When I was a child, my family frequently visited Pardner’s Barbecue in Rocky Mount, N.C. It was a good stopover for dinner when we were traveling from Norfolk, Va., to Raleigh, N.C. to visit my maternal grandparents and extended family members. The restaurant featured Carolina-style pork barbecue, crisp coleslaw, corn sticks and Brunswick stew. My favorites were the pork and Brunswick stew, a thick blend of tomatoes, lima beans, corn and chicken. I loved the corn sticks, too. They were a special treat (versus cornbread) and required a special pan to bake.
Who knows how many times we ate dinner at that restaurant, but it was an unspoken promise that we were stopping there on our trips to Raleigh.
I made a hybrid sauce for a pork picnic that I recently fixed in the slow cooker. I used saucier ingredients to keep the meat moist, while trying to stay true to the Carolina style. It contained ketchup and sugar, along with hot sauce, vinegar and red pepper. The pork was moist and tender after about 8 hours of cooking in this glaze; it easily shredded with two forks and paired perfectly with coleslaw.
In a medium bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients: ketchup, vinegar, sugar, hot sauce, garlic, black pepper and red pepper.
Pour the mixture over the pork, which has been put in a 6-quart slow cooker.
Cook on low for 8 hours. This is a better method than cooking on high for four hours. The roast needs to cook slow and low. After 8 hours, remove the pork from the crock – use two spatulas because the meat will be falling apart tender.
Use two forks and shred the meat into small pieces. Try to stay focused; the savory smell is keenly distracting!
Pile the pork high on soft hamburger style buns. If you are making one for me, you must add coleslaw and extra hot sauce. Dig in!
My coleslaw was falling out all over the plate, just the way I like it!
Here’s the recipe:
Savory pulled pork
4 pound pork picnic
½ cup ketchup
½ cup vinegar
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon hot sauce (Frank’s Red Hot)
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Spray a 6-quart slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray; place the pork inside. Combine all the sauce ingredients and pour over the pork to cover completely. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Remove the pork from the slow cooker. Use two spatulas because the meat will be so tender it is falling apart. Shred the meat with two forks. Pile high on soft buns with a dollop of cole slaw and extra hot sauce and/or vinegar. This feeds a crowd; certainly enough for 10 sandwiches.
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