Looking for juicy, succulent pork with crisp, crackling skin? Look no further than my slow-roasted pork shoulder.
You’ve made pork chops and pork tenderloin. You’ve made pork loins and rib roasts. Maybe you’ve even made a pork butt. But have you ever tried roasted pork shoulder? If you love juicy, tender meat and crisp, crackling skin, this is the pork roast for you!
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What Is A Pork Shoulder?
There are a lot of pork cuts you’re probably familiar with, and then there might be a few that might be confusing to you. And it’s no wonder—it’s confusing! So let’s (to use a butchery term) break it down.
A butcher initially separates the meat into major muscle groups, known as primal cuts. The pork shoulder is a primal cut from the shoulder of the pig. That shoulder is then typically broken down into two smaller, or sub-primal, cuts, ones that you’d typically see at the store—the pork butt, aka Boston butt, and the picnic shoulder, sometimes just called a shoulder.
In other words, the butt is nowhere the tail of the pig—confusing! (See this post for how part of a shoulder cut got called a butt). And “shoulder” can refer to the whole primal cut or one of the sub-primal cuts—also confusing!
To reduce confusion from here on in, we’ll refer to the sub-primal shoulder cut as the picnic shoulder. Elsewhere you might sometimes see it called a picnic roast.
What’s The Difference Between a Boston Butt And A Picnic Shoulder?
Because the butt comes from higher up on the pig, closer to the backbone, it isn’t a muscle that gets a lot of work. That means it’s comparatively tender. Also compared to a picnic shoulder, its fat marbling is more even.
The picnic shoulder is directly below the butt, more down the leg of the pig. So the muscle gets more work, making the meat is comparatively denser and tougher.
All that said, both are relatively tough cuts that will mostly benefit from low, slow cooking methods, like braising, slow-cooking, and slow-roasting—methods that will turn toughness into succulent deliciousness.
When Should You Use Which?
Although they’re relatively interchangeable in recipes, each cut does have characteristics that make it ideal for certain situations.
Because of a Boston butt’s well-dispersed fat, it’s ideal for pulled pork. It can typically be found bone-in and boneless, so if you prefer one or the other, you have that option. And it’s tender enough that it can be cut into steaks and grilled.
On the other hand, a picnic shoulder is typically only available bone-in. So it’s best cooked as a roast. The bone will help the meat stay moist, but along with the cut’s irregular shape, it can make a picnic shoulder hard to carve. So this cut is best enjoyed as hunks pulled or cut off the bone.
Perhaps best of all, a picnic shoulder typically comes skin-on. Which not only helps keep the meat moist, it results in crisp, crunchy skin. So if you like cracklings with your chunks of slow-cooked meat, this is the cut for you. (You also might like this recipe for crackling crisp pork belly.)
BUT there’s a caveat to all of what I’m saying here. There are regional differences in how these cuts are named, butchered, and sold. So you might find variations on all of the above depending on where you live.
Roasting A Picnic Shoulder
To cook a picnic shoulder, I use my basic reverse sear method for roasting pork, but slightly exaggerated. In other words, the initial roast is a little lower, to better break down the sinew and make it meltingly tender. And the finishing reverse sear is a little hotter and longer, to better crisp up that skin. If you want a bolder flavor, you can try using my Homemade Pork Rub in place of the seasonings in the recipe card.
On the side, serve gravy, barbecue sauce, salsa, or chimichurri for dipping—plus plenty of napkins. Get my Homemade Pork Gravy recipe too.
Enjoy! – Christine :)
Podcast Episode: Roasting Pork Shoulder
Listen to me explain briefly about how to roast pork shoulder, along with some other great tips, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
PrintRoasted Pork Shoulder Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 hours 15 minutes
- Total Time: 5 hours 25 minutes
- Yield: 8–14 servings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Looking for juicy, succulent pork with crisp, crackling skin? Look no further than this slow-roasted pork shoulder.
Ingredients
- 1 bone-in skin-on pork picnic shoulder (6 to 10 lbs.)
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. pepper
- Low or no-sodium chicken broth
Instructions
- Let the pork sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour. Preheat the oven to 275°F.
- Meanwhile, mix together the garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle it all over the pork.
- Put the pork in a large roasting pan, skin-side-up. You do not need a rack in the pan.
- Add about half an inch of broth to the pan.
- Roast uncovered until the internal temperature is 180°F, 45 to 55 minutes per pound. This may seem high for pork but your goal is really tender, slow-cooked pork, almost like the texture of pulled pork.
- If at any point most of the broth has evaporated, add more. Add enough to cover any browning on the side of the pan from where the previous broth evaporated away. This will dissolve that browning and flavor your gravy (if you make it).
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 30 minutes. (If you plan to make gravy, transfer the pork to a plate and use the drippings for the gravy—here’s how.) This is important because this is the only time the meat will rest. The pork does not need to be covered during resting time.
- Preheat the oven to 500°F.
- Put the pork in a clean roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet and roast uncovered until the skin is crisped and puffy, 10 to 15 minutes, rotating the pan every 3 to 5 minutes (cover any parts that are getting overly browned with foil).
- Cut or pull the pork into hunks and serve immediately. Do not let it rest now since it has already rested.
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Dawn R says
I’m pretty stoked to taste this. I just put a 6 pounder in the oven! A little leery about 500 oven but we will see! I usually do these in a crockpot.
Christine Pittman says
The 500°F is just at the very end to crisp it up, the bulk of the cook time is at 275. Hope you loved it, Dawn!
Lea-Andra says
I loved this recipe. I’ve made pork shoulders before and this was the best. I used the rub that is linked here and also made the gravy. It was tasty, moist and the skin was so crispy. Our games night dinner was a hit!
