PK’s Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

This pulled pork recipe couldn’t get any easier unless the slow cooker also chopped the onions and garlic for you. If only there was a machine on the market that did everything 😉

chowhound.com‘s original version was really easy to make but being a lazy cook I made it even easier and I saved a bunch of time using Rick Stein’s Garam Masala as a dry rub.

When it was first cooked I used it to make pulled pork rolls (see the end of this post) and the leftovers made a nice change to Taco night. Adjust the amount of chili powder to taste of course but I use Kashmiri chilis as they are flavoursome and smokey rather than overly spicy.

You will be:

1. Sautéing the vegetables.
2. Preparing and cooking the pork.
3. Pulling and serving the pork.

You will need:

• Ingredients:
  • 2 brown onions, thin sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 Tbsp brown or raw sugar
  • 1 Tbsp ground rock salt
  • 1 tsp powdered kashmiri chilis
  • Rick Stein’s Garam Masala (enough to coat the pork)
  • ~1.5 kg boneless pork shoulder fat on, untied
• Equipment:
  • several chopping boards
  • a long sharp knife
  • a medium sized bowl
  • paper towel
  • two forks for pulling the meat apart
  • a serving dish for mixing and serving the pulled pork and broth

Steps:

Sautéing the vegetables

1. Fine slice the 2 brown onions as if you were making onion rings.
2. Mince your 4 cloves of garlic, no need to be too even or fine. I cheat more often than not and used store bought minced garlic but the fresh stuff keeps for ages and is worth the extra effort.
3. Turn your slow cooker onto high and layer the onions and garlic, covering the base fully.
4. Add the 1 cup chicken stock and cover. This will get the onions and garlic slowly softening up.

Preparing and cooking the pork

1. Make a dry tub by mixing in a bowl:
   1. 1 Tbsp ground rock salt
   2. 1 Tbsp raw sugar
   3. 1 tsp powdered kashmiri chilis
   4. a very generous amount of Garam Masala
2. Pat the pork dry with paper towel then liberally coat with the dry rub.
3. Work the dry rub in a bit.
4. Pop the pork on top of the onion and garlic bed, recover, and cook for about 8 hours. I turned it halfway through.
5. Make sure the meat is cooked thoroughly and is falling apart when you pull at it with a fork.

Pulling and serving the pork

1. Remove the flap of pork fat and discard.
2. Pull apart the pork using the forks and place it in the serving dish.
3. Bit by bit add the remaining liquid from the slow cooker, mixing as you go, to the dish until you have the consistency you desire.
4. Add any extra sauces or mustards now if you want but I prefer to add condiments to the pork on a dish by dish basis.

Serving suggestion:

Enjoy,

PK

If you liked this you might want to check out Grochow’s BBQ Pulled Pork.