Smoky slow-roasted pork shoulder

Epicurean Exploits - Food and Recipes
1

OK, this is more of a technique than a specific recipe, since it will depend on the exact cut of pork shoulder that you are able to get at the store.

A friend made a smoky pork shoulder the other week in his crock pot, so I decided to replicate the technique in my oven with a few twists. You start this recipe the day before serving.

  1. Step One–the brine. Put the pork shoulder into a brining solution that consists of (a) fairly salty water with kosher salt, and (b) at least 1/2 cup of liquid smoke. The salt water will help make the pork moist while cooking, and the liquid smoke will give you the smoky flavor while roasting in the oven. Depending on the size of the pork shoulder, brine in the salt water/liquid smoke solution for at least 2-3 hours. Drain completely and pat dry.

  2. Step Two–the dry rub. Apply a good coating of dry rub to the brined pork shoulder. The dry rub can include onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, marjoram, paprika, cayenne pepper, etc. After applying the dry rub, wrap the pork shoulder and put it in the fridge overnight.

  3. Step Three–the slow roasting. The morning of serving, take the brined & dry rubbed pork shoulder out of the fridge and let warm up to room temperature. The oven should be set to about 200 degrees F. Ideally, you would have two thermometers–one for the oven and one to insert into the center of the pork shoulder. Put the pork shoulder on a roasting rack and place into the oven. Cook for several hours on low heat–at least 3-4 hours–until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees. The brining will allow the pork to stay moist even if the temperature gets above that. If you want a bit of a crust on the outside, wait until the internal temperature gets to about 140-145, and then increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees. It should only take 15-30 max. to get the final internal temperature you want.

Take the pork shoulder out of the oven and let it rest for at least 15-20 minutes. At this point, you can either put it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it, or start slicing/shredding. Some uses:

–Sliced pork shoulder as the meat entree with rice, vegetables, etc.
–Shredded pork shoulder combined with BBQ sauce for a pulled pork sandwich.
–Shredded pork shoulder for use in tacos/burritos.

Enjoy,
Bruce

2

Bruce, sounds fantastic as far as roast pork. if you want to shred it for pulled pork you might want to get the meat temp up over 185 for collagen breakdown.