Easy slow cooker BBQ pulled beef

Name: Easy slow cooker BBQ pulled beef
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 h 20 min
Total time: 10 h 50 min
Cuisine: Southern
Ingredients: 1.5 kg / 3 lb chuck beef (, cut into 4 thick steaks (Note 1)); 1 cup beer ((anything other than dark stouts like Guinness), or beef stock/broth, low sodium (Note 2)); 3 tbsp olive oil (or other neutral oil, for searing); 3 tbsp (tightly packed) brown sugar; 1 tbsp paprika powder ((regular/sweet or smoked)); 1 tbsp garlic powder; 2 tsp onion powder; 2 tsp mustard powder; 1 tsp cumin powder; 2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt; 1 tsp black pepper; 1 cup apple cider vinegar ((Note 3)); 3 cups tomato ketchup ((or Aussie tomato sauce)); 3 tbsp molasses (, orginal (not blackstrap, Note 4)); 2/3 cup brown sugar; 4 tsp mustard powder; 3 tsp garlic powder; 4 tsp Worcestershire sauce; 2 tsp black pepper; 2 tsp Tabasco ( or cayenne pepper (optional, very faint background spiciness)); 2 tbsp green onion (, finely sliced)

Instructions

Prep:30minCook:10h 20min

Recipe video above. Make this when you want a big batch of succulent pulled beef smothered in an incredible homemade barbecue sauce, made using the convenience of a slow cooker. Pile into sliders, heap onto plates, stuff into baked potatoes. So many ways to enjoy it!Adapted from my Easy Slow Cooker BBQ pulled pork recipe. I don't sear the pork before slow cooking, but it's really worth searing the beef. I tried without and it was still great, but it's noticeably better when you do. :)Easy to scale up - I can do a double batch in my slow cooker.

Updated at: Sun, 12 Jul 2026 02:11:25 GMT