Martha's Braised Pulled Pork Shoulder

3.2

(233)

7 Reviews

Cooked low and slow, this big piece of meat becomes meltingly tender—and makes the best sandwiches.

Martha Stewart

Updated on February 21, 2024

Servings:

Martha's braised pulled pork shoulder is meltingly tender and a perfect way to feed a crowd—because who doesn’t love pulled pork sandwiches? Make or buy a good barbecue sauce to pair with the pork, along with some sandwich buns—that's all you need for this stellar main dish.

It’s best to start the pork a day ahead to give the spice rub plenty of time to work its magic. The pork shoulder should weigh 8 to 10 pounds, and takes five to six hours to braise in the oven, plus a short sear on the stovetop first. You’ll know it's ready when it’s almost falling apart and soft enough to shred with forks.

Ingredients

8 to 10 pound bone-in Boston butt pork shoulder
3 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons paprika
½ teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Texas Barbecue Sauce, heated
Potato buns, for serving

Directions

Make spice mix:

Place pork shoulder on a large parchment-lined baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, 2 tablespoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, paprika, dry mustard, cumin, and cayenne.
Rub pork with spice mix and refrigerate:

Rub pork with spice mixture, being sure to cover all sides. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours and preferably overnight.
Preheat oven and bring pork to room temperature:

Preheat oven to 325°F. Remove pork shoulder from refrigerator and bring to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Sear pork:

Pat dry with paper towels. Heat a large Dutch-oven over medium-high heat and add vegetable oil. Add pork shoulder to Dutch-oven and sear, turning, until golden brown all over, about 4 minutes per side.
Add water and cover:

Add 2 cups of water to Dutch-oven and position pork shoulder fat-side up, and cover.
Braise in oven:

Transfer to oven and cook until meat shreds easily with two forks, 5 to 6 hours. Baste with pan juices every hour.
Shred meat and serve:

When cooked, remove from Dutch-oven and shred meat with two forks. Serve meat on buns with barbecue sauce.