Watch your back, tortillas – stuffed with slow cooked BBQ pulled pork and pineapple coleslaw, these Pulled Pork Waffle Tacos are coming to take Tuesdays away from you!
In the Waffle vs. Pancake debate, I’m a French Toast supporter all the way. I just can’t help but love those thick slices of eggy, cinnamon-kissed bread, doused in maple syrup.
But waffles are definitely an incredibly close second.
It must be those amazing little grooves that hold all that extra maple goodness. Or whatever it is you happen to be drizzlin’ on top.
In the case of these Pulled Pork Waffle Tacos, it’s homemade Pineapple BBQ Sauce. Yeah. That’s happening.
This page includes step by step instructions, as well as tips and notes. If you’d like to skip all that, feel free to scroll down to the full, printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Brunch doesn’t always have to be about the breakfasty side of things. I may be more inclined to lean that way, myself, but some days, you just need a waffle piled high with the most savory meat you can find.
Which is something you just can’t do to pancakes.
Could you imagine trying to turn a pancake into a taco? That tender disc would rip right in half.
I was totally afraid that was exactly what would happen with these waffles, to be honest.
After having no success finding a waffle maker that wasn’t of the Belgian variety (the kind that conveniently sections it off into 4 pieces,) or square (but that wasn’t gonna do it, obvs,) I knew I was just going to have to go for it and hope for the best.
Thank goodness for the chewy waffle.
Personally, I normally prefer my waffles crispy, but for these tacos to work, you’ve got to resist the urge to brown them up too much.
They need some flexibility to hold all that filling and not split into a sandwich (of course, if that’s what you’re going for, there’s a handful in the list below my recipe for your drooling pleasure!)
This recipe holds a lot of firsts for me as a home cook…
- First homemade BBQ sauce (slash sweet & sour, but we’ll cover that another day.)
- First homemade coleslaw.
- First Belgian waffle.
- First time slow cooking pulled pork in alcohol.
Oh, did I forget to mention that? Yeah, my pork brine (as well as my BBQ sauce) included a full bottle of Not Your Father’s Root Beer. I debated between using that or a stout, but I felt like the pork needed something a bit sweeter than my usual go-to cookin’ beer, and that fit the bill.
It also makes one helluva root beer float. Just sayin’.
It was, however, my second time eating a waffle taco.
This tasty recipe was inspired by one I tried at Disney World many moons ago.
They had a sweet & spicy waffle sandwich (folded in half) on the menu at a quick service restaurant, and Mr. Crumby and I kind of fell in love with it.
To be different, I settled on pulled pork covered in pineapple coleslaw. BBQ and pineapple are such an amazing combination, I couldn’t resist trying them in this unique brunch entrée.
Or is it Brinner? Bressert? Bridnight snack….
More unique taco recipes to try!
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Pulled Pork Waffle Tacos with Pineapple Slaw
Ingredients
Pulled Pork
- 4 pounds boneless pork shoulder i.e. Boston butt roast
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 12 ounces hard root beer or non-alcoholic
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Pineapple BBQ Sauce
- 2 cloves garlic smashed
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup cooked pork juices or hard root beer
- ¾ cup pineapple juice
- 1 cup ketchup
- ⅔ cup dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon hot sauce
- Liquid Smoke to taste
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
Pineapple Slaw
- ½ cup Greek yogurt or light mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons pineapple juice
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- Zest of 1 lime
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 bag coleslaw mix
- 1 cup fresh pineapple ribboned
- ¼ cup green onion chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
Waffles
- 2 eggs separated
- 1 ¾ cups milk
- ½ cup melted butter cooled to room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Pulled Pork
- Place chopped onions in the bottom of a 4-qt. slow cooker. Set trimmed pork roast on top. Rub meat with garlic and brown sugar, then season with salt, paprika, and black and red pepper. Pour hard root beer, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce over the roast. Cover and cook on high 4-5 hours, or on low for 8-10 hours.
- When roast is done, remove meat carefully to a large bowl. Drain crock, reserving about 1 cup of juices. Return meat to warm slow cooker and shred with two forks.
Pineapple BBQ Sauce
- In a medium saucepan set over high heat, combine all ingredients except liquid smoke and cornstarch. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until sauce begins to darken and thicken.
- In the final 5 minutes, add Liquid Smoke a few drops at a time until flavor is reached. Remove from heat and stir in cornstarch+water mixture slowly until desired thickness is reached.
- Stir sauce into pulled pork in slow cooker and turn on low for 10-15 minutes until warmed through.
Pineapple Slaw
- Combine yogurt, pineapple juice, brown sugar, lime juice, vinegar, and salt & pepper in a small bowl, whisking vigorously until completely combined.
- In a large bowl, combine coleslaw mix, pineapple, cilantro, and green onion. Pour yogurt base over vegetables and gently toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.
Waffles
- Separate egg yolks and whites into two bowls. With a hand mixer, whip egg whites until medium peaks form. Blend in yolks and whip an additional 2 minutes.
- Add milk, melted butter, and vanilla, blending until combined.
- Mix in flour, baking powder, sugars, and salt. Beat in gently on low speed until just combined. Don’t overmix, otherwise your waffles will be tough.
- Heat up waffle iron, then ladle batter into ridges, making sure the tops of them are just covered. Cook according to instructions, being sure not to overcook them. Remove waffle and repeat with remaining batter.
- When ready to serve, gently fold each taco in half, filling it with BBQ pork and Pineapple Slaw. Drizzle with any extra BBQ sauce if desired. Enjoy!
Kristen Chidsey says
I don’t even know where to start. I love EVERYTHING about these tacos. And pork and pineapple are always a good thing!!
Hezzi-D says
YYes! The waffle taco with pulled pork! Love this idea!
Cindy Kerschner says
You hit this one out of the park! I’d take this over a plain tortilla any day!
Denise Wright says
Waffle taco! What an idea! Looks delicious.
Lauren @ Sew You Think You Can Cook says
Just when I thought the waffle couldn’t get better, I come to waffle taco! Love it.
cloudyburrito.wordpress.com says
Hi friends, good article and nice urging commented at this place,
I am actually enjoying by these.
SeekAndRead says
Pork waffles I have never thought of such kind of recipe. I should give it a try
SeekAndRead | Family Lifestyle
Christina says
This looks amazing. What is the serving size for the 1,376kcal? Is that for just one taco?