The Great Recipe Challenge (Week 2): Oven-Roasted Pulled Pork

Spice rub, coleslaw, pork & beans.

Despite a slight medical set back yesterday morning resulting in six beautiful stitches in my chin, The Great Recipe Challenge must go on.

This week's meal: Oven-Roasted Pulled Pork with Spicy Slaw from The Food Network.  I've always been really intimidated by pulled pork because it takes so long and I thought it would be easy to screw up.  If I could execute this dish yesterday, you can execute it any day.

The key to this recipe is time.  You need lots and lots of it.  But the best part is that the majority of time requires little to no effort.  Heck- you don't even need to be awake for more than 20 or so minutes of preparation.  Perfect for a Sunday!

I was a bit overwhelmed by the number of ingredients used in all of the different components of this dish.   Upon taking a closer look, most items are things that I had (or should have had) in my cupboards already.  I was able to purchase any spices I didn't have for about $0.50 at bulk barn.  Even the pork shoulder itself was less than $10.

I put the rub on the pork around dinner time Saturday night, covered it with plastic wrap and threw it in the fridge.  Then, on Sunday around noon, I pre-heated the oven, put the meat in and came back at 5:30pm to take it out.  So so so easy.

Bake for 5.5-6h on 300 degrees.
Just out of the oven.

In the meantime, I mixed up the coleslaw a few hours before eating so that it had time to sit and thicken up a bit.

While putting together the "BBQ" sauce, keep in mind that it is not supposed to be a thick, sweet sauce like you have in the fridge.  It will taste as though there is far too much vinegar but I promise that it compliments the pork perfectly when mixed together.  I tossed the pork in the sauce before serving instead of pouring the sauce onto the sandwich to avoid the buns getting too soggy.

Cider Vinegar BBQ Sauce.
Don't let the vinegar flavour scare you.  It will be D-E-licious on the pork.

The coleslaw wasn't great.  A bit too tangy and "mustard-y" for my liking.  I planned on making homemade beans but just didn't have it in me that day so I cracked open a can of baked beans in molasses and it did the trick.

The pork was AMAZING.  So tender.  The bone in the meat literally fell out when I went to move it.  The bark on the outside is so tasty and just overall goooooood.

So juicy & tender.

We give this the absolute D&T stamp of approval.  Next time, I will try my own beans and a different coleslaw but the pork itself made up for absolutely any short comings in the side dishes.  The whole dish cost about $13 to make.  The Oven-Roasted Pulled Pork receives a whooping 9.5/10 on the yummy scale.  There was lots left for lunches the next day or would be great for feeding company.  I will definitely be making this again.  Who wants to come over?!

Send me your comments or recipe ideas!  Tweet me @darbyvt