Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Pulled Pork in the slow cooker.

What is wrong with me??? I'm constantly saying I can't think of anything to cook. Yesterday it dawned on me I needed to look at MY OWN RECIPE INDEX here on the blog!!! Yes. Once I post a recipe, I often forget about it. So yesterday I picked out one I had not made in years. One that would make enough to stock the freezer. And one that I was sure we liked.

We have been waking up crazy early lately. This morning was no exception. After coffee on the porch as the sun came up, I put together this recipe in the slow cooker. This one takes 10 hours to cook, so it needed an early start. Once it was in the slow cooker, the rest of my day was free. Knitting. Piano. Reading. An entire day to myself. Then at supper time, it only took a few minutes to shred the pork and dinner was ready.

The recipe is so simple. But let me caution you to actually read the recipe. I half read it and was about to dump in the barbecue sauce along with the vinegar and honey before the pork cooked. I'm not sure if that would have really been a bad thing. If I had actually poured it in, I would have cooked it that way and crossed my fingers. But that last glance at the recipe came just in time.

We made sliders for dinner with Hawaiian rolls. And I put 4 small bags in the freezer. 

PULLED PORK BARBECUE (slow cooker)

Spice rub:

   4 teaspoons smoked paprika

   1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

   2 teaspoons jarred minced garlic

   1 teaspoon ground mustard

   1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional

1 medium onion, sliced

3-4 teaspoons mince garlic

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup honey

1 (4-5 lb) pork butt, trimmed of excess fat

Salt & pepper

1 cup barbecue sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray’s)

Mix the spice rub ingredients. Season the pork butt with salt and pepper and rub the spice mix all over. (If you have time, you let put it in a bag or container and let it refrigerate overnight. I did not plan ahead, so put it in the slow cooker right after rubbing.)

In the bottom of the 6-7 qt slow cooker, put the onion and garlic. Pour in vinegar and honey. Place the pork butt on top. Cook on LOW for 10 hours.

When done, carefully move the roast to a large pan (9x13 works) and let cool for 5 or 10 minutes. Using two forks, shred the meat, discarding the bone and any large chunks of fat. Pour about a half cup of cooking liquid over the meat. Stir in a cup of barbecue sauce and mix.

As I typed this recipe, I realized I STILL didn't follow the actual directions. 😂 What is written here is how I made it today. If you want to read the original version, you can see it here on a post from a few years ago. This goes to show that most recipes have a lot of room for interpretation. Don't get too hung up on being exact.

 

Yes. I even practice piano on the porch.

It took us long enough, but we finally got this planted.