Pulled pork is totally one of my fave foods. I’m forever craving pulled pork sandwiches. While I love the pulled pork at Buster Rhino’s I can’t get there often enough. I do need to head over and get a TON of it for my freezer. With few decent pulled pork options in Toronto I sometimes make my own.
A few weeks ago my friend Shea of Hungry in Brooklyn did a great video post about Pulled Pork. She visited The Meat Hook in Brooklyn to acquire her pork shoulder and then went to Fette Sau to learn how to make pulled pork without a smoker. Check out the video.
Incidentally I was at my beloved Fiesta Farms and they had some great deals on pork shoulders. I bought one to store in my freezer for a rainy day. Well that rainy day came and I decided to make some pulled pork, Shea-style.
I’ll admit I was a bit skeptical about the inclusion of coffee but decided to go along with it. I used just regular coffee (whatever we had at home, probably a medium roast) instead of the espresso recommended in the video. The secret to great pulled pork in the oven is to cook it at low heat for a long time. The recipe below says 10 hours but I used half a shoulder and cooked it for between 5 and 6 hours and it was perfect. I used a thermometer along the way to ensure that the meat had reached a “safe” temperature.
When the pork was ready it had this amazing crust on it from the coffee and the dry rub. Pulling it apart was really easy once the meat had cooled down. I used my fingers and definitely ate a few ounces as I went along. The pork was delicious! The coffee added a nice roasty, toasty, smokey flavour. I used some of the pan drippings to keep the meat moist and topped my sandwiches with BBQ sauce and coleslaw. This was beyond easy and is the perfect meal to feed a crowd (of pork lovers). I served the pork on Wonder Bread buns (a necessity) with potato salad and cole slaw on the side. The pork was also great days letter with scrambled eggs and baked beans. I also contemplated using them as part of Eggs Benedict. Next time.
Thanks Shea for a great post!
Pulled Pork
* 1 7-8 lb Pork Shoulder – bone in
* 3 heads roasted garlic
* Coffee and Brown Sugar Dry Rub (recipe follows)
Preheat your oven to 220 degrees Fahrenheit. Squeeze the cloves out of the heads of roasted garlic and spread evenly over the pork shoulder. Cover the shoulder completely with the dry rub. Place in a roasting pan with a cover or wrap in foil for 5 hours. Remove the cover/foil and roast for another five hours. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly, and pull the pork. Serve with your favorite bbq sauce!
Dry Rub:
* 1/4 C salt
* 3 Tbsp espresso
* 3 Tbsp dark brown sugar
* 2 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
* 1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
* 1 1/2 Tbsp granulated garlic
* 1 Tbsp paprika
Mix to combine and use as a seasoning for your favorite pork or steak!
Recipe via Hungry in Brooklyn
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
I am always a fan of a good pulled pork sandwich. I really like the name of your blog. You should post your recipes over at dishfolio.com
Made this today and it was absolutely, ridiculously delicious! But I used a 4.5 lb bone-in pork shoulder, and it took about 9 hours to cook at 220 degrees. Based on your experience (of 5-6 hours), I was expecting it to be done much sooner than it was. Ah well… it was definitely worth the wait! Thanks for posting Shea’s recipe; I found your posting via Tastespotting but hadn’t seen hers.