This sandwich is pretty much everything! For years, Gabe and I have talked about smoking a pork butt. Finally, we did it! I bought this cookbook for Gabe a few years ago, and it has great tutorials and recipes for all types of barbecue. I knew this book would come in handy for this particular dish. This process is a bit long, but oh so worth it! Plus, almost all of the time involved in unattended. We used a grill similar to the Big Green Egg, but there are many other ways to smoke meat without a grill. The newest rage in smoke cooking is doing it indoors. Indoor smoking delivers some of the same complexity and aromas that you’d produce on a grill. The method below is from Cook’s Illustrated.
1. Place 7-inch square of heavy-duty aluminum foil on bottom of large Dutch oven (not nonstick) with tight-fitting lid. Sprinkle ¼ cup unsoaked wood chips on foil.
2. Place disposable aluminum pie plate (to catch fat) on chips, followed by steamer basket.
3. Brush 4 (6-ounce) skinless fish fillets or 4 chicken pieces (bone-in or boneless) with oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange food in steamer basket and tent with foil.
4. Place pot over high heat until chips begin to smoke, 5 to 8 minutes.
5. Cover pot and seal rim with foil. Reduce heat to medium and cook 15 minutes.
6. Off heat (and in well-ventilated area), transfer food to serving platter (for fish) or wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet (for chicken). Broil or bake chicken until dark meat reaches 175 degrees and white meat reaches 165 degrees.
- For the Rub
- 3/4 cup paprika
- 1/4 cup freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1/4 cup turbinado sugar
- 2 tbsp. chili powder
- 2 tbsp. garlic powder
- 2 tbsp. onion powder
- 2 tsp. cayenne
- 1 (6- to 8- lb.) bone-in pork shoulder roast (Boston butt)
- In a medium bowl combine all the ingredients and mix well. Rub the mixture all over the pork roast until completely covered, about 1/2 to 2/3 of the rub mixture. Cover the pork roast with aluminum foil and place in a large baking pan. Refrigerate the pork roast for at least 8 hours so that the flavors absorb into the pork.
- 3 hours before starting the grill/smoker pull the pork roast out of the refrigerator so the meat comes up to room temperature.
- For the sauce
- 2 cups ketchup
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 5 tbsp. light brown sugar
- 5 tbsp. sugar
- 1/2 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tbsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp. ground mustard
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring frequently, for 1 hour.
- For the Spicy Cole Slaw
- 3 mini sweet peppers (in 2 different colors), thinly sliced
- 2 carrots, shredded
- 1/2 head green cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1/2 head purple cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tsp. white vinegar
- 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
- Couple dashes hot sauce
- 2 cups fresh cilantro leaves
- Combine the mini sweet peppers, carrots and cabbage in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar, salt and hot sauce. Pour over the cabbage mixture and toss to combine. Add the cilantro and mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
- To smoke the Pork Roast
- 3 hours before starting the grill/smoker pull the pork roast out of the refrigerator so the meat comes up to room temperature.
- Place plenty of charcoal in your grill.
- Light the charcoal and wait until temperature guage starts to move.
- Add wood chunks to the top of the charcoal.
- Place drip pan in center, then fill about 3/4 way with water.
- Place cooking grate on top. Center Boston Butt, fat side up, on grate over drip pan.
- Once the grill reaches 200 degrees, adjust the vents to maintain a cooking temperature between 225-250 degrees F.
- The rule of thumb for smoking is about 1 and an 1/2hr per pound. Low and slow.
- Remove the pork from the grill and set aside to cool slightly (1-2 hours).
- Using 2 forks or your hands, shred the pork into bite-sized pieces. Remove any excess fat.
- Serve with sauce and buns to make sandwiches.
- *We used a grill similar to the Big Green Egg and this is the method we used to smoke our pork roast. There are many other ways to smoke meat.
