Simple Pulled Pork

Pulled pork is one of my favorite things in the world.  It takes many hours to get it to fall apart, but when it does, it’s well worth the wait! Use pulled pork for tacos, sandwiches or by itself and topped with barbeque sauce, hot sauce, tomato sauce, guacamole, etc.  Pork shoulder is the best cut of meat to make pulled pork with, but often it’s hard to find a small portion of pork shoulder.  My local market has a butchering section where I was able to get about a 2 pound portion which is perfect for about 2-4 servings depending on how it’s served.  If you buy a whole shoulder, you’ll have to cook it for many more hours (6-8!) and you’ll have to invite all your friends over to help eat it, so try to find a butcher who can give you a small cut.

2 lbs pork shoulder (Boston Butt)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

As soon as you get home from the market, sprinkle pork shoulder generously with salt and pepper and let that soak in for as long as possible before cooking (even if you’re throwing it in the fridge and cooking it later).  The longer amount of time the meat is salted before cooking, the better.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, place pork in a dry baking pan, cover pan with foil and place in oven.  Cook for 4 hours or until the meat easily pulls apart with the touch of a fork.  Remove bone and any remaining fat.  Place pork in a bowl and shred all of it with a fork.  Eat immediately or save in the refrigerator and heat it up when you’re ready to serve it. 

IDEAS

Pile pork into a corn tortilla with Tangy Napa Cabbage Salad
Put it on a bun with barbeque sauce and Pickled Raddish
Put it on crusty bread with cheese, ham and pickles and bake for a Cuban sandwich
Eat it alone with barbeque sauce, hot sauce, slaw, pickles, etc.