Wanted: A non-BBQ recipe for Pork Shoulder!
I couldn't resist buying a huge pork picnic shoulder for only $12. $12! The problem is that I have no idea what to do with it. This piece of meat is so large, I'm not sure it will even fit in my slow-cooker...so I'm looking for recipes that 1) Can be made in the oven, and 2) Aren't BBQ (that is, no pulled pork). Please help!
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19 Comments:
You could try red-cooking it. I would cut it into large chunks and use this recipe from Fuchsia Dunlop:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7623888
You'll need to cook the meat a bit longer since it is less tender. Maybe 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
SqueezeBottle at 11:27AM on 09/10/09
• Slash the skin in crossing lines, rub the entire thing with a mixture of equal parts salt and sugar, with herbs and spices of your choosing. Wrap in plastic and cure in your fridge for about eight hours, or over night.
• Brush off the meat and pat dry with paper towels. Put it in a deep roasting pan, into which you have placed a bunch of your favorite aromatics (carrot, celery, onion, fennel, leeks, garlic, etc.) and a cup or two of chicken stock and/or white wine, and a bouquet garni. Tent with tin foil, put in the oven at 250* for about eight to ten hours.
• Remove from the oven, allow to cool to room temp. Reserve veggies and juices. Place on a roasting rack, into your cleaned roasting pan and into the fridge for one hour. If you have a little fan, put it in the fridge and have it blow on the meat to get the skin extra dry.
• Put it into the oven at 450* and roast until the skin is a deep golden mahogany bronze color. Serve with puréed veggies and boiled potatoes.
You will get tender, fragrant meat falling off the bone and crispy heavenly crackling skin. Best of both worlds. The spices and aromatics can be chosen to create any flavor profile you want, from French, Italian, Mexican, Cuban, Korean... I've used kimchi as the bed for example, that works really really well. It gets kinda caramelized so I leave it whole, it's delicious with celery root purée.
simon at 11:31AM on 09/10/09
I LOOOVE pork shoulder! Definitely braise it - it will be meltingly tender and delicious. Here are a couple of recipes:
Pork Ragu (Same method, but just put it in the oven for 3 - 4 hours at 200 instead of using the pressure cooker)
Guava-stuffed Pork Shoulder (Marinated in citrus juice, then stuffed with guava shells and prunes, wrapped in bacon and braised with malt soda. It's mind-blowing.)
bitchincamero at 12:19PM on 09/10/09
Pork and sauerkraut - put your meat in a big huge pan and treat as @simon suggested re slicing fat and rubbing with spices. Throw some onions in the pan too. Low oven, cook for 6 or 7 hours. Drain most of the juice off (do NOT throw away - place in fridge, skim fat and hold for later use in this recipe or use to make pea soup). Throw a couple of jars of good kraut into the pan all around the meat - more if you really like it (my family does). Tent the thing to keep the moisture in and cook for another 3 hours or so - meat should be falling off the bone (check to make sure your kraut is not drying out - add more water or pork liquid if it is). For the last hour, you can throw in some Bratwurst if you like (adds a nice flavour to the kraut). Serve with loads of bread and pickles and maybe some fresh beets. Awesome!
Maureen at 12:31PM on 09/10/09
Wow, great suggestions! Thanks! I think I'm going to go with simon's suggestion and cure it in the fridge from Friday night to Saturday morning, and then cook it all day Saturday. It'll be a nice break from all the studying I'm planning to get done that day.
My only question is this: In the second step (of simon's instructions), does the roast go directly on top of the aromatics? Or is it placed on a rack above the aromatics?
Junie at 12:44PM on 09/10/09
During the braising step, place it directly on the bed of aromatics. Now I want to do it too...
simon at 12:48PM on 09/10/09
Drooling at the thought of simon's recipe!
rlwycoff at 1:04PM on 09/10/09
@simon - Thanks for the info - I'm really excited to have a big cooking project to work on.
Junie at 1:05PM on 09/10/09
Google for a recipe for pernil, the Cuban/Caribbean style pig. It's marinated in oregano, lime juice, garlic and other good things and then slow roasted. Divine.
lemons at 1:16PM on 09/10/09
Here's a cute idea from My Husband Cooks complete with husbands' commentary - http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Cider-Braised-Pork-Shoulder-with-Caramelized-Onions-105913
Here's one from Epicurious with good reviews - http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Cider-Braised-Pork-Shoulder-with-Caramelized-Onions-105913
soooo lucky to get one at that price *jealous*
hungrychristel at 1:21PM on 09/10/09
Carnitas or Tacos al Pastor
climbhighak at 1:27PM on 09/10/09
@christel - I know, I saw the price and I couldn't resist - $12 for so much meat! I also had to snap it up, because for some reason this cut is really hard to find in my area.
Junie at 1:30PM on 09/10/09
A few weeks ago I made David Chang's Bo Ssam. It was delicious and easy. It's a version of what @simon is describing above.
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/bo-ssam
tinat at 1:37PM on 09/10/09
pork and sauerkraut is what I would do with it. Its good.
I take a pork roast whatever I can find (4-8 pounds), season it and brown it. Stick aside
When I remove it then I cook the onions about 3 good sized ones.
Cook them down nice then add to this 1 cup of water or ale
2-3 tablespoons if apple sauce OR 1 quartered apple
3 cloves of garlic smashed
one rib of celery (I chop it in 4 pieces) You can add caraway seeds instead
crushed pepper flakes about 1 tablespoon (more if you like)
2 bags of cold sauerkraut
Mix this all up and then remove half the kraut mixture to a holding bowl
add the roast back in and cover with the other half
You can do this stovetop or oven.
Cover and simmer for about 3-4 hours or until the roast is tender and falling apart.
Or in the oven in the oven, in a covered roasting pan, oven temperature to 300º and roast for about 3 hours.
Low and slow is your friend.
Serve this with mashed potatoes.
This is great comfort food.
JerzeeTomato at 7:10PM on 09/10/09
Wow, SqueezeBottle, what a great idea. Very cool recipe. I'll try it soon. Thanks for sharing.
I do what Simon says: The salt/sugar cure is a good thing. No matter which way I take it, even if I do a Jamaican thing or the sauerkraut thing, we always have roasted or fried apples with it.
bitchincamero, where do you shop? I haven't seen guava for sale, even at my local Filipino store, forever. Man, I wish I could find some.
betteirene at 11:50PM on 09/10/09
@Jerzee - I actually saw you post that recipe somewhere in the Talk section last fall/winter, and I made it then - it was freakin' awesome! It was a huge hit and froze really well, too. I definitely plan on making it again this season.
Junie at 9:02AM on 09/11/09
@betteirene - I'm in Miami, so there's guava everywhere. I use the canned guava shells because they're more reliable than the fresh and they caramelize nicely in the oven. Are you in NYC? When I lived there, I could usually find them at Key Food in the East Village and even some of the more Latin bodegas.
bitchincamero at 10:06AM on 09/11/09
@bitchincamero -- my mouth literally filled with saliva -- guava-stuffed pork shoulder?! Man, that sounds good! But now I want pastelitos, dammit!
gbania at 10:34AM on 09/11/09
@betteirene - That recipe works great for spareribs as well. Last weekend I made a slightly modified version with pork neck bone. Pork neck bone is one of the cheapest cuts you can get, it has wonderful flavour and texture and lends itself very well to braising. It is a bit messy to eat, but it's absolutely worth it.
SqueezeBottle at 2:52PM on 09/11/09