Make Hawaiian luau pork in a fraction of the time in your pressure cooker! Instant Pot kalua pork is tender, juicy and on the table in less than 2 hours.
Pressure Cooker Kalua Pork
This kalua pork is a staple weeknight dinner at our house. You only need 3 simple ingredients and it hardly requires any prep time (I’m talking 5 minutes). It can be made in either the instant pot or slow cooker, which makes it SUPER moist and tender. Plus both the red salt and liquid smoke gives it amazing Hawaiian flavor.
It also makes enough for my family to have 2 meals. The first night we usually serve it over rice with roasted vegetables. Then the second night we like to mix in some BBQ sauce and serve in a Hawaiian roll with creamy coleslaw. It also makes a great freezer meal for busy weeknights!
What is Kalua Pork?
Kalua pork (also called kalua pig or luau pork) is a traditional Hawaiian dish that’s served at luaus or big feasts. For 8 hours a whole pig is smoked with sea salt, banana leaves and koa wood in an underground oven called an “imu.”
This kalua pork recipe is an easy shortcut to mimic the authentic Hawaiian version. By learning how to use the Instant pot to cook the meat (or cooking low and slow in the crockpot), it gets perfectly juicy and will literally melt in your mouth because it’s so tender.
Ingredient Notes
- Pork shoulder butt roast: A 4-5 pound pork shoulder butt roast. The butt roast is a bit more fatty and is perfect for pressure cooking or slow cooking. It gets super tender and will basically fall apart when shredding
- Liquid smoke: Mesquite liquid smoke gives the pork a smoky flavor without the work of digging a fire pit using a wood smoker or grill.
- Hawaiian sea salt: To tenderize and add flavor to the Hawaiian kalua pork.
How to Make Instant Pot Kalua Pork
- Cut pork butt into 4 chunks, pierce with a fork, then place in the Instant Pot
- Add 1 cup water in the instant pot. Pour liquid smoke over the top and then sprinkle salt on top. Place lid on top and set to high pressure. Cook for 60 minutes and then do a natural slow release for 25 minutes.
- Remove pork and shred with 2 forks. Remove any excess fat.
- Place back in the pot and let sit in the juices for 15 minutes, or until ready to serve. Serve over rice, in tortillas, on a slider or in a salad.
Recipe Tips and Variations
- Slow cooker: Place meat in the slow cooker and pierce the pork several times. Add 1/2 cup water then pour liquid smoke over the top and sprinkle salt on top. Cook on low for 12-14 hours, or until it easily shreds. Do not remove the lid for 12 hours, as the steam is needed for tender meat.
- Hawaiian sea salt. This is the traditional salt used for kalua pig. It has a red tint and is a bit saltier than regular salt.
- Pierce with fork. Before cooking the meat, make sure to pierce it a few times with a fork. The holes from the fork help get the flavor from the salt and smoke deeper into the meat.
- Larger pork roast: For each additional pound of meat, add 15 minutes at high pressure.
- Shredding. Once the pork is done cooking, use 2 forks to shred the meat. It should be super easy to shred because of how tender and juicy it is. If the meat still seems a bit tough to shred, then it needs to cook longer.
- Let sit. After shredding the meat, place it back in the pot with the juices and let sit for about 15 minutes. This additional step gives it an extra boost of flavor.
Serving Suggestions
One of my favorite things about making this recipe is how versatile the meat is. It makes a lot, so we usually have enough for 2 meals.
Enjoy it with traditional sides like cabbage wedges and rice the first night and then use leftovers to make pork enchiladas, bbq nachos, pork quesadillas or sliders the next day. There are so many ways to serve it!
Storage
- To freeze, simply add the meat to a zip top freezer bag or airtight container and make sure all of the air is removed. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Thaw in the fridge overnight when ready to enjoy. I like to warm it up on skillet when reheating. It gets a little crispy and tastes delicious!
Looking for more pork recipes? Try Instant Pot carnitas, BBQ pulled pork, sweet pork tacos or slow cooker carnitas.
More Instant Pot Recipes
HUNGRY FOR MORE? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all the newest recipes!
Instant Pot Kalua Pork
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4-5 pound pork shoulder butt roast
- 1 Tablespoon liquid smoke
- 2 teaspoons Hawaiian sea salt
Instructions
- Cut into 4 chunks, pierce with a fork, then place in the instant pot.
- Add 1 cup water in the instant pot. Pour liquid smoke over the top and then sprinkle salt on top. Place lid on top and set to high pressure. Cook for 60 minutes and then do a natural slow release for 25 minutes.
- Remove pork and shred with 2 forks. Remove any excess fat. Place back in the pot and let sit in the juices for 15 minutes, or until ready to serve. Serve over rice, in tortillas, on a slider or in a salad.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: 5 Ingredients Or Less, Crockpot, Dairy-Free, Dinner, Freezer-Friendly, Freezer-Friendly, Instant Pot, Instant Pot, Low Carb, One Pot, One Pot, Pork
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Flavor wise, it’s delish! The cook time for the instant pot is definitely off. It was still raw unfortunately. Another user said 90 minutes on high, slow release is what they do for pulled pork. We will try that timing next time around.
Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, depending on the size of your roast it could differ.
My family and friends absolutely LOVED this recipe!! We made it in a slow cooker. We put the meat in at midnight and took it out at 2pm on the 4th of July. We offered it with either bbq sauce or with coleslaw and a variety of buns (sweet Hawaiian, brioche, onion, plain). I didn’t have the Hawaiian salt, but used Himalayan sea salt instead. I also added an extra dash or two of liquid smoke. Super delicious! Definitely something we’ll make again!
So glad everyone enjoyed it!
Made this recipe super yummy, moist and flavorful. Super easy too. This will definitely be a frequent staple in my household
So glad to hear it was a hit!
Such a yummy yummy recipe! My husband and I loved it!
This is really good! My family was impressed with this delicious meal!
This turned out so flavorful and fork tender. Will definitely make again and again!!
Yay, so happy to hear that!
I’m just getting used to my Instapot. This recipe is a great way to cook a big chunk of meat! My family loved it!
I’m so glad your family loved it!
Made this on Sunday & the family Loved it! I had a difficult time finding the Hawaiian Salt after going to several stores, I finally found some at our Co-Op Store (Boise Co-Op!) Thanks Jamielyn for Sharing this! We are going to have leftovers tonight – Taco Tuesday with Your Pineapple Salsa!!
I rate this a 5!
I’m so glad you loved it! Thanks for your review!
So happy you enjoyed it! Great idea for leftovers!
Looks extremely delicious! I can make this at home soon, love how versatile this recipe is!
mmmm..this sounds really, reeeeally good!! I bet it tastes amazing!
This looks so delicious! I have got to make this soon
Hope you enjoy! :)
I need to try this ASAP, family winner right there!
This sounds so flavorful and versatile. Love that you can freeze it too.
My family loves this pork! So much flavor!