Crock Pot Balsamic Pork Roast
I love making pork in the slow cooker, it’s so easy and literally falls apart once cooked. Here it’s cooked with balsamic vinegar and honey which gives it a slight tang that I love!
Whenever I happen to see a small pork roast in the supermarket, I always pick one up because I know it’s an easy dinner. I usually find myself gravitating to the Slow Cooker Kalua Pork each and every time because it’s so good and easy to make, but I wanted to switch things up and came across a slow cooker recipe for this balsamic pork recipe on Add A Pinch.
I met Robin just a few months ago while I was in Oregon so I was happy to try one of her recipes. This was so easy to make, and although my husband generally isn’t much of a balsamic fan, my toddler and I thought it was great! This recipe is slightly modified from her original but for the most part I followed it pretty close.
I served this with Broccoli and Cheese Twice Baked Potatoes but this would also be great with Roasted Parmesan Green Beans.
And since so many are asking, I have the 6 Quart Hamilton Beach Set ‘n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker. I love it because you can adjust the time you want it to cook, and it automatically turns to warm when it’s done. It also has a probe for meat that automatically shuts off when done. I hated my old crock pot, it burnt everything and my food had a weird taste. This crock pot is so great, I actually own two!

Crock Pot Balsamic Pork Roast
I love making pork in the slow cooker, it’s so easy and literally falls apart once cooked. Here it’s cooked with balsamic vinegar and honey which gives it a slight tang that I love!
Ingredients:
- 2 pound boneless pork shoulder roast (sirloin roast)
- kosher salt, to taste
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
Directions:
- Season the pork with salt, garlic powder and red pepper flakes and place it into the slow
cooker. - Mix together the broth, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce and pour it over the pork,
then pour the honey over and set the timer for 4 hours on High or 6-8
hours on Low. - Once the pork is cooked and tender (it should shred easily with a fork),
remove from slow cooker with tongs into a serving dish. - Break apart lightly with two forks and put back into the slow cooker.
- Ladle 1/2 cup sauce over the pork and keep warm until ready to eat.
Nutrition Information
Yield: 8 servings, Serving Size: 3 oz pork
- Amount Per Serving:
- Freestyle Points: 5
- Points +: 5
- Calories: 214 calories
- Total Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: g
- Cholesterol: 72mg
- Sodium: 196mg
- Carbohydrates: 4g
- Fiber: 0g
- Sugar: 3g
- Protein: 21g
I made this twice. The first time slow cooking it and t h e the second time the quick cooking method. Pull apart beautifully. Tasted great. But both times it came out incredibly dry. Even bring extra careful to follow the recipe the second time didn’t help. If anyone has an idea to help with that I’m curious.
I doubled the sauce after reading comment above.
This is our new favorite dish! I am a horrible cook….but this was amazing! My local store only had 1.5 lb tenderloins, which was fine because it is just my husband & myself, but even with it smaller I still made a little extra sauce as well, started it out on high to get it heated up then turned it to low & I turned it over every hour. I know that probably defeats the purpose of putting in the crock & then leaving but I think it helped…. Then after I pulled it apart (it actually just fell apart!) & stirred it together with the remaining sauce that was left in the crock pot, I let it cook about 10 mins in the remaining sauce on warm & the remaining sauce absorbed into it all the way & it turned out perfect!! I put an extra 1/4 cup of the broth & an extra 1/4 cup more of the balsamic vinegar, I also mixed my honey & garlic powder into the sauce instead of seasoning it with it & poured it all over the roast & I didn’t use any salt….next time I may go double if my roast is over the 1.5 🙂 I hope this helps!
I think searing first helps keep the juices in while slow cooking. FYI Elizabeth used a TENDERLOIN, which is a whole other cut than a pork loin. I find the loin dries out if I don’t sear it on all sides first. Tenderloins seem to be a little more foolproof. Good luck!
Can I make this in the oven? I don’t have a slow cooker or instapot
It turned out very nice! Simple and tasty and I used pork tenderloin.
Have made this recipe several times and always great. I do drizzle more honey to coat the entire top part of the roast seems to help keep it moist. Today was the first time in the Instapot nice not to have to wait 4-8 hours for it!
Can you point Me to the instant pot directions?
I’ve made this several times in the IP. I double all of the liquid ingredients, and I get a 3.5-4 lb pork shoulder. Cook on high pressure for 55-65 minutes (longer time for larger size of meat) then NPR. Take out meat and shred with forks. I love this recipe!
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I make this all the time in the slow cooker, and my whole family loves it. I just bought an instant pot. Can this recipe be made in the Instant Pot?
Horribly dry. Tough to chew. Husband had to coat in barbecue sauce to eat it. Won’t make again.
It’s dependent on the slow cooker. Don’t blame the recipe.
