Pulled Pork Chili with Cornbread Croutons

It's chili night! Specifically, pulled pork chili with cornbread croutons.

This chili features tender, juicy pulled pork that's been slow cooked with a chili coffee rub that's added to a big pot of smoky chili made with kidney and black beans, fire-roasted tomatoes, adobo sauce (from chipotle chilis) and lots of spices.

Spoon the chili into bowls and serve with homemade crispy cornbread croutons. It's to-die-for!

How to make pulled pork chili

Ingredients Needed

For the pulled pork:

• Pork shoulder. About a pound and a half - trim the excess fat.
• Chili powder. Lots of it, so make sure you have a full bottle!
• Coffee grounds. You can use coffee grounds or a bit of espresso powder.
• Cumin and smoked paprika. I always have these in my pantry because I use them for chili, tacos, etc.

For the chili:

• Onion. Yellow or white will work well.
• Garlic. Plenty of it.
• Chipotle chilies in adobo sauce. You are going to use the sauce it comes in, but if you want it extra spicy (and smoky), you can chop up a chili and add that, too.
• Crushed tomatoes. A big can.
• Fire-roasted diced tomatoes. A regular-sized can.
  • Regular diced tomatoes will also work but the fire-roasted provides more flavor.
• Beans. I use a can of dark red kidney and a can of black beans.
• Stock. Any kind (except seafood - that would be weird).

Step-by-Step Instructions

To make the pulled pork:

1. Place the pork shoulder in the bowl of a greased slow cooker (you can also make this in the Instant Pot - it takes about an hour on high pressure, quick release).
2. In a small bowl, whisk together chili powder, coffee grounds, cumin, smoked paprika, salt and black pepper.
3. Rub half the spice mixture on all sides of the pork shoulder.
4. Pour about ½ cup water or stock in the bottom of the slow cooker.
5. Cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours, until pork is fork tender.
6. Remove bones and any excess fat.
7. Transfer pork to a cutting board and shred with forks into bite sized pieces.

To make the chili:

1. Heat the oil in a medium stock pot or Dutch oven.
2. Add onion and saute 4-5 minutes, until soft.
3. Add garlic and saute 30-60 seconds.
4. Stir in the remaining spice mixture (from the pork), pork pieces and adobo sauce.
5. Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, kidney beans and stock.
6. Bring to a simmer and cook 15-20 minutes.
7. Add additional chili powder, salt and black pepper, if needed.

How to make cornbread croutons

Ingredients Needed

• Cornmeal. An obvious necessity for cornbread!
• Flour. You can use any "all-purpose" variety - I prefer whole wheat pastry.
• Sugar. To balance and enhance the flavors.
• Baking powder and soda. For leavening.
• Milk. Buttermilk will also work.
• Honey. For that classic cornbread flavor!
• Oil. A neutral kind, like avocado or canola.
• Eggs. For fluff.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13 baking dish with parchment paper. Coat with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and ¾ teaspoon salt.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the  milk, honey, ⅓ cup oil and eggs until combined.
4. Pour wet ingredients into the dry, just until combined. Pour the mix into the prepared baking dish.
5. Bake 16-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to completely cool.
6. Remove cornbread from the baking dish using the parchment paper as handles and transfer to a cutting board. Cut the cornbread into cubes.
7. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the cornbread cubes on a greased baking sheet. Lightly toss in the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt.
8. Bake 10-15 minutes, until crispy and lightly browned.
9. Remove and allow to slightly cool.

Recipe Substitutions and Alterations

• For the cornbread: To save time, use a cornbread mix.
  • There are plenty of great brands out there!
  • Simply follow the box instructions to make the cornbread batter, then follow the instructions in my recipe to bake it in a 9x13 pan, let it cool, then cube and roast to make the croutons.
• To make the pork in the Instant Pot: Follow the instructions to trim the pork shoulder and rub it with the spice mixture in my recipe.
  • Add ½ cup stock or water to the Instant Pot, then cook it on manual, high pressure for 1 hour.
  • Do a quick release, then shred the pork.
• Instead of pork: Try this recipe with chicken thighs.
  • Cook in the slow cooker just until fork tender, about 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low.
• For the beans: Use a variety! I like dark red kidney and black beans together, but you can use all dark red kidney, all black, or a mixture of other beans like light red kidney or Great northern.

The best soup and chili recipes:

• Classic Chili with Beef
• Butternut Squash Apple Soup
• Vegetable Minestrone
• Curry Cauliflower Soup
• Old-Fashioned Ham and Cabbage Soup with Potatoes
• Italian Wedding Soup
• Carrot Ginger Soup

Pulled Pork Chili with Cornbread Croutons

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Smoky bean chili with chili-rubbed pulled pork topped with homemade cornbread croutons.

• Author: Julie Andrews
• Prep Time: 25-30 mins
• Cook Time: 45-50 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins-1 hr 20 mins
• Yield: Serves 10 1x
• Category: Soup
• Method: Baking, Slow Cooking
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Cornbread Croutons:

• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt, divided
• 1 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons honey
• ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon oil, divided
• 2 large eggs

Pulled Pork:

• 1 ½ pounds pork shoulder, trimmed of fat
• 3 tablespoons chili powder + more if needed
• 2 tablespoons coffee grounds
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Chili:

• 1 tablespoon oil
• ½ medium yellow onion, peeled and diced
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 2 tablespoons adobo sauce (from can of chipotle chilies)
• 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 15-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 2 15-ounce cans dark red kidney beans and/or black beans, rinsed and drained
• ½ cup unsalted stock (beef, chicken or vegetable)

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Instructions

To make the cornbread croutons:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13 baking dish with parchment paper. Coat with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and ¾ teaspoon salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the  milk, honey, ⅓ cup oil and eggs until combined. Pour wet ingredients into the dry, just until combined. Pour mix into the prepared baking dish.
3. Bake 16-20 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to completely cool.  Cut the cornbread into cubes. Remove the cornbread from the baking dish using the parchment paper as handles and transfer to a cutting board. Cut the cornbread into cubes.
4. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place the cornbread cubes on a greased baking sheet. Lightly toss in the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt. Bake 10-15 minutes, until crispy and lightly browned. Remove and allow to slightly cool.

To make the pulled pork:

1. Place the pork shoulder in the bowl of a greased slow cooker (you can also do this in the Instant Pot - it takes about an hour on high pressure - quick release).
2. In a small bowl, whisk together chili powder, coffee grounds, cumin, smoked paprika, salt and black pepper. Rub half the spice mixture on all sides of the pork shoulder. Pour about ½ cup water or stock in the bottom of the slow cooker.
3. Cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours, until pork is fork tender. Remove bones and any excess fat. Transfer pork to a cutting board and shred with forks into bite sized pieces.

To make the chili:

1. Heat the oil in a medium stock pot or Dutch oven. Add onion and saute 4-5 minutes, until soft. Add garlic and saute 30-60 seconds. Stir in remaining spice mixture, pork pieces and adobo sauce.
2. Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, kidney beans and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook 15-20 minutes. Add additional chili powder, salt and black pepper, if needed.
3. Serve chili in bowls topped with the cornbread croutons.

Notes

Cooking Tip: Pulled pork and cornbread can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/10 of recipe
• Calories: 459
• Sugar: 6g
• Sodium: 508mg
• Fat: 21g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Unsaturated Fat: 16g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 46g
• Fiber: 8g
• Protein: 21g
• Cholesterol: 89mg