Root Beer Pulled Pork Cornbread Waffle Sandwiches

I made root beer pulled pork sandwiches last Tuesday and honestly they’re better than I thought they’d be. The pork cooks in actual root beer for like 7 to 8 hours and comes out so tender you can pull it apart with your hands if you’re impatient. Then you stack it on cornbread waffles instead of buns which sounds weird but it works.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The root beer breaks down the pork differently than broth or cider does, leaving this caramelized sweetness that doesn’t taste like soda at all once it’s done
• Cornbread waffles hold up to all the sauce and slaw without getting soggy like regular bread
• You can walk away for 8 hours while the slow cooker does everything
• The slaw has sriracha in it but it’s mild, so you can dump more in if you want
• It’s one of those recipes where people ask what’s in it because they can’t figure out the flavor
• The waffle iron makes the cornbread crispy on the outside and you get those little pockets that catch the BBQ sauce

The Story Behind This Recipe

I got tired of pulled pork on regular buns that fell apart halfway through eating. My waffle iron was just sitting in the cabinet and I had cornbread mix left over from something else. The root beer thing came from my mom who used to make pot roast with Dr Pepper, so I figured why not try it with pork. Last Tuesday after work I threw everything in the slow cooker before I even changed clothes and by dinner time the whole apartment smelled like a barbecue restaurant. The slaw was a last minute addition because I needed something cold and crunchy to balance out all the sweet smoky flavors and it turned out to be the best part.

What You Need

You need one Boston butt for the base of everything. Not a pork shoulder roast, not tenderloin. Boston butt has enough fat running through it that after 7 to 8 hours in the slow cooker it practically falls apart when you look at it. Coat it liberally with seasoned salt before it goes in, and I mean really coat it, not just a sprinkle.

Pour root beer around the pork once it’s in the crock, enough so it nearly comes up the sides but doesn’t cover the top. Any root beer works but I used the cheap store brand and it was fine. Add liquid smoke to taste because that’s what gives you the smokehouse flavor without actually smoking anything. For the slaw you’ll need mayo, sugar, vinegar and sriracha mixed together, then toss that with a bag of slaw mix from the produce section.

The cornbread waffles need one box of cornbread mix, milk, 1 egg and melted butter according to whatever the box directions say. I used Jiffy because that’s what I had. You’ll want Sonny’s Real Pit Bar-B-Q® Sweet Bar-B-Q Sauce for finishing, or whatever bottle of sweet BBQ sauce you’ve got in the fridge already, but the Sonny’s really does taste better with this.

How to Make Root Beer Pulled Pork Cornbread Waffle Sandwiches

Get your Boston butt coated with seasoned salt first. I did this over the sink because seasoned salt goes everywhere. Drop it into your 4 to 6-quart slow cooker crock and pour the root beer carefully around the edges until it’s almost covering the sides of the meat. Add your liquid smoke now, I did maybe 2 teaspoons but you can do more if you want that campfire taste.

Cover it and set the cooker on low. Walk away for 7 to 8 hours. The smell starts getting good around hour 5 and by hour 7 your whole place smells like you’ve been smoking meat all day. When it’s done the pork should be so soft you could shred it with a spoon if you wanted to.

Take the pork out and put it on a plate or cutting board. Let it sit for maybe 10 minutes so you don’t burn yourself. Shred it with two forks, pulling in opposite directions, and toss any big chunks of fat you see. The meat will be dark around the edges from the root beer and lighter in the middle.

Mix your slaw dressing in a small bowl - mayo, sugar, vinegar and sriracha whisked together until it’s smooth. The recipe amount of sriracha is mild so if you like heat add more now. I doubled it. Pour this over your bag of slaw mix and toss it around until everything’s coated, then stick it in the fridge while you make the waffles.

Turn on your waffle iron and let it heat up. I have a Belgian one with the deep squares. Mix your cornbread batter in a bowl - the mix, milk, egg and melted butter stirred until you don’t see dry powder anymore. It’ll be thicker than pancake batter. Pour it into the hot waffle iron and close the lid. Mine took about 4 minutes per waffle and I could tell they were done when steam stopped coming out the sides.

Cut each waffle into 4 pieces once they’re done. This matters because a whole waffle is too big and awkward to eat like a sandwich. Take one piece and pile pulled pork on it, then ladle BBQ sauce over the pork. I used maybe 3 tablespoons of sauce per sandwich but you do you. Scoop a big handful of cold slaw right on top of the hot pork, then put another waffle piece on top to close it.

