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.
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Rob Tannenbaum
Ingredients
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8 to 10 pound bone-in Boston butt pork shoulder
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3 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
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Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
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2 teaspoons paprika
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½ teaspoon dry mustard
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½ teaspoon ground cumin
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½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
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2 tablespoons vegetable oil
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Texas Barbecue Sauce, heated
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Potato buns, for serving
Directions
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Add water and cover:
Add 2 cups of water to Dutch-oven and position pork shoulder fat-side up, and cover.
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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.
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Shred meat and serve:
When cooked, remove from Dutch-oven and shred meat with two forks. Serve meat on buns with barbecue sauce.