CLASSIC BARBECUE… IN A SLOW COOKER OR A PRESSURE COOKER

You can make wonderful barbecue in a slow cooker or a pressure cooker with two shortcut tricks. First, use ingredients that offer many of the smoky notes that come from cooking the meat over a wood fire. Liquid smoke is a start, but supplement it with smoked paprika, canned chipotles, and even fire-roasted cumin or tomatoes to get unexpected depth of flavor.

Second, create a rub to offer a big hit of flavor in the relatively moist environment of either sort of cooker. Since some of that rub slips off during cooking, don’t waste the liquid in the pot. Turn it into a fine barbecue sauce.

All these recipes can be made in a slow cooker—or much more quickly in a pressure cooker.