We got a good deal on an 8-pound pork butt roast at one of the big box stores. I've usually cooked them in the oven, but I decided to use our Ninja Foodie multi-pot this time. This was a great idea, it cooked in less than half the time... which with a roast this large was a huge time savings!
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Great Way to Cook a Port Butt or Shoulder Roast
Cooking a pork butt or shoulder in an oven takes about 40 minutes per pound, so this roast would have taken over 5 hours. Cooking in a pressure cooker requires 15 minutes per pound, so it only required two hours of cook time. Keep in mind that it will take a while for the pot to come up to pressure.
Ingredients You'll Need
- pork butt or shoulder roast
- avocado or canola oil
- ground cardamom
- ground ginger
- garlic powder
- salt
- black pepper
- ground nutmeg
- ground allspice
- onion
- garlic
- coconut cream
- lime juice
- lime wedges
Port Butt vs Pork Shoulder
Despite the name, pork butt doesn't come from the tail end of the pig! Both cuts come from the shoulder. Pork butt, also known as Boston butt, comes from the top of the front legs of the pig, near the should joint. Pork shoulder, also called picnic shoulder or picnic roast, comes from the lower part of the leg, near the elbow joint.
Fun fact: Pigs, and all other four-legged animals (including humans), have two shoulders and elbows, and two hips and knees!
So which should you use? They're pretty much interchangeable. Butt has more fat and marbling, while Shoulder has less marbling. Both are sold with a fat cap. Butt is good for most uses, like braising or stewing or making pulled pork. Shoulder is usually sold with the skin on, so it's great for oven roasting with a crisp, crackly skin.
(And if you're wondering what comes from the rear end of the pig, the top of the rear leg is the ham!)
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I used coconut milk instead of coconut cream?
Yes, you can. The coconut flavor won't be quite as pronounced, and the juice will be thinner, but it will work just as well.
Why do you use both garlic powder and sliced garlic?
Garlic powder, garlic salt, and fresh garlic have slightly different flavors, and different uses. The same is true of onion powder and fresh onion. In this case, the ground garlic is used in the spice mix to season the meat, and the sliced garlic adds flavor to the juice.
Make Spiced Coconut Pork in the Pressure Cooker
Here's the meat on the cutting board. Wow, that's a big butt! (Last butt joke, I promise!) I've cut slices into the fat cap to let the spices and coconut cream soak into the meat. You can see that the right side of the roast is a solid piece, while the left side, where the bone was cut out, is in several pieces.
Mix the spices together and rub them into the meat.
Coat the bottom of the pressure cooker bowl with oil and put the roast into the bowl. I'm glad I have an 8-quart cooker! The roast barely fits!
Add the onions, garlic, and coconut cream. Pressure cook on high for 15 minutes per pound of meat. Don't forget to allow time to come up to pressure! This monster roast took about 20 minutes to pressurize.
Do a quick release and open the pot. You can see that the meat has released a lot of juice and fat, and is a lot smaller.
Here it is back on the cutting board. The meat is fall-apart tender! This is a boneless roast, so the meat in the left side, where the bone was cut out, has come away from the main roast.
The smaller chunks of meat can be shredded with two forks to make pulled pork. The larger piece can be slice or cubed and served with gravy.
And speaking of gravy, you can set the pressure cooker to sauté and mix a cornstarch slurry (2 parts cold water and 1 part cornstarch) into the juice to thicken it!
Here's some of the pulled pork. Yummy!
We used this as part of a meal with slow cooked ginger carrots and sheet pan turmeric potatoes.
Leftovers!
I sliced some of the biggest piece of pork thinly and used it to make Cubano sandwiches (sliced pork roast, sliced ham, swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard). The rest of the pork was used in sandwiches and soups.
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📖 Recipe Card
Pressure Cooker Spiced Coconut Pork Roast
Special Equipment Needed
- Pressure cooker Instant Pot, Ninja Foodie, etc
Ingredients
- 1 boneless pork butt or shoulder roast 3 to 4 pounds or larger
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 tablespoon avocado or canola oil
- 1 onion peeled and cut into 8 pieces
- 4 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- 1 (13.5 ounce) can coconut cream
- ¼ cup lime juice
- lime wedges for serving
Instructions
- Mix the cardamom, ginger, garlic powder, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and allspice. Rub the seasoning mix over the surface of the roast.1 boneless pork butt or shoulder roast, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- Coat the bottom of the pressure cooker with the oil. Put the roast in, and add the onions, garlic, coconut cream, and lime juice.1 tablespoon avocado or canola oil, 1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 (13.5 ounce) can coconut cream, ¼ cup lime juice
- Cook on high pressure for 15 minutes per pound of meat. The meat will release water and fat, which will increase the amount of broth.
- Serve in bowls, and garnish with lime wedges.lime wedges
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