I just love good pulled pork BBQ, there is always a tug of ware between northern states and southern states, as to whether BBQ’s should have tomato based sauces on or vinegar based. Well I guess being from Virginia I have to tell you I do not like to cover up the flavor of the pork, instead we always had the BBQ Pork plain on the bun with homemade coleslaw on top! MMM MMM GOOD!!!
This ends up being a little long for a recipe due to the process so bear with me on this.
As with all recipes of this nature they are all open to interpretation, by individual tastes. taking out ingredients that you don’t like and adding those that you do. Playing with a recipe is all about cooking. Trial and error.
1 Boston Pork Butt you can adjust the amount of the dry rub if you have a smaller butt, but mind was about 8 pounds.
Dry Rub Spice Blend
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Salt ( I used Kosher)
1/4 cup Smoked Paprika
1/4 cup Sweet Hungarian Paprika
2 Bay Leave
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Celery Seed
3 Tablespoons Chili Powder
2 Tablespoons Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Rubbed Sage (I used Poultry Seasoning)
2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
2 teaspoons Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Ground Allspice
1 teaspoon Cumin
1/4 –1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon Ground Cloves
Place all in food processor and blend together.
Brine Solution
You will need a large pot or a large or Jumbo Ziploc Plastic Bag to soak the roast in overnight in the brine solution. Here again the amount of the solution could be adjusted to the size of the roast your are fixing.
2 quarts Water
1/2 cup Salt ( I used Kosher)
3-4 Tablespoons Dry Rub Mixture
2 Bay Leaves
1/2 cup Cider Vinegar (I have seen recipes using vinegar and some without) Personal preference here again. We are vinegar people so usually have a couple gallons on hand.
Place the roast in the pan or Ziploc Bag,, then put in the two Bay Leaves, and pour the above mixture over the roast
Place in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours (I did mine for 12 hours)
Next morning drain off the brine, and drain and pat the roast dry.
Applying the Dry Rub
Apply the Dry Rub Mixture, liberally all over the pork roast top, bottom sides, and in the folds of the meat, in other words encase the meat in it.
Place the roast Fat Side UP! This keeps the meat moist as it cooks.
Slow Roasting
Place the roast in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 225 for about 1.5 to 2 hours per pound. (mine was done in about 13 hours) Roast is done when it starts to pull away from the bone.
NOTE: I did mine in the 18 quart roaster oven, then the last hour I placed it in a hot oven 350 degrees again to crisp the out side for the last hour of the 13 hours. (so at 12 hours) Meat was pulling away at 12 hours.
Take meat out and let rest for about an hour to and hour and a half,
Remove Fat
Then take two forks and pull the meat into shreds, ( I always end up doing it with my hands
Also I have noticed several places that recipes call to take a teaspoon of the dry rub and lightly sprinkle over the pulled pork and mix well, I have found that this does add a lot more flavor to the pork, for my 8 pound roast I probably used about 2-3 teaspoons of the dry rub doing this and mixing well.
Make sandwiches and top with cole slaw..
David said:
The history of pork BBQ in NC is an interesting part of history. The eastern version is whole hog roasted with some sort of sauce (usually vinegar, pepper, sugar and salt) and once done the pork is pulled from the carcass then a “dip” (sometimes the same as the basting liquid) is added. For Lexington style it is pork butt, smoked with some sort of rub or sauce then once done either sliced or chopped and mixed with a “dip” that contains a bit of tomato – essentially cousins and when done well both are wonderful. In the Shelby, NC area a mustard based sauce is used (traditionally more like SC and the rest of NC. Far as I’m concerned when done well all is good. The best mustard based BBQ I ever ate was in Phenix City, AL. The best eastern NC BBQ was at a small place on the Chowan river just north of Edenton, NC. The best Lexington style BBQ at the Barbeque Lodge in Lexington, NC. Mine is reasonably good and it much like Mitchell’s recipe.
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Charles Ray said:
One of my favorites.
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Charles Ray said:
Reblogged this on Charles Ray's Ramblings.
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glenda said:
There’s nothing better than a good pork roast, and this sounds enticing–lot of spices and vinegar that I would never have thought to use…..
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hbs1991 said:
Hi Glenda, I will have to agree with you on that about a good pork roast! and this brinning really makes a big difference, seems like the flavors go all through the pork and then rubbing it down and roasting it really works great. !
Thanks for the nice comment
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David said:
Your rub has my two “secret” ingredients – cinnamon and nutmeg. Cooked low and slow over hickory coals is the best but when that isn’t possible I do something very close to this.
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Em Hooper said:
Just reading the recipe made my mouth water. I want something different this Thanksgiving. I think this looks like just the thing. Thanks, Mitchell…for giving this great recipe for my favorite dish…….
Carolyn and Orange……..Try Penzeys.com for the paprika.
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Carolyn said:
WOW! That looks so good. And I’m sure that it is. I always like to have a little Bar-B-Q sauce on the side. But then, I haven’t eaten yours. Maybe spicy enough that I would not need any sauce. Wish I had a sandwich. I have never heard of sweet hungarian paprika either.
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orangeyouhungry said:
I’m with you on the plain pork, except I even go as far as saw cole slaw deflects attention from the deliciousness of meat. I’ve also never heard of ‘Sweet Hungarian Paprika’, I’ll have to look into it. Looks awesome, you inspired me to make some this weekend 🙂
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