Healthy Crockpot Pulled Pork

Healthy Crockpot Pulled Pork is a low calorie, low carb recipe. Perfect for easy meals and meal prep. Serve over a salad, in lettuce wraps, in grain free buns, over cauliflower rice or brown rice. A simple, slow cooker meal that takes little effort and tastes delicious!

One of my most popular crockpot recipes is my crock pot BBQ chicken. A classic recipe that never gets old and makes healthy eating easy and delicious thanks to the slow cooker, which makes everything taste delicious.

So, it only makes sense to have a healthy crockpot pulled pork version here! Pork tenderloin is a lean protein and I talk about the importance of protein for fullness and satiety for weight loss. Protein is something my weight loss clients are always eating too little of.

Getting adequate protein in the diet helps individuals naturally eat fewer calories throughout the day because they stay fuller. Increasing your protein is an easy way to manage calories and prevent overeating. This healthy pulled pork recipe is a delicious, protein-focused meal. Check out these crock pot healthy recipes for more easy, protein meals!

What Makes This Pulled Pork Recipe Healthy?

There are so many recipes on the internet and as a nutritionist, I cringe when I see a “healthy” recipe on a website posted by someone who has no nutritional background that’s loaded with added sugar, not balanced with all three food groups and has low nutrient density. Not everything you see on the internet that says “healthy” is really a healthy recipe.

• Low Calorie – 1 cup (or one serving) equals 190 calories which is considered low calorie. As I always say, calories are not everything. Nutrient quality is so important. 190 calorie donut will not do the same thing to your metabolism as a 190 calorie well balanced meal or snack.
• Low in Added Sugar – This recipe uses a low sugar BBQ sauce. So many are loaded with a TON of sugar. See my recommendations below on this.
• Low Fat – Total fat is 6 grams, 1 of which is saturated (less optimal) fat. The remaining fat comes from healthy fat.
• High Protein – 32 grams of protein is great and in the ideal range for most women.
• Low Carb – The low sugar BBQ sauce keeps the carbs low in this recipe. I do recommend adding some healthy carbs to the meal so you feel full. See the recipe card for ideas.
• Gluten Free / Paleo – All ingredients are gluten free and Paleo friendly.

Ingredients for Low Calorie Pulled Pork Crockpot Recipe

Here’s what you need to make this healthy pulled pork recipe. It may be obvious, but you’ll also need a slow cooker. This is the one I have.

• Pork Tenderloin
• BBQ sauce, low in added sugar
• Chicken Broth
• Onion Powder
• Garlic Powder

How To Make Pulled Pork in a Slow Cooker

Here’s the steps to make pulled pork in a slow cooker. Honestly, it’s so easy – you don’t need steps. Just put the ingredients in your slow cooker, turn it on, set the time and let it do it’s magic!

You can cook on high for 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours. I generally do mine on low and then set it to the warm setting. You want to slow cook the pork tenderloin long enough until it’s tender and shreds easily with tongs or forks.

I do recommend cutting off the silver parts or visible fat from the pork tenderloin to make it as lean as possible. A little fat is okay, but it is very easy to consume fat in the diet and individuals are generally consuming more fat than they are aware of.

Can You Make BBQ Pulled Pork in the Instant Pot?

Yes, you can make this yummy pulled pork recipe in an Instant Pot following the same instructions as used in my instant pot pulled chicken bbq recipe!

What Are Sugar Free BBQ Sauces?

Store bought BBQ sauces are loaded with added sugar. Added sugar is snuck into many foods and many foods you would never think to have added sugar. It’s a big problem, but an even bigger problem for human health as it contributes to inflammation, disease development and weight gain.

I do have a low sugar BBQ sauce recipe if you want to make your own. It’s super simple!

A few low sugar BBQ sauce brands I like include Stubbs, G Hughes, Primal Kitchen Classic, Primal Noble Made Classic, Tessemae’s or Annie’s Original. I recommend reading the nutrition data label on the product. Generally, you want to see 1-2 grams of added sugar or less.

Substitutions for Healthy Crockpot Pulled Pork

Here are the substitutions you can make for this healthy pulled pork recipe made in a slow cooker. As always, remember that when you make substitutions that it will change the nutrition from the information you see in the nutrition data in the recipe card below.

• Pork Tenderloin – You can do chicken as shown in this recipe. Turkey tenderloin or lean beef like flank steak, tenderloin, venison or veal.
• Chicken Broth – Vegetable broth, beef broth or any stock can be used.
• BBQ Sauce – I recommend a BBQ with minimal added sugar i.e. 1-2 grams of added sugar per serving. You can make homemade low sugar barbecue sauce (it’s easy!). Low sugar BBQ sauce brands I like include Stubbs, G Hughes, Primal Kitchen Classic, Primal Noble Made Classic, Tessemae’s or Annie’s Original
• Garlic Powder – You can use minced garlic or garlic chopped fresh.
• Onion Powder – Onion flakes can be substituted or you can omit.
• Instant Pot – You can make this recipe in the Instant Pot. Follow the instructions in this instant pot shredded bbq chicken. It’s so easy!