Slow Cooker Smoky Pulled Pork

Ingredients

• Pork and spice rub

  1200 g boneless pork shoulder

  raw edible weight after removing skin, bone and tough external tissue; keep the remaining marbling and edible fat; fully thawed

• 4 g smoked sweet paprika

  not hot paprika

• 3 g ground cumin

  plain spice

• 6 g fine salt

  all in the rub

• 1 g black pepper

  freshly ground

• Onion and tomato sauce

  200 g onion

  peeled weight, thinly sliced

• 16 g garlic

  peeled and finely minced

• 400 g canned crushed tomatoes

  no salt added, including all juice

• 40 g tomato paste

  plain, no salt added

• 50 g apple cider vinegar

  plain, not sweetened drinking vinegar

• 40 g light brown sugar

  weighed

• 150 g water

  for the cooking sauce; extra plain water only if needed for the appliance

Directions

1. Prepare the onion and tomato mixture

   Check the cooker manual before starting. Use a 4–4.5 litre slow cooker suitable for four roughly 300 g meat pieces; the loaded cooker should be about half to two-thirds full and comply with its own minimum-liquid and fill instructions. Prepare vegetables before raw pork. Peel and slice 200 g onion, then peel and mince 16 g garlic. In a bowl stir together all the garlic, 400 g no-salt-added crushed tomatoes with their juice, 40 g no-salt-added tomato paste, 50 g apple cider vinegar, 40 g brown sugar and 150 g water. Keep onion separate. If your appliance requires extra plain liquid, follow that requirement rather than cooking it too dry.

2. Cut the pork and apply the spice rub

   Use fully thawed, refrigerated boneless pork shoulder; do not put frozen meat in the cooker. Do not wash raw pork. Remove skin, bone and tough external tissue before weighing 1200 g edible meat with its remaining marbling and fat. On a separate raw-meat board, cut it into four similar pieces of about 300 g. Mix 4 g smoked sweet paprika, 3 g ground cumin, 6 g fine salt and 1 g black pepper, then coat every side of all four pieces with the entire rub. There is no browning step, added oil or counter-top marinating period. Wash hands and clean tools and surfaces after handling raw pork.

3. Load the cooker and start it immediately

   Spread all the sliced onion over the bottom of the cooker insert. Spoon in about half the tomato mixture, arrange the four seasoned pork pieces over the onion and cover with the remaining mixture, scraping the bowl clean. The liquid does not need to submerge every piece, but the cooker manual takes precedence. Check the fill level and fit the lid firmly. Start LOW cooking immediately; do not use a delayed-start timer or WARM setting for raw meat. This recipe is for a conventional slow cooker, not an unverified pressure-cooker slow-cook program.

4. Slow-cook until the shoulder shreds easily

   Cook on LOW for about 8–10 hours, leaving the lid closed until the first check at about 8 hours. Check the thickest center of more than one piece with a food thermometer. Whole pork requires at least 63°C/145°F followed by a 3-minute rest for safety, but shoulder at that temperature will usually be too firm for pulling. Continue cooking until a fork twists through with little resistance and the meat separates readily, commonly around 90–96°C/194–205°F. Temperature alone does not guarantee tenderness. If still firm, replace the lid and continue in 30-minute intervals. Follow the appliance instructions if its timing differs; the displayed 9-hour estimate is a planning midpoint, not a guaranteed finish time.

5. Shred the pork and reduce all the sauce

   Move all cooked pork to a clean tray with clean tongs, cover loosely and rest at least 3 minutes before shredding. Carefully transfer every bit of onion and cooking liquid to a deep saucepan, including edible rendered fat; do not skim or discard it for this measured recipe. Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered for about 10–15 minutes, stirring often, until slightly thickened and spoonable. Meanwhile pull the pork into strands with two forks, keeping all edible meat and fat. Return any tray juices to the saucepan. If the sauce catches or tightens too much, add a little plain water; it should coat the pork, not become a sticky paste.

6. Combine the pork and sauce, then portion

   Fold all shredded pork into all the hot reduced sauce and stir over low heat for 2–3 minutes, until evenly coated and piping hot. Divide the entire batch into eight portions, each containing one eighth of the pork, onion and sauce. No buns, rice, potatoes, slaw, herbs or extra barbecue sauce are included. Serve promptly. If holding briefly, keep the fully cooked food at 60°C/140°F or above. Refrigerate leftovers in small shallow containers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 32°C/90°F, at 4°C/40°F or below. Use within 3–4 days, or freeze for 2–3 months for quality. Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat on the stove, in the microwave or in the oven to at least 74°C/165°F throughout; do not use the slow cooker to reheat cold leftovers.