What's not to like about pulled pork?

Imagine a yummy pulled pork sandwich. Succulent pieces of slow-cooked pork in a slightly sweet tangy barbecue sauce. What’s not to like about it?

I’m not a big fan of large chunks of pork fat cooking with the meat, though some fat does lubricate the meat giving it a better mouth feel. I’ll trim out large obvious chunks of fat before cooking, or pieces of gristle. I can easily pull the gristle out during the pulling process, but I’ll trim out stuff I can see before cooking.

I have no preference between using a pork loin or pork butt/Boston/shoulder roast. The loin is generally leaner, but the butt has a variety of muscles with different textures, giving a bit more interesting mouth feel, if you even notice it over the sauce and bun. The butt is usually cheaper, though it can be a larger piece of meat.

I’m sure some of you have those fancy fork-like things that more closely resemble claws for shredding the cooked meat. A couple of forks work quite nicely too, but will take a bit longer.

I like a bit of thin-sliced medium cheddar cheese on my sandwich. Gives it a bit of a cheesy/salty hit. This is not the place for processed cheese slices.

Hamburger buns or hoagies? What texture are you looking for? Cheapo buns are super soft and will soak up any juices, but will fall apart easily. A hoagie should have a bit more texture and hold up well to the soft meat. Use what you like.

Don’t like pork? Consider using a piece of beef brisket. I’d go ahead a make up a smoked brisket and pull apart like you would the pork.

SLOW COOKER PULLED PORK

2 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin

1/2 onion, sliced

2 tablespoons prepared mustard

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup prepared barbecue sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup water

Add all ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on medium for 6 hours or low for 8-10 hours, though I’d recommend the low setting, as some cookers are pretty hot on their medium setting. Remove from pot and allow to cool enough so as to not burn your hands while shredding. Serve on your favorite style of bread.

PULLED PORK

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

2 teaspoons powder

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

3 pounds pork shoulder roast

1 onion, sliced

2 cups prepared barbecue sauce

Stir together the sugar and seasonings in a small bowl. Rub the mixture all over the meat. Place in a covered bowl and refrigerate several hours, though overnight would be better. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. In a deep baking dish, spread out the onions and place the meat on them. Place in oven and bake for about 6 to 7 hours, until fork-tender and falling apart. Remove the pork from the pot and set it on a cutting. Place cooking liquid in a saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat. Add about a half cup of water, if needed, to lightly loosen the sauce. Scrape down the baking dish and add to the saucepan as well. Pour in the barbecue sauce and heat through. When the meat has cooled a bit, shred as desired. Toss with barbecue sauce from the saucepan and serve as desired.

SMOKED PULLED BRISKET

1/4 cup salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons dried garlic powder

2 tablespoons dried onion powder

2 tablespoons paprika

1 1/2 tablespoons celery salt

2 teaspoons freshly ground white pepper

1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar

1 (5- to 8-pound) beef brisket (flat cut)

4 cups oak or hickory wood chips

Combine all the spices in a bowl with the vinegar. Brush onto the meat, making sure to cover the surfaces completely, using up all the mixture. Cover and let rest for one hour. Start grill.

The grill is ready when the charcoal has turned to white ash. If using a grill instead of a smoker, arrange the coals on one side of the grill, leaving an area large enough for the brisket to cook indirectly with no coals directly underneath the meat. Place meat on grill, and scatter a handful of wood chips on charcoal. Close the lid. Add fresh coals about every 2 hours or so. I use a charcoal chimney and allow the coals to get to that white ash stage before dumping them in. Remove the meat while you put in the new coals, to keep any ash from getting on the meat. Place the meat back on the grill, adding more wood chips. Check the temperature of the brisket after about 4 hours. When it finally reaches a temperature of 165 degrees, remove it from the grill and wrap well in foil. Place new hot coals in grill again and place wrapped meat back on grill. Allow to cook another hour or so until the temperature reaches 170 degrees. Remove meat from grill and allow to rest for 45 minutes before removing foil and pulling apart.