, alternating the narrow and thicker ends, helped to insulate the meat and prevented it from overcooking.

Does pork get more tender the longer it cooks in a slow cooker? ›

At around 2 hours, your pork chops will be cooked through (145°F) and have a texture similar to chicken breast — tender, but firm. Between 3 to 6 hours, the chops will have a texture closer to pulled pork; it will be easy to cut with a fork and will pull easily from the bone.

Is it better to cook pork on high or low in slow cooker? ›

Set the cooker to low; the high setting will boil the meat instead of braise it, so it's only a quicker trip to an undesirable outcome.

How do you know when slow cooker pork is done? ›

Once everything's in the slow coooker, turn it onto low and cook it until the pork shreds easily when poked with a fork. You don't want it to be soft to the point of mush, though—it should still have a little heft to it, but it should shred and tear easily and be nice and tender when you pop it in your mouth.

Why is my pork tough after slow cooking? ›

It's because you haven't let the collagen break down. Extend the cook time, make sure there's enough liquid and keep an eye on the dish.

Can you overcook pulled pork in a slow cooker? ›

On low heat, cook for 8-10 hours; on high heat, cook for 5-6 hours. The pork should be fork-tender and easily shredded. Can you overcook pulled pork in a slow cooker? Yes, overcooking can lead to dry, tough meat.

How long is too long to slow cook pulled pork? ›

How long should you cook pulled pork in a Crock Pot? The Crock Pot is great for pulled pork because you need to cook it low and slow for several hours. I usually cook 4 lbs of pork shoulder for 7 hours on low. Be aware though, pulled pork will dry out if overcooked.

Should pork be fat side up or down in a slow cooker? ›

Worgul recommends placing the pork in the slow-cooker fat side up. The fat will render thoroughly during the cooking process and by placing the meat fat side up, it makes it much easier to remove excess fat before serving. "The cooker will be nearly filled with fat and liquid after hours of cooking.

Can you slow cook pork without liquid? ›

Usually, 1/2 cup is plenty … or none. The recipe below mimics a smoker for making pulled pork. No water is needed. I usually pour the liquid off during the cook to defat it in the fridge.

Can you put meat in a slow cooker without liquid? ›

Water or liquid is necessary to create steam. When cooking meat or poultry, the water or liquid level should cover the ingredients to ensure effective heat transfer throughout the crock. Some manufacturers of slow cookers recommend adding liquid to fill the stoneware 1/2 to 3/4 full.

Do I need liquid to cook pulled pork? ›

In a Dutch oven: Put the meat in a Dutch oven or other heavy pot, pour in just enough liquid (broth, beer, or anything else) so the meat is partially submerged, then cover it and let the pork cook slowly in a low oven for a few hours.

How do you keep pork moist in a slow cooker? ›

Set the cooker to low; the high setting will boil the meat instead of braise it, so it's only a quicker trip to an undesirable outcome. Pork shoulder self-bastes and stays moist, and is nearly impossible to overcook.

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