Pulled pork is made by slow cooking pork shoulder until it is soft and pulls apart easily. It is commonly used is burgers, tachos and to top plates of nachos!
Pulled pork is simply American BBQ at its best! Pulled pork should be so tender that it practically comes apart before you start to shred it. It’s flavourful, soft and moist. The best cut to use is the shoulder, a tough cut of meat which becomes tender.
Traditionally it is a barbecue recipe meaning it’s cooked on a grill for hours! However, those without access to a grill rejoice because thankfully pulled pork is easy to make at home in your slow cooker, pressure cooker or even in your oven! Pulled pork demands love and time but I think we can all agree its worth it!
An amazing thing about pulled pork is its versatility. Adding it to burgers with coleslaw is a combination to die for. Fresh coleslaw perfectly compliments the pork and adds freshness and a much needed crunch.
It is an amazing filling for sandwiches, tacos, wraps and quesadillas. It’s a common addition to nachos and it can even be used as a pizza topping!
We knew getting the spice balance right is really important to so in our recipe. Our rub is made up of salt, sugar, pepper, onion, chilli powder, cinnamon and mustard powder.
We added some maple syrup or honey, soy sauce, harissa and tomato puree as well, but also beer or water. These wet ingredients prevent the pork from becoming dry while cooking and become a wonderful sauce once the pork has finished cooking.
Place the onion on the chopping board and cut the onion.
In a bowl add the onion, tomato paste, soy sauce, harissa, honey, chilli powder (optional), cinnamon, mustard powder, pepper and salt into the cooking bowl and mix togheter.
In a saucepan, pour the sauce and add a little quantity of water, and then simmer.
Pour the sauce in a bowl and let it cool for about 10 minutes.
Place the pork into a bowl, add the sauce, mix togheter and then let marinade for 4 hours.
Preheat the oven to 170°C with the dutch oven inside.
Take the dutch oven from the oven and add pork, marinade and water. Cover with the lid and cook in the oven for 3 hours.
Check the meat and cook for other 30 minutes without the lid, or until the pork is very tender and falling apart.
Put the meat in a bowl. 'Pull' the pork by sticking a fork in the shoulder and shredding the meat into small pieces with another fork. It should fall apart easily. Then serve.
