Bourbon and Maple Pulled Pork Burgers

Pressure Cooker Bourbon Pulled Pork Burgers

This recipe is one of my all-time favorites – it is not too difficult to make and the tenderness and depth of flavor will make a burger as you have never tasted before.

The pressure cooker is a great way to make large quantities of pulled pork for a crowd, and even more, if have multiple pressure cookers. If you need to know just how much-pulled pork is for a big group of 30 people, use our online calculator of How Much Pulled Pork Per Person.

Normally it takes all day to make a pulled pork recipe, but in the instant pot, you will have the meat done in about 1 hour and served up about 20-30 minutes later.

What is Pulled Pork?
Pulled pork is built on barbecued pork shoulder, but here we show you how to do it in a pressure cooker. After cooking the meat is shredded by hand and mixed back in with the sauce it was cooked in. 

The Pulled pork can easily be eating on its own or served with almost any side you like – we have chosen to make a burger and fries -and man did it taste good. 
This dish really is a must-try.

Key Spices for Pulled Pork

Bourbon

When it comes to cooking with liquor, bourbon is one of the best. Its caramel and vanilla flavor adds a unique flavor dishes. It partners particularly well with brown sugar, ham, and pork.

Maple syrup

Made from the sap of the maple tree, this delicious syrup adds something extra meat dishes especially bacon, ham, and pork dishes. 

Chipotle

Chipotle in this dish can become your new secret weapon if you just give ’em a chance! No other Mexican ingredient can impact your home cooking the way chipotles can. They will complement the bourbon and maple syrup. So do not skip on this ingredient.

Get All Your Ingredients Ready

 It really does help to get organized by getting all your ingredients measured and organized first. 
Why – because when you have never made a recipe before – having all your ingredients ready means that you can firstly check them off against the recipe before you start so that nothing is missing. 
Secondly – as you are moving through the cooking steps it lets you focus on the dish preparation rather than jumping around looking for or preparing a missed item.

pulled pork ingredients
Pulled pork ingredients

Prepare the Pork

We got our pork with skin on – so first we carefully removed the skin with a sharp knife.
The next step was using some string we tied the pork back into a round roll.

browned pork
Browned pork

Searing the Pork

Now set the instant pot to “high” temp on the saute button – add a little oil to the pot and sear the pork on each side till you get a brown color.
Doing this traps the juices and keeps the meat moist and tender.

Preparing the Garlic

I really like the depth of flavor that garlic can add -and a key to that is having the garlic prepared well.
Here we use a meat tenderizer to crush the garlic so that maximum flavor is released.

Saute the Onion

Now with the instant pot set to high saute temperature – cook out the onion till it starts to change color to a clear to brown look. 
In this image, we had some fatty pork that was going to be no good for eating.
However, the fat of the meat always has great flavor – so cooking it as we saute the onions helps to add a nice depth of flavor.

Prepare the Sauce for Cooking 

We have finished our saute of the onions and meat browning – so the next step is to add all the ingredients to the instant pot.
Mix them well and also do not forget to deglaze the bottom of the pot by adding in the passata and apple cider vinegar first with the pot still on saute.  Use a wooden spoon to scrape off all the little bits of brown caramelized food on the bottom of the pot.
We are also keeping the pork fat in for the pressure cooking to extract maximum flavor.

Pour the Sauce mix over the Pork

Now Before putting the lid on – pour the sauce liberally over the pork meat to enhance the flavor.
Finally, put the lid on and cook for 60 minutes under pressure and allow 10 minutes for natural pressure relief.

Pulling the Pork

My favorite part – pulling the pork – because I usually eat a few bits!
After the meat has been standing for at least 5 minutes – get some tongs and a fork and pull apart the pork.

Sauce Thickening

Now if your sauce is still too runny even after reducing it as per the recipe you can still thicken it up using this tip.
Take about 1 tablespoon of cornstarch (cornflour) and mix it with about 3 tablespoons of water – mix it well so that there are no lumps.
Then with the Instant Pot switched back onto high and the sauce mix boiling – add the cornstarch mix slowly while stirring well. Keep stirring for at least 2 minutes after adding the thickening mixture so that you cook out the cornstarch – else you will taste it.

Now the Fun Starts

My mouth is watering.  Put the pulled pork back into the instant pot and mix it all around to get the sauce through the meat.
At this stage hopefully, your slaw is prepared – your buns are ready and the french fries just about finished.
You are ready to plate up.

Plated Pulled Pork Burgers

Now with the bourbon, maple syrup, and chipotle just to name a few – you have the most tender amazing tasting pulled pork.
I just loved this dish – and I am going to see if I can have it made again for my anniversary!!!!

Bourbon and Maple Pulled Pork Burgers

This recipe is one my all-time favorites – it is not too difficult to make and the tenderness and depth of favor will make a burger as you have never tasted before.
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Keyword: pulled pork burger instant pot
Servings: 6
Calories: 1150kcal
Author: Rosie

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 1/2 pounds 1.8kg boneless pork shoulder trimmed and tied on a roll)
  • 1 cup 250 ml chicken stock
  • 1 cup 260ml tomato passata
  • 3/4 cup 180ml bourbon
  • 1 tablespoon djon mustard
  • 2 tablespoon chipotle sauce
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 4 thyme sprigs
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 large onion diced
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 2 teaspoons allspice
  • 6-8 burger buns
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream
  • 2 tablespoon mayonaise
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 12 oz 400g coleslaw mix

Instructions

  • Turn the instant pot sauté function to more which is the hottest function add in the enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
  • Pot in the pork and cook on each side to brown and sear the meet – keeping in the juices.  This will take up 8-10 mins
  • Get a large bowl, jug or similar and with a thick or fork mix the paste, stock, bourbon, mustard, chipotle, vinegar, maple syrup, thyme and bay leaves so that it mixes well.
  • Take out the pork and rest
  • Put in the rest of the oil to the instant pot and saute the onion until it starts to go clear.
  • Next add the mixture to deglaze the bottom on the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon if necessary to remove any brown caramelised bits of food from the pot bottom. These are really tasty and will add to the flavour of the dish.
  • Now pour in the rest of the mixture and gently put in the pork – make sure you spoon the liquid over the pork.
  • Now put on the instant pot lid and set to pressure cook for 60 minutes. Plus allow 10 minutes for natural release of the pressure
  • Start the french fries approximately 15 minutes before the pressure cooking end – put a tray of frozen french fries into the oven and follow the instructions on the packet.
  • Check all the pressure is gone and remove the lid – remove the pork and set aside to rest.
  • After the pork has rested for at least 5 minutes using tongs it should be nice and easy to pull apart.
  • Now strain the liquid left over through a sieve and into a bowl. Discard what is caught in the sieve, and return the mixture to the instant pot bowl. Set the sauté setting to high and reduce the sauce down until it becomes thicker (if it does not thicken see our photo above what to do) – put the pulled apart pork into the sauce and let it stand there while you finish the preparation of the buns for the burger.
  • Now take out the ready french fries and cut in half the hamburger buns and quickly set the oven to broil and pop the buns in until brown
  • Now it is time to plate up – put the buns on a plate – put on the prepared coleslaw and then put a generous quantity of the pulled pork on top. Drizzle a bit of extra sauce as well according to taste.
  • Gently plate the burgers up with a nicely prepared side of fries and ENJOY
  •  
  • Coleslaw Preparation:  Either cut or use a purchased slaw mix. To dress the slaw – whisk and mix the buttermilk, sour cream mayonnaise, juice into a slaw dressing. Add in the coleslaw and toss to coat it in the dressing

Notes

My Favorite

Nutrition

Calories: 1150kcal