The temperature contrast between the cold slaw and hot pork is something I didn’t expect to matter but it really does. It keeps everything from being this one-note warm mush.

What I Did Wrong the First Time

I forgot to cut the waffles into pieces and tried to make the sandwiches with whole waffles. They were impossible to eat without everything sliding out the sides and I ended up just eating it with a fork like a sad deconstructed mess. 4 pieces per waffle is the right move, gives you 12 sandwiches total if you make 3 waffles and you can actually pick them up and bite into them like a normal person.

Root Beer Pulled Pork Cornbread Waffle Sandwiches

By Emma

Prep:

20 min

Cook:

8h

Total:

8h 20min

Servings:

6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 Boston butt, liberally coated with seasoned salt
• Root beer, enough to pour around the pork in slow cooker
• Liquid smoke, to taste
• Mayo for slaw dressing
• Sugar for slaw dressing
• Vinegar for slaw dressing
• Sriracha for slaw dressing (amount makes mild heat, add more if preferred)
• Slaw mix
• Cornbread mix
• Milk as per cornbread mix directions
• 1 egg
• Melted butter as per cornbread mix directions
• Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q® Sweet Bar-B-Q Sauce

Method

1. 1 Liberally coat the Boston butt with seasoned salt. Place it in a 4 to 6-quart slow cooker crock. Pour root beer carefully around the edges until it nearly comes up the sides of the pork. Add liquid smoke for that smoky punch. Cover and set the cooker on low. As it cooks over 7 to 8 hours, the air fills with a sweet, caramelizing aroma, and the meat softens until it shreds effortlessly with two forks.
2. 2 Once done, remove the pork to a plate or tray. Let it cool just enough to handle without burning your fingers. Shred the meat with two large forks, discarding any excessive fat. Set the tender pulled pork aside while you prepare the slaw and waffles.
3. 3 For the slaw, whisk together mayo, sugar, vinegar, and sriracha in a small bowl. The sriracha amount is mild - I usually adjust higher depending on how much heat I want. Toss this dressing thoroughly with the slaw mix. Chill in the fridge; the cold helps the flavors marry and keeps the slaw crisp.
4. 4 Preheat your waffle iron following the manufacturer's instructions; I prefer a Belgian waffle maker for a nice thick texture with deep grids. In a medium bowl, stir together the cornbread mix, milk, egg, and melted butter until no lumps remain. Pour the batter into the hot iron and cook until the waffles are golden, crunchy on the outside, and fluffy inside. The kettle-like sizzle and steam escaping tell you it's ready.
5. 5 Cut each waffle into four pieces. Take one piece and pile on a generous amount of pulled pork. Ladle your preferred BBQ sauce over the pork, I favor Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q® Sweet Bar-B-Q Sauce for its rich sweetness. Add a large scoop of the sweet and spicy slaw right on top, then cap it with another waffle section. Bite into the contrast - the crisp waffle, smoky pork, and cool, tangy slaw all mingling together.

Nutritional information

Calories

650

Protein

30g

Carbs

55g

Fat

32g

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Tips for the Best Root Beer Pulled Pork Cornbread Waffle Sandwiches

Don’t drain the root beer liquid after cooking. I learned this the hard way when I poured it all down the sink and realized I could’ve reduced it in a pan for extra sauce. The leftover cooking liquid has so much flavor from the pork fat and caramelized root beer that if you simmer it for 10 minutes it turns into this sweet glaze you can drizzle over everything.

Let your waffle iron heat up completely before you pour in the first batch of batter. If it’s not hot enough the cornbread sticks to the plates and you’ll spend 15 minutes scraping it off instead of eating. You’ll know it’s ready when a drop of water sizzles and evaporates immediately on the surface.

The pulled pork tastes better if you let it sit in its shredded state for about 5 minutes before you add the BBQ sauce. Something about letting the meat cool slightly makes it absorb the sauce better instead of the sauce just sitting on top like a puddle. I noticed this when I got impatient one time and mixed it right away and the sauce just slid off.

Make the slaw at least 30 minutes before you need it if you can. The cabbage softens just enough in the dressing that it’s not crunchy like raw cabbage but it’s not wilted and sad either.

Serving Ideas

I put out pickled jalapeño slices on the side and people added them between the pork and slaw layer. The vinegar from the pickles cut through the sweetness in a way that regular jalapeños wouldn’t have. Some people at my place mixed extra BBQ sauce with a little bit of the sriracha from the slaw dressing and used that as a dipping sauce for the waffle edges that didn’t have filling on them.

