There’s nothing quite like spring in the South. And as the weather warms up, grills everywhere are coming out of storage.
Get a head start on barbecue season with an American classic tailored to the South: Andrew Zimmern’s personal recipe for pulled-pork barbecue. A triple shot of homemade flavor — a rub, basting sauce and barbecue sauce — makes it a hit every time.
You'll need a 5-pound natural bone-in pork shoulder and, of course, your favorite rolls. Note: Pork must sit in refrigerator for 24 hours after rub has been applied.
Rub:
1/4 cup paprika
3 tablespoons ground black pepper
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon celery seeds
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
Basting sauce:
1 cup cider vinegar
1 small onion, minced
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Barbecue sauce:
2 cups cider vinegar
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons dark corn syrup
1/2 cup chili sauce
3 tablespoons brown sugar
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons hot sauce
2 teaspoons chili flakes, or more to taste
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
Directions:
Combine rub ingredients, or use your favorite store-bought rub. Massage pork shoulder with rub and let sit 24 hours in refrigerator.
Combine basting sauce ingredients, whisking until sugar and salt are dissolved, set aside. Combine barbecue sauce ingredients over medium heat in a small pot. Once simmering, pull from heat and let cool. Refrigerate for later use.
Grill shoulder over indirect medium-low heat, using smoking chips, if desired, to establish a smoke flavor. Remember that a little goes a long way. You'll want to keep adding wood or charcoal every 40 minutes or so to maintain a medium-low heat of roughly 300 degrees. For gas grills, you'll want to maintain a temperature of roughly 275 to 300 degrees. Baste every hour.
Pork is done when the internal temperature is 185 to 190 degrees. Alternately, you can cook, in rack and pan, in a 275-degree oven for 6 hours.
Let pork cool for 30 minutes, shred meat by hand and discard bones. Toss meat with some barbecue sauce and mound on toasted rolls. Goes well with coleslaw, by the way.
