This week, lets talk pulled pork. Although this isn't something you may reach for when your trying to figure out what to cook for dinner tonight, with proper planning, this can be a real crowd pleaser. If you have never made pulled pork, don't be intimidated, and don't you dare reach for the crock pot.
With minimal active time, and a lot of inactive cooking time, you can produce some asstonishingly delicious pulled pork sandwiches perfect for a lazy sunday gathering in the back yard. Its all in the planning, and starts with a 5-7 lb pork shoulder. I usually opt for roasting meat on the bone to coax out more flavor, but a boneless boston butt (also a cut of the shoulder) may be more accessible at the market. This will take roughly 5-6 hours in the oven, so be prepared to wait.
The thing I love about this is, once its done, they are very easy to throw together and you don't need much more than the actual meat to make these sandwiches shine. Just a beautiful buttery brioche bun from Jessica's Brick Oven, some homemade dill pickles ( a recipe for another day) and some quality barbecue sauce make this memorable. You may want to throw some coleslaw together on the side to complete the meal.
Pulled Pork:
1 5-7 lb piece of pork shoulder, if using boneless cut in half or thirds to make more managable
1 c. Dijon Mustard
2 TBL Dark Brown Sugar
2 TBL Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
1 TBL Smoked Paprika
1 TBL Onion Powder
1 can of beer( i prefer Wachussett) (optional)- 2 cans if you need to unwind
1 bottle of your Favorite Barbecue Sauce
Jessicas Brick Oven Tavern Brioche Bun as needed
Dill Pickle Slices as needed
-Mix the mustard, brown sugar pepper and paprika in a small bowl.
-Rub the pork shoulder with the mixture until evenly coated
-Place in a roasting pan and empty contents of 1 beer into the bottom of the roasting pan
-Cover with foil and roast at 275 for approximately 5-6 hours, the name of the game here is cooking it until it falls apart.
- When fully cooked and falling apart, let cool until you can comfortably handle it, and shred to desired size with two forks or your hands ( wear latex kitchen gloves)
- mix in your favorite barbecue sauce and assemble your sandwiches on lightly toasted brioche buns
