Slow Cooked Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I  had a discussion with this woman Elizabeth that I work with on the farm every Wednesday, and she called hipsters, pigsters because of their love of pork products.  Well, I went on line and looked for some statistics regarding the consumption of pork in the USA, and this is what I discovered.

First, let's define what a hipster is. Wikipedia says; "Hipsters are a subculture of young, recently settled urban middle class and older teens that first appeared in the 1990's. They are associated with independent/alternative music, varied non-mainstream fashion sensibility, Apple products, liberal or independent politics, alternative spirituality and lifestyles. Hipsters are a mutating trans Atlantic melting pot of styles, tastes and behaviors. Hipsters are the new, post WWII, hippies, punk/grunge rockers of the new millennium."

Sounds a lot like what us hippies were called back in the day with the exception of the computer element. Essentially they are recycling what's already been done, and that's cool with me. We baby boomer hippies from the 1960's were just recycled Bohemians and gypsies that preceded our existence.   I just wish I was skinny enough to get my ass into a pair of those tight fitting britches they all wear. I never liked bell bottoms. You can't run in bell bottom jeans, and you just never know when you're going to need to hit the bricks.

I have discovered that they love their pork products, and pulled pork is at the top of the list. A lot of hipsters here in the Bay Area seem to be from the Midwest, although that might be a generalization. They like to eat, and I like to cook. The hipsters are alright with me. They can't do any worse that we did, since we've made an obvious mess out of this world.

In the Midwest pork consumption is at it's highest, 58 pounds per year, followed by the south at 52 pounds, the West at 42 pounds. People in rural areas eat more pork than us city dwellers, and African Americans eat more than whites or Hispanic Americans.

Surprisingly, Denmark is the top consumer of pork products per-capita. The US ranks number 12 in consumption behind Canada at number 11, Spain is number two, and China is number nine.

I love the other white meat, as pork is called, and lately I've been eating my fare share of it. I made this recipe, and I had about 6 sandwiches over a three time span, and froze the rest for the near future. "What's different about my recipe than these other recipes that I read", one might ask?  It's the bread. Virtually every recipe I read said to serve this sandwich with a hamburger bun. Well gag me with a spoon. That's the best you can do, a friggin' hamburger bun? Why not just put it between two pieces of toilet paper, and eat it with chop sticks.

In order for this sandwich to not fall apart in your hands, and make it through the entire process of consumption, it needs a strong foundation.  Get a good rustic baguette, or a sour dough roll, or  chabatta bread, and for God sake, toast it. It's still going to drip and get a little soggy, but it will hold up till the end. I can testify to that.

I also made some French fries, and stuck those on top to add a little crunch and soak up some of the juice from the meat. The other ingredient I might use would be pickled red onion or a nice crispy Cole slaw without the mayo. If you follow this recipe you cannot go wrong. I promise. Man, I love this sandwich.

Hip, Hip, Oink, Oink

Peace,

Make Food, Not War

                                    Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches With French Fries

Ingredients: (Makes a ton of sandwiches...have a party)

6 pound pork shoulder roast
1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce
1 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
4 cloves of garlic mined
1 tablespoon sage
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 large onion chopped

Directions: For the roast

1) Trim fat off of the roast and cover with it it will sage, paprika, chili powder, black pepper, garlic. and onion.

2) Add the vinegar, chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and BBQ sauce to the crock pot and place on the high setting.

3) Put the roast in fat side up. The liquid should cover at least 1/2 of the roast. If not add a little water or more chicken stock. (the roast will release juices that will add to the pot so not too much liquid)

4) Cook for 8 hours turning the roast a couple of times during the process.

5) Once it's finished pull it out, and let it sit for a half hour, and then remove the excess fat, and shoulder bone.

6) Take the juice from the crock pot and let it cool, and then put it in the fridge separate from the meat. The fat will rise to the top, and you can skim this off, and save it to cook with later, or discard it.  Once the fat has been removed keep the meat in the juices. This will keep it from drying out.

For the sandwiches:

1) When reheating the pulled pork for sandwiches get your skillet hot and then put in the pork. Cook till the juices are reduced.

2) Roast the roll and put BBQ sauce on both sides with some pickled red onion or a dry Cole slaw.

For the French Fries:

Ingredients:
Potato
pure corn oil
salt and pepper

Directions: (see below the photos for the rest of the instructions)

1) Julienne a medium sized new potato

Pork should in crock pot with juices

pork shoulder finished

pulled pork meat

Dutch oven French fries in corn oil

reheating pork with juices 

finished julienne French fries

pulled pork sandwich with French fries

2) Put about 4 inches of corn oil in a medium sized Dutch oven, and heat to 375 degrees

3) Add the French fries a handful at a time. (Note: if you add to many fries the oil will cool down too fast and the fries will be soggy.  To cook one medium sized potato I do it in 3 batches.

4) When they are nice and golden brown scoop out with a slotted spoon, add salt and pepper, and place on a paper towels to soak up the excess corn oil.

Place some fries on top of the pulled pork sandwich and around your sandwich. You're done, now EAT!