BBQ Pork

Paula Deen isn't someone I often go to for recipes. Sure, the stuff she makes looks good, but I can't justify making something that has 800+ calories per bite. Perhaps that's a bit of an exaggeration, but we all know it's not too far-fetched. Every now and then though, she knocks one out of the park in a not-full-fatty kind of way. Don't get me wrong, pork roast isn't exactly super lean, but I skimmed the fat off the liquid and pulled all the fat off the meat that I could after it finished cooking. Anywho, that brings me to this --- her BBQ pork sandwiches. I was on the bike the other day, watching some good ol' Food Network while workin' out, and the episode featuring this recipe was on. I know how much Buppy likes pulled pork/chicken/ . . . most things pulled, and I knew we had almost all the ingredients on hand. Sweet! It's a little bit of work to make because the dry-rubbing process is a lil' messy, but it's well worth the effort!BBQ Pork
Source: Adapted from Paula Deen

2 Tbsp. salt
2 Tbsp. black pepper
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. cayenne
4 lb. shoulder pork roast
2 c. apple juice
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
1/2 c. white vinegar
1/2 Tbsp. liquid smoke
1/2 Tbsp. garlic powder

Mix the dry rub ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle dry rub all over the pork roast, pressing into the pork. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325F.

Combine liquid ingredients and the garlic powder in a medium bowl. Unwrap and place the pork into a large roasting pan and pour the liquid mixture over it. Wrap the roaster tightly with aluminum foil, then cover with the lid. Roast for 4 hours or until the meat shreds easily with forks. Baste with cooking liquid several times during the cooking process.

Remove from the pan and let cool slightly until it can be handled. Shred by hand or with forks into bite-sized pieces, then return to the cooking liquid. Serve on buns or over my homemade bread.

I can tell you that my recipe is a little different from Paula Deen's only because I didn't have exactly what her recipe calls for. Following her recipe exactly could only make things even better, which would be hard to do. I didn't have Worcestershire sauce (what!??!), which hers calls for. That would only be a stellar ingredient to add. I also didn't have enough apple cider vinegar to make the full 1 cup as hers calls for, so I subbed in 1/2 c. of the white vinegar. Using all apple cider vinegar could only make this more delish. Oh yeah, my cayenne addition was much less only because I used up what I had on hand. Check out her recipe, follow it, and use mine if you don't have everything on hand. I love that this was still fantastic even though I didn't have everything. Thank you Paula Deen ---- this bad boy is a keeper for sure! Enjoy!Sorry --- pic is super messy, but it was tasty nonetheless!