In honor of The Bend’s 10th Anniversary Issue, Farm to Table curators Justin and Kayla Butts reminisce over 10 years of shared recipes. This pulled pork sandwich recipe is straight from the September 2015 issue. Paired with a homemade barbecue sauce inspired by Kayla’s grandmother’s recipe and freshly baked sweet potato chips, this pulled pork sandwich recipe is perfect for any South Texas backyard gathering.
Pulled Pork Recipe
This pulled pork recipe requires very little hands-on attention. We let the brining process and slow cooker do the work for us.
Serves 8-10
Inactive Prep time: 8 hours
Prep time: 7 minutes
Cook time: 6-8 hours
Ingredients:
- 3 to 5 lb fresh ham roast, uncured
- ½ cup salt
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp cayenne
- 1 cup chicken broth
Directions:
Dissolve salt in 4 cups water in a large pot. Submerge roast in salt water, cover, and refrigerate overnight. The following day, rinse the roast with cool running water, and blot dry with paper towels.
Combine remaining dry ingredients in a small bowl. Coat entire roast with rub and massage with your fingers.
Place prepared roast into slow cooker with chicken broth. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Shred roast with fingers or fork. Serve on a Hawaiian sweet roll with thinly sliced Texas 1015 onion, bread and butter pickles and Nan’s barbecue sauce.
Nan’s Barbecue Sauce Recipe
This barbecue sauce recipe was adapted from my grandmother’s recipe, which she learned from her grandmother.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 medium sweet onion, finely diced
- pinch of salt (to sweat the aromatics)
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 tbsp light brown sugar
- coarsely ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes (more for spicier sauce)
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp soy sauce
Directions:
Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat.
Add onions and a pinch of salt and sauté until translucent and they begin to caramelize. Stir in garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, until the garlic becomes fragrant.
Reduce heat to low and stir in all the remaining ingredients. Simmer on low heat and continue to stir and let the mixture bubble until it thickens to the desired consistency. If a thinner sauce is preferred, add water until desired consistency is reached.
Sweet Potato Chips Recipe
For a savory twist, reminiscent of barbecue chips, add paprika to this guilt-free snack. Alternately, cinnamon helps to bring out the natural sweetness of the sweet potato while providing an anti-inflammatory antioxidant boost. Use a mandolin for uniformly thin slices of sweet potato.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8” slices
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- Coarse sea salt, to taste
- Optional: 1/4 tsp smoked paprika or cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lay sweet potato slices on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive. Sprinkle with sea salt and optional spices, as desired. Bake chips for 20 minutes, turning them after 10 minutes in the oven.
