It’s easy to get caught up in trying new things on the smoker, but there’s still something about simple pulled pork. Even barbecuers can get caught up in what little thing to add to their rub to make it a secret recipe, or what special ingredient that no one else is allowed to know about that’s in their secret barbecue sauce.
Over the 4th of July weekend, I made pulled pork with a quick and simple rub that people seemed to really like. It has just a few ingredients:
- 1 cup ground Italian roast coffee
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup ground ancho chile
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
That’s all there was to it. A couple Boston butt roasts got rubbed with the mixture and put on the Big Green Egg at about 250 F, then off and rested for a while.
The pulled pork was actually for the next day, so I had to decide between pulling the pork then refrigerating or leaving them whole and refrigerating. I find that the meat stays moist better if it’s left whole, so I put the pork in the fridge. The next morning, the pork went into the oven at about 300 degrees F for about 40 minutes, then 180 until it was time to go to the cookout. The pork pulled easily and was good and moist.
I took my standard Liquid Livefire sauce and added about 3 cups of brewed coffee to the same amount of sauce and let that cook down a bit, too. The sauce ended up thin, but the flavor was really good! This can be done with about any standard sauce to give it a different twist.
There was plenty of meat for the get-together, so we had leftovers, which is a good thing with pulled pork. That’s what brought me to try pushing the standard sandwich without ruining it…
The next morning, breakfast was a pulled pork sandwich with a local farm egg, over-easy, right on top. Breakfast should always be so tasty!
Saturday morning, the wife and I went to Findlay Market in Cincinnati to pick up a few things. it’s a long drive just to do, and it was nutso busy with the holiday weekend, but one of the items I picked up at the farmers’ market was a local product by Fabulous Ferments. Findlay Market is in an area of Cincy called Over-The-Rhine, and Fabulous Ferments uses ingredients grown right in the same area of town. They make raw cultured and ferment batches for three to five weeks.
I picked up their Spicy Dill, which is cabbage, dill and other good stuff, and it sounded like it would be great on pulled pork, so I tried it!
The pulled pork is all gone now. I like trying new things on the cooker, but a good, simple pulled pork, slow smoked, is just hard to beat!
I got some chow chow from our farmers market and it was mouth watering with pulled pork too.
I like chow chow, too.. this wasn’t all that different in concept. Think really good sauerkraut with spice and good dill pickle flavor. I’ve got to get their Cuban version to try now, too… Spice and lime.
Curt recently posted..Beef Ribs and Tomato Pie
Hi nice post on pulled pork and using it for a party, breakfast and lunch.
Personally, I have never let a Boston butt sit whole overnight in a frig. This sounds like the convenient thing to do.
Have a great day!!!!
Tim
Tim recently posted..This company started a BBQ revolution!!!
Tim,
I find that leaving the pork whole keeps it more moist, until it needs to be pulled. Then it can also be reheated with a bit of apple juice to keep it moist.
Curt recently posted..Grilled Peach Bourbon Ice Cream
Curt,
I usually cook 4 Boston butts at a time. Next time I smoke some I will give it a try.
Your tip on reheating with a pit of apple juice sounds like a good idea.
Tim
Tim recently posted..This company started a BBQ revolution!!!
Hey there,
These look great! How long did you cook them for?