If you’ve been wondering how to cook a pork shoulder that’s fall-apart tender on the inside with irresistibly crispy skin, this simple oven-roasted recipe delivers every time.
With just a handful of pantry spices and mostly hands-off cooking, you’ll have enough flavorful pork for dinner plus leftovers for meal prep all week. Naturally high protein, low carb, keto, Whole30, SCKC friendly, and gluten free.
There’s a reason pork shoulder has been one of my favorite cuts of meat for years. It’s one of the most forgiving roasts you can make, and with a little patience, it transforms into incredibly tender, juicy pork with a beautifully browned exterior.
The key is cooking it low and slow until the connective tissue has time to break down. While every roast varies slightly in size and shape, I recommend cooking pork shoulder to an internal temperature of 195-205°F for meat that’s tender enough to shred, then letting it rest before serving.
Another reason I come back to this recipe again and again is the value. With lots of price volatility on beef, chicken, and eggs – pork shoulder remains one of the best values in the meat department.
One roast can easily feed a family for dinner with plenty of leftovers, making it a great choice for meal prep or stretching your grocery budget without sacrificing flavor.
One of the best things about roasted pork shoulder is how versatile it is. Enjoy it the first night just as it is, then transform the leftovers into completely different meals throughout the week.
Toss it with my keto BBQ sauce for pulled pork, use it in lettuce wrap tacos or burrito bowls with salsa and avocado, crisp it up for breakfast with eggs, or add it to soups, casseroles, and fried cauliflower rice. It has a mild flavor that works with just about any seasoning, so you’ll never get bored with the leftovers.
I served this to our guests with corn tortillas, homemade keto salsa verde, chopped cilantro, lettuce, sliced avocado, Greek yogurt and shredded cheddar cheese. It was a huge hit!
You don’t have to go the Mexican route though – this easy roasted pork shoulder would be equally tasty served alongside Cheesy Cauliflower Puree and my keto broccoli salad.
This easy roasted pork shoulder is also perfectly tailored to anyone on the Carnivore Diet, the Whole30 or the Squeaky Clean Keto Challenge.
More Keto Pork Recipes
Jamaican Jerk Pork Roast – Instant Pot Recipe
Low Carb Pumpkin, Pork and Peanut Stew
Keto Sweet & Sour Pork Sheet Pan Meal
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Easy Roasted Pork Shoulder
- Total Time: 6 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 15 servings 1x
- Diet: Diabetic
Description
An easy roasted pork shoulder recipe that results in tender meat and super crispy skin! Whole 30, Paleo, Keto, Low Carb
Ingredients
- 8–10 lb pork shoulder
- 2 tablespoons coarse Kosher salt (reduce to 1 T if using table salt)
- 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients for your spice rub in a small bowl.
- Remove pork shoulder (or other pork roast) from packaging and rinse under cold water.
- Using your hands, pat the dry rub all over the surface of the meat.
- Place in a large roasting pan skin side up.
- Roast uncovered in a preheated 500 degree (F) oven for 20 minutes.
- Reduce heat to 300 degrees and roast for an additional 45 minutes per pound.
- Total cooking time for an 8lb roast should be about 6 hours and 20 minutes.
- Remove the pork roast from the oven and let rest for 30 minutes.
- The hard outer shell should lift right off like a cap and can be broken or chopped into delicious meat chips!
- The meat should be tender enough to pull apart with forks. Shred, adjust seasoning if necessary, and serve!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 hours
- Category: keto main dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 oz
- Calories: 275
- Fat: 15g
- Carbohydrates: 0g
- Protein: 33g
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Adriana says
I have a 4lb what would be the instructions then?? Half the times??
Adriana says
And when you turn it down to 300 would you take out the shoulder or just leave it in the oven?? Sorry I’m a new cook.
Shelly says
Leave it in for 30 minutes for every pound it weighs. (Example: 4lbs= 2hrs.)
laurie says
O.M.G. This was the most delicious food I’ve had in a long time! Certainly from my own oven….thanks :)
Jim says
A question from a husband who does very little cooking. Do you put a lid on the roasting pan or leave it off to get the crispy skin?
Mellissa Sevigny says
No lid – otherwise the steam would keep the skin from getting crispy. Enjoy!
Danny says
Do you think this would work in an Instant Pot? Or would it not crisp up well? Would love to hear if anyone has tried that — always looking for recipes I can convert to the IP!
Jessica says
Made this today as written. Didn’t change anything. My roast was nine pounds and it cooked for five hours. I used a bone in shoulder butt. It was PERFECT! The fat was crispy and made the meat moist and flavorful. The meat practically melted apart. It was fantastic. My 8yr old and 5yr old kept running through the kitchen stealing pieces off the counter! Thank you.
Mellissa Sevigny says
So glad it was a hit with the entire family Jessica! Your description of it made me want to make it again ASAP ha ha!
Angela says
Love the recipe! I made it yesterday. The only thing that I did differently was brine the shoulder overnight for 12 hours in 4 tbs of kosher salt and my fav spices. The cook time on this recipe is perfect. it was delicious and full of flavor without having to poke holes in the meat and adding garlic. This recipe is a staple! Perfect for summer parties because it’ll feed a lot of people and if you turn this into pulled pork you could feed even more.
cooker476innm says
Yesterday I made a 9.12 lb. Boston Butt with this recipe; I had never bought this cut before but 78 cents per pound allured me. Didn’t know what to do with it until I found this recipe. Added a little olive oil to the dry rub to make a paste, thinking that it would stick on the meat better. Well, I’ll never do that again!!! It was almost impossible to spread on the c9ld meat. After spreading the paste on as best as possible, I put the roast on a rack and refrigerated it overnight. Left it on the rack to roast it. Since we live at 4600 ft. in elevation, i baked it for 25 minutes at 500 degrees, and then 4-1/2 hrs. at 325 degrees, and it was truly fall apart tender!!! I was REALLY PLEASED, thus the 5 star rating. My only criticism is the super saltiness of the meat I did cut the salt to 1/2 Tbs., and the the saltiness was still over-the-top for Hubby and me. Next time (and there will be one), I will cut the salt again, probably to 1 tsp. Remember that too much sodium is not very healthy Now I have 2-1/2 quarts of pork for meals for the 2 of us!!! Thanks so much for the GOOD recipe, Ma’am.
Ron says
Getting ready to cook the pork butt roast, was wandering covered or not?
Mellissa Sevigny says
uncovered!
Junior says
So I found this recipe about two weeks ago because pork shoulder was on sale and I had no idea how to cook one. Since I’ve found this recipe I’ve made three shoulders, including one today, because my family can’t get enough of it. I’ve even used the spice combo on pork chops and chicken as well and they’ve both come out amazingly. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Glad it was a hit with the whole family Junior – thanks for letting me know! :)
Leslie Eriksson says
This was Christmas 2015 for us. I made this recipe exactly as written as it was MARVELOUS. Many many thanks for the recipe.
Artcteacher says
Fantastic!