Christine Pittman says
I’m thrilled that you loved all the elements of this recipe, Lea-Andra! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know.
Sherry Noelle Finkle says
What if I don’t plan on serving immediately. Should I skip the crisping?
Christine Pittman says
Sherry, yes, you could skip the crisping. If you’re planning to cool it and then slice it, the crisping will be gone anyhow. The crisping does add a bit of extra flavor through the browning process, but I don’t think it will make as much difference.
Sheila Stales says
When Roasting a Pork Roast for 7 hours , when do you put the potatoes in with the pork.
Christine Pittman says
Sheila, I have actually never tried this. The oven isn’t at a high enough temperature to properly brown the potatoes. Instead, I would roast the pork on its own for the full time.
About 30 minutes before it comes out of the 275F oven, I’d start this recipe for amazing roasted potatoes https://cookthestory.com/how-to-make-perfect-roasted-potatoes/ . Basically, you par-boil the potatoes first so that they’re soft and fluffy inside. Then, when you take the roast out of the oven to rest, turn the oven up to 450F and then you’ll brown the potatoes in the oven according to that recipe that I linked to.
Finally, your roast goes into a 500F oven to crisp up at the end. Your potatoes can stay in there for that, just watch that they don’t get too dark. Take them out if they do, and they’ll stay hot until your roast is ready. Remember, the roast doesn’t have to rest again so your potatoes and your roast will be ready at the same time.
Kim says
I cannot wait to try this recipe! I am hosting a dinner party in a couple of weeks, and I wanted to make something different than a beef roast for a change. This looks easy, delicious, and like a true crowd-pleaser. Thanks so much for sharing!
Christine Pittman says
Kim, You’re welcome. I look forward to hearing how it goes!
Dori says
I knew it was a winner recipe when my friend took the first bite of cracklin. Her eyes lit right up and the crunch sound filled the room. Never have I ever had such amazing crispy cracklin and tender juicy roast. Lots of pan gravy was made from the drippings too. Delicious!
Christine Pittman says
Dori, that’s so amazing to hear. I’m so happy that you liked it. And yes, I love that cracklin crunch too! Thank you for letting me know!
Paula Sklazeski says
My first picic shoulder roast. Easy to follow, precise directions.
Delicious. Will definitely use again.
Thank you!
Christine Pittman says
Thank you so much, Paula! I’m glad it worked out so well.
Andrea Olson says
Excellent meal my guests really enjoyed it. It was my first time ever making this will make it again.
Christine Pittman says
I’m so thrilled it was a hit, Andrea! Thanks for coming back to comment.
Susan Pattison says
I bought pork picnic at a great price. I’ve never cooked pork like that before. I didn’t cook it right away and wasn’t even sure if it was still good. But the recipe sounded good and so I persevered. It came out GREAT! I will do this again. The pork is tender and well seasoned. Thank you!
Christine Pittman says
You’re welcome, Susan! Glad you gave it a chance.
Marion Hayes says
Crunchy juicy pork perfection, thank you!
Christine Pittman says
You’re welcome, Marion! I appreciate you coming back to comment.
James C. says
Made this recipe and we all loved it!! It’s now our “go to” pork recipe but prepared to take your time, this recipe is very SLOW but oh so juicy.
We just loved it and so thankful we found your site Christine. I will certainly look for more recipes from you.
James
Christine Pittman says
Thank you so much, James! I love this one too. Be sure to sign up for emails or follow on social if you want to see new recipes and old favorites.
James C. says
Made this recipe and we all loved it!! It’s now our “go to” pork recipe but prepared to take your time, this recipe is very SLOW but oh so juicy.
We just loved it and so thankful we found your site Christine.
James
Sherry says
Followed your recipe to a T. It turned out wonderful. This will be my go to recipe for pork shoulder from now on.
Christine Pittman says
I love to hear that, Sherry! Thank you for coming back to comment.
Geri says
Yummy
Christine Pittman says
Thank you, Geri!
Christopher says
Great take on reverse sear! My pork came out quite well. Generated a lot of jus for sauce.
Christine Pittman says
Christopher, I’m really happy you liked it! Isn’t reverse-searing the best? Thank you for coming back to let me know.
Li says
This recipe is not good at all and ruined my new years dinner; editing else was cooked and getting cold. My pork was still raw inside and mushy, no crusty skin and it was a very small one. Thank you for starving a pregnant woman 😑
Christine Pittman says
Li, I’m not sure what went wrong for you here! This recipe has been used by very many people who have had great success.
I’d like to troubleshoot it a little bit to try to figure it out. Can you tell me, how small was your pork shoulder roast? And, just curious, do you have an oven thermometer to check the internal temperature of your oven? It doesn’t matter for all recipes, but when something is cooking at this low of a temperature, it’s important to be sure that you are at that temperature. A lot of ovens are off. Off by a little bit here could be the culprit here.
Also, I’m confused about your comment that it didn’t have a crusty skin. Even if the roast wasn’t cooked well on the inside, the 15 minutes in the very hot 500°F oven at the end would definitely form a crust, so that’s odd. Did you do that step?
Anyhow, I’m going to test this recipe again using a smaller roast and I’ll adjust the times if necessary. Thank you for your comment. It will help me improve the recipe.
Ace says
Hey! How would you adjust this for a 3.5 lb roast? Just cut the time in half approximately? Everything else the same?
Christine Pittman says
It’s going to be 35-40 minutes per pound. I’d definitely use a meat thermometer and monitor it to make sure it gets to the temperature you want. The recipe over here is for a smaller pork roast, and you can follow that if that helps too https://cookthestory.com/how-to-roast-pork-perfectly/