Hi Jenny! I am a really bad cook lol, Try this again doubling or even tripling the sauce and use a pork tenderloin, cook it on low for 6-8 hrs (depending on how large the tenderloin is) & I know you will love it! We used a 1.5 prepackaged pork tenderloin (it was all I could get in my local little grocer…I live rural) I used the same ingredients except I put in almost double the broth & balsamic vinegar, I also put the garlic powder & honey into the sauce instead of seasoning it with it, used no salt or red pepper flakes & then I poured it all over the tenderloin. I started it out on high to get it hot, then switched it to low, I turned it every hour & after about 5-6 hours (I lost track of time just whenever it will let you pull it or shred it apart easily) I shredded it (it actually just kind of fell apart as I touched it with the forks) stirred it into the remaining sauce left in the pot & cooked it on the warm setting for about 10 mins or so then stirred it up & served it. When I tore it apart & mixed it with the remaining sauce left in the bottom of the pot it absorbed all the sauce & it got super juicy really quickly…..maybe this might help? Like I said, I can’t cook to save my life & I don’t normally give advice or respond but this was so good I would hate for you to miss out on it….I think the fact that it was a tenderloin & the extra sauce & maybe the turning did the trick 😉 Have a great day!!
I just made this for the 4th time (LOVE this stuff) but this time it was tough and dried out. I know why and it’s because it sat in the slow cooker too long. I went out for the day and didn’t have my eye on it. Maybe that’s what happened to yours- cooked too long.
I think searing helps keep the juices in while slow cooking. FYI Elizabeth used a TENDERLOIN, which is a whole other cut than a pork loin. I find the loin dries out if I don’t sear it on all sides first. Tenderloins seem to be a little more foolproof. Good luck!
I’ve made this many times in the slow cooker and it is outstanding. Can I make this in the Instant Pot? If so, what are the directions?
I’m also curious how to convert this to a Instant Pot directions. Any advice yet?
I’ve made this several times and it’s never dry. Super simple. Love this recipe!!
It was delicious. I recommand it to everybody!
Can this be frozen once cooked?
My husband liked it!! Really, he is very fussy when trying new recipes. I read reviews, seared my roast first and added more liquids than recipe called for. I myself would have liked it a little sweeter, but my husband liked the tang from the vinegar. I put his on a hard roll, I put mine on a baked potato and added cheese! I will make this recipe again!Thank you!!
I made this last week exactly like the recipe says and it is one of the best recipes I have tried on Pintrest. The whole family loved it and wanted to know when I will be making it again.
Thanks Velda!
I used a pressure cooker on high for 80 minutes and added extra sauce as suggested by others. It was excellent and super tender!
Delish,! Used a pork tenderloin and followed recipe and it was moist and delicious.
I haven’t made this yet but would never use a pork tenderloin in the slow cooker. Not enough fat on it to keep it moist.. If you use a cheaper, fattier cut of meat such as a prk shoulder blade roast you won’t have that problem. Yes I always sear(brown) on all sides first .
I have made this several times but this was the first time in the Instant Pot. I doubled the sauce part of the recipe and cooked it under pressure for 80 minutes (someone commented this time so that’s why I used it). For my tastes, I would have preferred slightly more tender so if I make this again I will cook it for 70 minutes and do the quick release method. My roast was mostly thawed before cooking as well. Hope this helps for those looking for Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker instructions.
Can you give me the instructions for this if cooking in the oven versus the crockpot?
Mine came out dry and gross. I think it over cooked. But it definitely did not look like the picture. I used pork loin. Not sure if that’s why it came out so tough.
Repping this in 2019! I made this with a 4-5 lb shoulder and just eyeballed the liquids after initially doubling the recipe…I added broth and W.sauce and balsamic until it covered 3/4 of the shoulder. I started with 2 yellow onions (the baseball shaped ones, not giant Vidalia) sliced and spread to cover the entire bottom.of the Crock-Pot. Slow cooked for 8 hours, and the pulled the bone out. I was told with pulled pork not to just remove it from the juice like many did, but the pull it apart *in the juice* which keeps it moist as the liquids seep back in to fill the spaces between muscle striations that have loosened. The result was magnificent. The onions carmelized themselves without falling apart, and I’m sincere about this, they may have been as good or better than the meat! Anyhow, great recipe. Making an 8 lb shoulder for NYEve and had no broth so I poured a bottle of Virgil’s Cherry Cream Soda over the balsamic mix. The juice tastes amazing after 4 hours of cooking, I’m nsure it will be another smash. Happy New Year!
I used a pork roast with a bone in – it was all I had – and the meat was so tender and moist. Fell off the bone! Delicious!
Wondering if putting in some veggies like carrots and potatoes with the roast would work ok?
After reading comments about this being dry I was a little hesitant but went ahead and made it. My crock pot has the option to use a probe which I have never done but decided to use it for this recipe. Unbelievable! It took 3 hrs on low for my 3 lb loin to reach 170 degrees. I wanted to slice the meat so I let it rest a few minutes and then was able to make thin slices which I put back in the juice. It was so moist and tender, This I will definitely make again.