Lexington-Style Pulled Pork
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Traditional vinegar-based Lexington-style pulled pork recipes take hours to prepare.
We wanted to simplify this recipe without sacrificing flavor. To do so, we used a
combination of grilling and oven roasting to reduce the cooking time from all day
to just a few hours. To infuse our Lexington-style pulled pork with ample smoke flavor
despite the abbreviated cooking time, we doubled the amount of wood chips we used.
See the sidebar that follows the recipe.
SERVES 8
Boneless pork butt (also labeled Boston butt) is often wrapped in elastic netting; be sure to remove the netting before rubbing the meat with the spices in step 1. Four medium wood chunks, soaked in water for one hour, can be substituted for the wood chips on a charcoal grill.
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SPICE RUB AND PORK |
|
|
2 |
tablespoons paprika |
|
2 |
tablespoons pepper |
|
2 |
tablespoons packed brown sugar |
|
1 |
tablespoon salt |
|
1 |
(4- to 5-pound) boneless pork butt roast, trimmed |
|
4 |
cups wood chips, soaked in water for 15 minutes and drained |
|
LEXINGTON BARBECUE SAUCE |
|
|
1 |
cup water |
|
1 |
cup cider vinegar |
|
½ |
cup ketchup |
|
1 |
tablespoon granulated sugar |
|
¾ |
teaspoon salt |
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½ |
teaspoon pepper |
|
½ |
teaspoon red pepper flakes |
1. FOR THE SPICE RUB AND PORK: Combine paprika, pepper, sugar, and salt in bowl. Pat meat dry with paper towels and rub it evenly with spice mixture. Wrap meat in plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for at least 1 hour or refrigerate for up to 24 hours. (If refrigerated, let sit at room temperature for 1 hour before grilling.) Using 2 large pieces of heavy-duty aluminum foil, wrap soaked chips in 2 foil packets and cut several vent holes in tops.
2A. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent halfway. Light large chimney starter half filled with charcoal briquettes (3 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour into steeply banked pile against 1 side of grill. Place wood chip packets on coals. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent halfway. Heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 5 minutes.
2B. FOR A GAS GRILL: Place wood chip packets directly on primary burner. Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 15 minutes. Turn primary burner to medium and turn other burner(s) off. (Adjust primary burner as needed to maintain grill temperature around 275 degrees.)
3. Clean and oil cooking grate. Place meat on cool side of grill. Cover (positioning lid vent over meat if using charcoal) and cook until pork has dark, rosy crust, about 2 hours. During final 20 minutes of grilling, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.
4. Transfer pork to large roasting pan, cover pan tightly with foil, and roast pork in oven until fork slips easily into and out of meat, 2 to 3 hours. Remove pork from the oven and let rest, still covered with foil, for 30 minutes.
5. FOR THE SAUCE: Whisk together all ingredients until sugar and salt are dissolved. When cool enough to handle, unwrap pork and pull meat into thin shreds, discarding excess fat and gristle. Toss pork with ½ cup barbecue sauce, serving remaining sauce at table.