Pulled Pork from the "Best Recipe" book

I like making food the old fashioned way. For pulled pork (or pulled pig), that means putting the dry rub on the day before and then seven to eight hours in my smoker/charcoal grill. Adding charcoal every hour or so, soaking hickory chunks and adding them periodically throughout the day. You wait an hour after the charcoal has burned out before removing the roast and separating the meat with a couple of forks. Finally mix in a home made barbeque sauce and make a sandwich.


For those of you who can't add, that's ten hours of work before you can have that sandwich (or eighteen to twenty two hours if you count the time that you're letting the dry rub work.).


I've found another way - with consistently outstanding results: The New Best Recipe cookbook. (Alternatively, the Cooks' Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbeque - the same source, America's Test Kitchen). The time is cut from ten to six hours and the amount of time fussing with the fire is cut down to two to two and a half hours.

First, the dry rub is 1/2 c. sweet paprika, 2 tbls ground cumin, 2 tbls mild chili powder, 2 tbls groung black pepper, 1 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1/2 tsp of ground cloves. (My dietary problems with blood pressure limit this mixture - there are several good mixtures that include salt and/or sugar. This pulls the flavor deeper into the meat as the salt and sugar disolve; and you can cut down on the time it takes for the dry rub to season the meat - use at least three hours. Or experiment and make up your own. )

Rub that mixture on a 6 to 8 lb Boston butt roast; wrap it in plastic wrap; and put it in the refrigerator overnight (up to three days - for a stronger taste). You'll want to take the roast out of the refrigerator and unwrap it an hour to an hour and a half before you cook it to let it come up to room temperature. Place the unwrapped roast in a disposable aluminum tray (roughly 8" X 10" X 3").

When the meat comes out of he refrigerator, it's a good time to soak four 3" X 3" chunks of hickory in cold water in a zipper bag (for at least an hour).

Half an hour before you start the meat, start about 1/2 cubic foot of lump charcoal in a chimney starter. When it's going, dump the pile on one side of the grill. Place the hickory chunks on the pile; place the meat in its tray on the other side of the grill; and close the cover. Every forty five minutes to an hour, add some more charcoal - to maintain the temperature at roughly 275 deg.

Cook for 3 hours. Before it's done, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and start the oven at 325 deg. When the oven is up to temperature, bring in the roast in its pan and cover it tightly with heavy duty aluminum foil. Place the pan in the middle of the oven and cook for 2 hours.

While it's cooking is a good time to make some barbeque sauce - I like the "Quick Sauce". Instead of simmering the sauce for a long time to break down the tomatoes and onions, this recipe puts a medium sized chopped onion and 1/4 c. of water in the blender (or food processor) on liquefy; and strains them into a mixture of 1 c. of ketchup, 5 tbls. of molasses, 2 tbls. cider vinegar, 2 tbls. Worcestershire sauce, 2 tbls. dijon mustard, 1 1/2 tsp liquid smoke, and 1 tsp of hot sauce (I prefer Texas Pete or Frank's Red Hot over Tabasco). Heat 2 tbls of peanut oil over medium heat and press a clove of garlic into it; and add 1 tsp of chili powder and 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper. After 30 seconds, whisk in the ketchup and onion mixture and simmer over low heat for 3o minutes and it's ready to serve; or cool and refrigerate.

Remove the pan from the oven and place it inside a browm paper bag and crimp the end closed. Let the roast rest for an hour. This steps allows the roast to cool and rest at just the right temperature - not putting it in the paper bag allows it to cool too quickly (although you can shut off the oven, open the door once for ten to fifteen seconds, close the door and let it rest in the oven for an hour).

Take the roast out and pull it apart using two forks. Remove fat and bones before pulling it apart. Place the meat in a bowl and you can mix in barbeque sauce - although I prefer to leave it on the side and let people put their own on the sandwich. Another thing you can do is to not use sauce, but to leave a shaker of dry rub on the table so that people can spice their own sandwich (that "Memphis-style"). Hope you try this - you'll like it.