Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Pulled Pork with a Kick

Ever watch a cooking show and think to yourself, "I have got to try that?" I do it all the time. Especially when I watch the Pioneer Woman.

I watched Ree prepare this dish quite a while ago, but hesitated to make it for fear it would be too spicy for my guys. But I found a way around that and now it's one of my favorite feed-a-crowd go-to meals and one of my family's favorite things to eat.

Here's what you'll need:

1 whole pork butt, also known as a pork shoulder roast (personally, I don't get this because, let's face it, the butt and the shoulder are two different places)
2 onions, peeled and quartered
salt and pepper
1 - 11 oz can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 cans Dr Pepper
4 packed tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat your over to 300 degrees.

Place the onions in the bottom of a large pot/dutch oven.

Sprinkle the pork with salt and pepper, then set on top of the onions.

This is where it got a little scary for me.
Pour the entire can of chipotle peppers over the pork.
If you've ever tasted a chipotle pepper, you'll understand why this is so scary. Yet, while the pepper (which is actually a smoke-dried jalapeno) is hot, the adobe sauce has a wonderful smokey flavor. So, rather than worry about having a dish that was too spicy, I simply removed all but three or four of the chipotles (be sure to get the seeds, too), but left all of the sauce.

Next, open your soda (I used the store brand).
And pour it over the top.
 Add the brown sugar, give it a stir, then cover and put in the oven for at least six hours, turning two or three times throughout the cooking process. Great for this time of year when you don't mind the oven going all day.

Ta-dah!
Simply pull it apart with a fork and add it back to the juice before serving.
Throw open a package of buns, maybe a jar of dill pickle slices, and you're done. Making this a great dish for a potluck.

The meat was tender with a slight sweetness and a hint of a kick. Just enough that you could detect the heat, but not enough to have you running for water. However, if you're worried, you could always remove more peppers. 

So what was the last recipe you HAD TO TRY and actually did?

13 comments:

  1. Mindy, I have to try this. I love pulled pork, I love it to pieces and this is easy, fun, and don't you just love adding soda pop to something and having that sweet/savory goodness spark to life????

    I'm putting this on my "must try" list!!!! Thank you for sharing it!

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    1. Ruthy, I was actually surprised that the sauce didn't come out sweeter than it did. But that's okay because my guys don't care for sweet sauces. This let the flavor of the meat shine through.

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  2. I think the last recipe I had to try was your pumpkin cake a couple of weeks ago. LOL In fact, a lot of new things I've tried have come from the Yankeebelle Café. :-)

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    1. I know what you mean, Kav. I also know you won't be trying this recipe. But I sure could go for some of that pumpkin cake about now. :P

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  3. I love that your "store brand" is HEB! I loved shopping at HEB when we lived in Texas. Oh, that brings back memories...little children (now adults)...Texas accents..... HOT weather. Okay, I'll stop there.

    But we did enjoy our years in Texas, even with the hot summers :)

    This sounds like the perfect alternative to the boring pulled pork I've been fixing (cook the pork, add barbecue sauce). I'll have to make this the next time.

    The last recipe I HAD to try was the apple/bean concoction I shared yesterday. One great thing about being here at the Cafe is that I'm inspired to try new things.

    The other great thing is all of you :)

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    1. Jan, I absolutely love HEB. Unfortunately, we don't have any near us, so I have to stock up on certain things when we go to the ranch. They have the best store brands ever.

      In regards to the barbecue sauce, see my comment to Ruthy. I bet you'd like this.

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  4. I made this, Mindy!! I watch Ree every Sunday morning while eating breakfast before church and save/Pin a lot of her recipes.

    When I made this, I didn't know how hot the peppers are (for some dumb reason I assumed they must be mild if you put in the whole can). So I dumped in the whole can. I ABOUT DIED. I'm a wimp when it comes to spicy stuff so couldn't even enjoy the recipe. But I will re-make it and maybe just put in a tablespoon or two of the sauce only. :)

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    1. Missy, you experienced my worst fear. Nothing worse than having to toss a slab of meat. I did have to think on it a while before my "duh" moment. I'm sorry you didn't know how hot they were.

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    2. Thankfully, my husband ate it so I didn't have to throw it away. :)

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  5. I keep looking at that can of peppers. How did I not realize that CHIPOTLE and CHILPOTLE are spelled differently? Did I just not see that extra L until this moment? Now I'm doubting my own brain.

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    1. I know! I thought the same thing, Virginia. But since we live in Texas and many things are labeled in both English and Spanish, I assumed that was the Spanish spelling. Thank heavens for pictures on labels. It was still good. :)

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  6. Oh, my mouth is burning just thinking of Missy! I'm glad you figured out an alternative, Mindy.

    I don't have many Must try recipes because hubby is not the adventurous sort. If he hasn't had it before, he doesn't want it. I had to bribe him just to taste a single steamed beet even though he loves pickled beets.

    I love pulled pork sandwiches though.

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    1. Yes, we do tend to cook toward our families likes, don't we, Mary Cate? Then again, if we don't, we either eat it all ourselves or freeze it. Makes going out to eat so much easier. ;)

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