The last few days we’ve had a little taste of summer, a welcome respite from “Storm Watch 2010″ and news of the deep freeze blanketing the rest of the country.  Walking my little Corgi in the neighborhood, the scent of grilling caused me to yearn for some good ole southern style pulled pork.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This recipe utilizes the under-appreciated crock pot in place of standing over a hot, smoky grill for hours. Naturally, the slow-cooked grill or smoker method is more authentic and you’re welcome to do that if you have the time to tend  the grill.

2-3 lb. pork shoulder country style ribs or pork shoulder roast

Your favorite prepared BBQ sauce

Burger buns of your choice

Begin the day before. If you use a roast, cut it in half lengthwise (so its half the thickness). Brown ribs or roast on all sides in a dutch oven or large skillet coated with olive oil. Cook for 6-8 hours on Low in a crock pot. No need to add liquid – after a few hours the meat will be submerged in its own juices and fat. Refrigerate overnight – the main reason for doing this is to solidify the juices so you can remove the fat.  The next day, use a spoon to remove the solid white fat layer on top, retaining the semi-solid gelatinous meat juices.

Transfer the meat to a cutting board and shred or “pull apart” using a meat fork and your fingers. (This is why its called pulled pork.) Slather the meat with BBQ sauce and return to the crock pot to cook for another 5-6 hours on Low. If you notice that the meat is getting too browned, turn the heat down to the Serve setting.

Toast buns and serve with a spoonful of cole slaw on top (southern style) or on the side.  Cole slaw adds the perfect creamy, cool, crunchy complement to robust, spicy BBQ pulled pork.

Enjoy

Just as there are all kinds of BBQ: sweet, spicy, vinegary, with dry rub, without, there are variations in cole slaw.  A lot of people would probably like cole slaw better if they would prepare the dressing to their liking rather than purchasing sugary and mayo-laden supermarket cole slaw. We like ours crunchy (so prepare only  about 30 minutes before serving) and lightly dressed.  With a package of prepared tri-color slaw, it only takes a few minutes. Here’s how I do it:

Cole Slaw

2-3 T. low cal mayo

¼ c. milk

1 t. Dijon mustard

½ t. cayenne

½ t. sugar

Whisk ingredients in a glass bowl. Use ½ bag prepared cabbage & carrot cole slaw mix and blend well. Serves 4.

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Tags: BBQ pulled pork, crock pot recipes, summer favorites

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 17th, 2010 at 8:03 am and is filed under She's Cookin', family favorites, football fare. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.