Potato chips on the sandwich itself sounds weird but I tried it and the crunch stays even with all the moisture from the pork and slaw. Just regular ruffled chips smashed right on top of the meat before you add the slaw.

Variations

You can swap Dr Pepper for the root beer if that’s what you’ve got and it works almost the same way. The flavor ends up a little less vanilla-forward and more caramel but the meat still gets tender and sweet. I tried Coke once and it was too sharp, didn’t have that rounded sweetness.

If you don’t have a waffle iron just bake the cornbread batter in a sheet pan at whatever temperature the box says and cut it into squares after. You lose the crispy pockets that catch the sauce but it still holds up better than regular bread does. Takes maybe 20 minutes in the oven.

Apple cider vinegar instead of regular vinegar in the slaw adds this fruity note that plays well with the root beer pork. I ran out of white vinegar last time and used apple cider and honestly I might keep doing it that way.

FAQ

Can I use a pork shoulder instead of Boston butt? They’re basically the same cut just different names depending on where you live. Boston butt is from the upper part of the shoulder and has more marbling which is what you want for pulled pork anyway.

How much root beer do I actually need? I used about 3 cans for a 4-pound Boston butt in my 6-quart slow cooker. It should come up the sides but not cover the top of the meat completely or the outside won’t get that darker caramelized color.

Can I cook this on high instead of low? You can do 4 to 5 hours on high but I tried it once and the meat wasn’t as tender. Low and slow really does make a difference with how the connective tissue breaks down.

What if I don’t have liquid smoke? You can skip it but the pork will taste sweet from the root beer without that smoky depth. Smoked paprika mixed into your seasoned salt helps a little but it’s not the same punch that liquid smoke gives you.

How do I know when the pork is done? It should be falling apart when you try to lift it out with tongs. If it’s holding its shape in one solid piece it needs more time. Internal temperature should hit at least 190°F but honestly by the time it’s shreddable it’s way past that.

Can I make the pulled pork ahead of time? Yeah I’ve done this and just reheated it in a pan with a splash of the cooking liquid or extra BBQ sauce. It actually tastes better the next day after the flavors have sat together overnight in the fridge.

Do I have to use Sonny’s BBQ sauce? No but their sweet sauce has this molasses thing going on that really works with the root beer flavor. Any sweet BBQ sauce is fine, just avoid the ones that are mostly tomato and vinegar because they’re too tangy for this.

Why cut the waffles into 4 pieces? A whole waffle is like 7 inches across if you have a Belgian iron and that’s way too big to eat as a sandwich. Quarter pieces are about the size of a slider bun and you can actually fit them in your mouth.

Can I use homemade cornbread batter instead of a mix? Sure but make it on the sweeter side because the slight sweetness in the cornbread waffles balances the smoky pork. I tried a savory cornbread recipe once and it was fine but not as good.

How much slaw do I need per sandwich? I use about a 1/3 cup per sandwich but it depends how much you like slaw. The whole bag of slaw mix makes enough for all 12 sandwiches with a little left over.

What if my waffle iron doesn’t have deep squares? Regular waffle irons work fine, the waffles just won’t have those deep pockets to catch sauce. They’ll still be crispy and they’ll still hold up to the weight of the toppings which is what matters.

Can I freeze the leftover pork? Yeah I freeze it in portions with a little of the cooking liquid so it doesn’t dry out. It keeps for like 3 months and you just thaw it in the fridge overnight and reheat it in a pan.

How spicy is the slaw with the sriracha amount listed? It’s barely spicy, more like a tiny kick at the end. I always double the sriracha because I like heat but if you’re feeding kids or people who don’t like spice at all the recipe amount is safe.

Do the cornbread waffles get soggy under all that meat and sauce? Not if you eat them within like 10 minutes of assembling. After that yeah they start to soften but that’s true of any sandwich with wet fillings. The crispy outside texture buys you enough time to eat it like a normal person.

Can I make this without a slow cooker? You can do it in the oven at 300°F in a covered roasting pan for the same amount of time. Just check it every couple hours to make sure the liquid hasn’t evaporated completely.

What’s the best way to shred the pork without burning myself? Let it sit for 10 minutes after you take it out and use two forks to pull it apart on a cutting board. If you’re really impatient you can use tongs to hold it steady and one fork to shred but you’ll probably still burn your fingers a little.

How long does the slaw stay good in the fridge? Maybe 2 days before the cabbage starts getting too soft and watery. After that it’s still safe to eat but the texture is off and nobody wants wilted slaw.