Superbowl Pulled Pork

Go Broncos!!!!

I've never been a huge football fan until just this year.  I mean I've always enjoyed cooking food for the super bowl, don't get me wrong, but I really never could have cared less about who was playing what until recently.  I think it has something to do with the fact that I realized this year how much of a die hard Vikings fan my boyfriend is...and how much fun it is to bring up the Packers around him!!  He would always shut me up fast though with his superior football knowledge, so I had to keep learning more, one thing led to another and now I feel I know more about football than most of the guys I know.  Oh well, it sure is easier to talk smack about them Vikings though!!!

I have to digress though, I still don't really have a strong allegiance to any one football team.  I rooted for the Broncos this year because I like Peyton Manning's nationwide commercials-and I want him to be able to retire on a high note.  That being said, my favorite part of the super bowl is still the food!!  Normally my recipes are all vegetarian, or can at least be made vegetarian easily.  The super bowl is an exception though, when I have a house full of meat hungry, beer drinking men, a falafel salad just won't cut it.  So that's when I bring out the big guns!

This pulled pork is not just your average BBQ pork.  I am a firm believer that you shouldn't have to drown something in sauce in order for it to be edible.  That being said, it's not an 8 hour crock pot meal either, this baby takes two days!!  Before you shake your head and move on, hear me out.  It may take a little bit longer than your average pulled pork, but it is also ten times tastier.  What really makes this unique is the fact that I soak it in a mixture of spices, sugar and salt for a day before cooking it over very low heat overnight.  Because the pork has been brined, I am able to cook it in the oven and it doesn't dry out.  It also gives the spice mixture an opportunity to penetrate and tenderize the meat instead of just coating it.  I've always wanted to try this on the grill, or in a smoker.  Maybe sometime I will get the opportunity to do so and post my results, but in the meantime, this is the absolute best way I've found to make it.  It falls apart as soon as you touch it and according to all of the meat eating folks last night, and every other time I've made it, it's fantastic!!!

You will need a large roasting pan to make this, if you don't have one, they sell super cheap disposable ones at Cub Foods, Rainbow and pretty much any other grocery store that will work just fine.  You also need something to brine the meat in.  I normally use food-safe bags, the kind that you cover sheet trays with in restaurants.  I like these because I can tie the tops shut and I don't have to worry about meat juice exploding everywhere in my fridge...you could also use a large gallon or two gallon sized ziplock, but you'd want to use a freezer one (the heavy duty ones), and then put the bagged butt (LOL) in the roasting pan in the fridge, just in case it decides to start leaking on you!

Superbowl Pulled Pork

6-7# Bone in Boston Butt (Pork Shoulder)

Spice Mixture:

(I put in about a TBSP of each of these spices, if there is something that you really like, or really don't, feel free to adjust to taste, don't worry about the cayenne, it seems like a lot, but it mellows out in the brine)

Cumin

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Black Pepper

Smoked Paprika

Chili Powder

Cayenne

1/3 cup brown sugar

Mix these together and then get out a medium (3-4 quart) saucepan and start preparing the brine.

Brine Mixture:

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup br. sugar

2 bay leaves

Stir these together in the saucepan and then pour in about 4 cups of water, bring the water to a simmer whisking constantly to dissolve all of the salt and sugar.  When everything is dissolved remove the mixture from the heat and add about 4 cups of ice to bring the water to room temperature.

I like to pour this brine mixture into a juice container so that it is easier to handle in the next step.

Take your shoulder and thoroughly cover it with the dry spice mixture.  If you are using a 7# shoulder you will want to use all of it, if it's a little smaller, don't use quite as much. 

Put the shoulder into the freezer Ziploc, or food safe bag and carefully pour all of the brining liquid into the bag as well.  I have found that it's easiest to do this if I prop the bag up in my sink, that way just in case it spills my house doesn't smell like a pork shoulder for two weeks...

Once you have poured in all of the liquid seal the bag shut, put it in the roasting pan, and stick it in the fridge.  The way that I like to do this is to put it in the fridge in the evening, the next morning before work I flip the roast over so that it gets evenly brined, and then when I get home from work, 24 hours later, the roast is ready for the oven!!!

No matter how exactly you do it, the shoulder should sit in the brine for 24 hours.  After 24 hours take the shoulder out of the bag and put it back into the roasting pan (fat side up).  Pour a little bit of the liquid that it was sitting in into the pan, I normally do about 1 1/2 cups.  Preheat your oven to 250, and stick the roast in.

Now we wait.

As a general rule a well brined Boston butt will take about 1.5 - 2 hours per pound.  I have found that for my 7 pound roasts 12 hours is perfect, which also works out great, because my oven automatically shuts off after 12 hours!!  Perfect or what!?

What I would recommend is start at 1.5 hours per pound.  After that, take the roast out of the oven, stick a fork into it, if it doesn't just start falling apart, and stick it in for another hour.  You will know it's done when a fork stuck into the meat can easily pull it apart.

Once the roast is fork-tender turn off your oven, prop the oven door open and let the shoulder sit for an hour to really distribute the juices.

That's it!  Remove the thick layer of fat on top and then pull that baby apart with a fork or your hands (don't forget to remove the bone!) and you are ready to go!  I know it looks like it takes a long time, but there is barely any effort involved besides mixing up some spices and boiling some water - and it is soooo worth it!!

I hope you love this shredded pork!!