Who doesn’t love a hands-off dinner?
I wanted a traditional Hawaiian main course for my Hawaiian Christmas dinner (read about it here). Kalua Pork is a popular Christmas and Luau dish, traditionally rubbed with Hawaiian sea salt and cooked in a pit oven in the ground. We are recreating the smoky flavor of the pit in a crockpot with liquid smoke.
I read on several blogs and threads online that some Hawaiian adds a banana to their crockpot to mimic the flavor of wrapping the pork in banana leaves so I gave it a try and loved it! It’s not necessary though so feel free to leave it out if you prefer.
Serve Kalua Pork with rice, pineapple wedges, and lomi lomi salmon for a total luau menu.
Like most slow cooker recipes, kalua pork is very easy to make. Just poke the pork with a fork, drizzle liquid smoke over it, rub in sea salt, and let it hang out all day. This recipe makes your whole house smell like a luau!
Kalua Pork
4-6 lbs pork shoulder or pork butt
1 Tbsp Hawaiian Sea salt
1 Tbsp Liquid Smoke
Optional: 1 banana
Serving suggestion: rice, pineapple wedges
- Rinse pork with cold water and pat dry with a paper towel. Place pork in a slow cooker and pierce all over with a fork. Pour liquid smoke over pork, then rub with Hawaiian sea salt. Place a ripe banana (still in its peel) on top of the pork. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours. When it’s done, it should fall apart when you touch it with a spoon.
- Remove banana and discard. Shred meat in the crockpot (careful not to shred the fat – you don’t want to eat that) and let cook covered for another hour. For a truly Hawaiian dinner, serve kalua pork with rice, pineapple wedges, and lomi lomi salmon.
Want another pulled pork recipe? Try my pork carnitas.
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