BY FRED THOMPSON
Photograph by Ben Fink, courtesy of Taunton Press

Few of us will ever cook a whole hog, but we all have the ability to smoke a pork shoulder. This recipe started out as North Carolina-style barbecue (remember, barbecue is a noun) and has, over the years, evolved from low-and-slow-cooked smoked pork in a vinegary sauce to a meat that works as a base for all the regional sauces, including Memphis and Georgia styles. The rub in this recipe is more Memphis, and it helps produce a better “outside brown,” those prized bits of char that get chopped into pork barbecue. You might find the use of a Cuban ingredient weird here, but smoked or roasted pork shoulder is a favorite in Cuba. Like so many good recipes, this happened almost by mistake, but as I continued to tinker with it and serve it to a multitude of different people, I found that I might well have hit on the ultimate recipe.

You could use a whole shoulder, a Boston butt, or a fresh picnic here. Injecting whole hogs and pork shoulders is all the rage now, with good reason: it helps to keep the pork moist and achieve flavour from the inside out. This makes a lot, but it freezes beautifully.

Serves 12 to 15

Indirect heat

(Meat-injection syringe required)

1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 Tbsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp freshly ground white pepper
1 tsp granulated garlic or garlic powder
1 tsp dry mustard
1 5- to 7-pound bone-in pork butt or picnic shoulder
1 cup strained Cuban mojo marinade or 1 cup apple juice mixed with 1/4 cup kosher salt
6 to 8 cups hickory or apple wood chips, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
Lexington Style Sauce (see recipe below) or your favourite barbecue sauce

Editor’s note: Cuban mojo marinade is available in Ontario under the Goya brand.

In a small bowl, whisk together the paprika, sugar, salt, black pepper, white pepper, granulated garlic and mustard. In another small bowl, reserve 1 Tbsp of this spice rub mixture; set it aside. Rub the remaining mixture evenly over the pork. Wrap the pork in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

At least 1 1/2 hours before you plan to put the pork on the grill, remove it from the refrigerator. Take an injection syringe and pull the mojo marinade up into the tube. Plunge the injector into the pork and then slowly push in the mojo as you move the needle back towards you and out of the meat. (You want to do it this way so that you don’t have huge puddles and so that the mojo is more evenly distributed.) Repeat this several more times at random spots in the meat until all the mojo has been used.

Drain the wood chips. Preheat your grill using all burners set on high for 10 to 12 minutes with the lid closed.

Oil the grill racks. If your grill is equipped with a smoke box, fill it with chips and place the box at one end of the grill. (You will use more of the chips later.) If you do not have a smoke box, divide the wood chips evenly among six perforated foil packets and place one packet at the end of the grill.

Place a disposable 9- by 13-inch aluminum pan crosswise on the grill rack at the end opposite the smoke box (or foil packet) and fill the pan halfway with water. Turn off the centre or back burner and adjust your heat to medium-high. Close the lid.

When the wood chips have started to smoke, cut off the all but one burner and turn it to low. (Make sure the centre burner is turned off.) Position the pork in the centre of the grill, away from the direct heat of the burner. Cover the grill and go drink a beer.

Typically, smoking chips or even chunks will last 15 to 20 minutes. The pork will gather most of its smoke flavor in the first 2 hours of cooking. Every 20 minutes, working as quickly as you can to keep the smoke from escaping, replace your smoke packet or the chips in the smoker box and add water to the aluminum pan if necessary. When you’ve used all the chips, try not to open the grill again until the barbecue is close to being done, which will take 4 to 5 hours longer. The best clue that the barbecue is done is to take a pair of tongs and grab the flat bone that runs through the center of the meat. If it moves easily or you can pull it out, then the pork is done. Sometimes in windy conditions or when it’s cold, it can take up to 7 hours for a shoulder to magically become barbecue. The internal temperature should be 180°F to 190°F.

When you’ve determined that the barbecue is ready, transfer it to a large roasting pan and let it rest for about 20 minutes. Then with forks or tongs, begin to pull the meat so that it comes off in stringy chunks. Separate out the skin and as much fat as you desire. Any of the outside brown, which is crispy, should be set aside and finely chopped, then stirred back into the meat. You can leave the barbecue pulled as it comes off the shoulder, or you can chop it a little finer if you desire. At this point I like to sprinkle the pulled pork with the reserved tablespoon of spice rub that I used for the outside, tossing the barbecue to blend.

Some people like to sauce their barbecue at this point, and I tend to do that with about 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce that I intend to serve. Again, toss to combine. Serve hot with cole slaw and additional barbecue sauce on the side.

LEXINGTON-STYLE BARBECUE SAUCE

By Fred Thompson

This is the dividing line for North Carolina barbecue. In the Piedmont, which includes Lexington, pork shoulders are smoked and the sauce features some ketchup and sugar, but more sugar than sauces from eastern North Carolina, and less ketchup than sauces from western places like Memphis and Kansas City. Use the “dip” to toss with any pulled pork, chicken, or turkey; it makes an excellent table sauce, as well. People who prefer predominantly dry, Memphis-style ribs might like to use this sauce as a mop during the last few minutes of cooking.

Makes about 3 cups

2 cups apple-cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
1 Tbsp hot pepper sauce
2 tsp crushed red chile flakes
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, whisk the vinegar, water, ketchup, brown sugar, hot sauce, chile flakes, salt and pepper until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks. Shake before using.

Barbecue reheats nicely in a microwave at medium power. Don’t nuke this stuff full bore or it will dry out. Another way I like to reheat pork is to put about an inch of water in a 3-quart saucepan and then insert a vegetable steamer. As the water begins to simmer and steam, pile the barbecue on top of the vegetable steamer and cover. Steam the ‘cue for 5 to 10 minutes or until heated through.

Fred Thompson’s recipes are from Grillin’ With Gas (Taunton Press, April 2009). Reprinted with the permission of the publisher.

© Edible Toronto, Summer 2009
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