Pulled Pork Shoulder
Pork shoulder seared first, then slow cooked in its own juices until it shreds easily. The BBQ sauce goes on the day it's served: that way the meat absorbs its juices better, and the BBQ keeps all its flavor and acidity without losing them.
- Rub (for ~4.4 kg / 9.7 lb of pork shoulder)
- 4 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp black pepper
- 4 tbsp smoked paprika
- 2 tbsp garlic powder
- 4 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 large onions
- Oil (for searing the meat)
- Water or stock for cooking Day 2
- 600 ml (2.5 cups) BBQ sauce (300 ml per pot)
- 300 to 400 ml (1.25 to 1.7 cups) reduced cooking juices (150 to 200 ml per pot) Oven-only variation (optional, single day)
- Honey, to brush on together with the BBQ sauce
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1
Season and sear
Mix all the dry spices (salt, pepper, paprika, garlic, brown sugar) and coat the pork shoulder on all sides.
Heat a splash of oil over high heat in the same pot you'll cook it in, and sear the pork shoulder on all sides until evenly browned, 2 to 3 min per side. Don't skip this step: it's where most of the final flavor comes from. -
2
🥩 DAY 1: Slow cook
With the meat already seared, add the roughly chopped onion and water or stock to the pot, enough to cover most of the meat. Cook on the lowest heat, covered, for 3 to 4 hours. It's ready when the fibers pull apart easily with a fork.
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3
Shred and return to the pot
Take the meat out and shred it while hot with two forks. Remove only the biggest excess bits of fat.
Return the shredded meat to the cooking juices and mix well: that way it absorbs flavor overnight. -
4
Fridge overnight
Let it cool, cover well, and refrigerate until the next day.
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5
🔥 DAY 2: Get it ready
Take the pot out of the fridge. Remove the layer of solidified fat on top: keep the stock underneath.
Separate the meat from the juices and set both aside. -
6
Reduce the juices
Simmer the juices gently for 10 to 20 min until concentrated and full of flavor.
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7
Mix with BBQ sauce
For every ~2.2 kg (4.8 lb) of meat: 300 ml BBQ sauce + 150 to 200 ml reduced juices. Mix well. The meat should look moist and glossy, not swimming in sauce.
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8
Oven (optional but recommended)
Spread the meat out on a baking tray. Oven at 200 to 220°C (390 to 430°F), 10 to 15 min, until some edges start to caramelize.
If you'd rather skip the oven, you can also just reheat everything in the same pot: it won't change the flavor much. -
9
Final adjustment
Taste it. If it needs more moisture, add a few spoonfuls of hot reduced juices and mix.
Keep some reduced juices aside: if the meat dries out on the table after 20 min, a couple of spoonfuls bring it right back to life. -
10
Quick variation: all in the oven, one day only
If you don't have two days, you can finish everything in the oven right after searing. Coat the whole pork shoulder with honey and BBQ sauce. Wrap it tightly in two layers of aluminum foil, sealed all around, and put it in the oven at a moderate temperature (160 to 170°C / 320 to 340°F) for 3 hours.
Twice during cooking, carefully open the package and add a glass of water inside to create steam and keep the meat from drying out. By the end it should shred on its own with a fork.
- Add the BBQ sauce on the day you serve it, not during cooking: the flavor, sweetness, and acidity hold up much better that way.
- Searing the meat before the slow cook isn't optional: that's where most of the final flavor comes from.
- Always keep some reduced juices aside to rescue the meat if it dries out on the table.
- Perfect over creamy polenta, Brazilian-style rice, or in a sandwich with crispy onions.
- Adding the BBQ sauce during the first day of cooking
- Skipping the initial sear on the meat
- Throwing out the cooking juices: they're liquid gold
- Skipping the overnight rest: the meat improves enormously