Best Carolina Style Pork Bbq Sandwiches Recipes

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NORTH CAROLINA-STYLE BBQ PULLED-PORK SANDWICHES



North Carolina-Style BBQ Pulled-Pork Sandwiches image

Provided by Food Network Kitchen

Categories     main-dish

Time 15h30m

Yield 8 to 10 servings, with leftovers

Number Of Ingredients 21

1 (8-pound) bone-in pork shoulder, with skin
1 head garlic, separated into cloves and peeled
3/4 cup Memphis Shake, recipe follows
5 cups apple or other wood chips, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes and drained
2 batches North Carolina-Style Vinegar BBQ Sauce, recipe follows
8 to 10 soft hamburger rolls
Dill pickles
1/4 cup sweet paprika
3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons granulated garlic
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon celery salt
3 cups cider vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Steps:

  • Make small holes all over the pork shoulder with a thin sharp knife and stuff in garlic cloves. Rub the meat all over with the Memphis Shake; cover and refrigerate overnight.
  • Prepare an outdoor grill with an indirect medium-hot fire with a mix of briquettes and hardwood charcoal in half of the grill. Set grate over coals. Place pork, skin side up, in an aluminum pan with about 1 1/2 cups water on the cooler side of the grate. Toss 1 cup of the soaked and drained wood chips onto the coals and cover the grill, making sure the lid's vents are directly over pork.
  • When the coals cool to medium-low heat, preheat a chimney-full of hot briquettes and hardwood charcoal. Whenever smoke stops coming out of the vents, about every hour, add more hot coals and 1 cup of soaked and drained wood chips to the fire. The goal is to maintain a medium-heat, smoky fire (but don't worry if it is hotter when the coals are added and cooler while preheating the coals). Rotate the pork when you add coals so it cooks evenly. Cook the meat until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork registers 180 degrees F, about 6 hours.
  • Set aside 1 quart of the North Carolina-Style Vinegar BBQ Sauce. Once the pork reaches 180 degrees F, begin mopping the entire surface of the meat every 20 minutes with some of the remaining sauce and the pan drippings. Continue to cook the pork, covering the grill between mopping, until an instant-read thermometer registers 200 degrees F, about 1 to 2 hours more.
  • Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for at least 15 minutes. Remove the outer skin and discard. Cut large chunks from the bone and shred, using 2 forks or your fingers, (when cool enough to touch) or chop. Toss with about 1 cup of the reserved barbecue sauce for every 3 cups of meat. Tuck the pork into the soft rolls and serve with pickles.
  • Whisk paprika, brown sugar, oregano, garlic, ancho powder, salt, and celery salt in a small bowl. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 2 months.
  • Heat the vinegar and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Off the heat, stir in the ketchup, honey, salt, red pepper, and black pepper.

CAROLINA-STYLE PORK BBQ SANDWICHES



Carolina-Style Pork BBQ Sandwiches image

Arguably, some of the best 'cue in the country can be found in North Carolina, where two distinct types of slow-cooked pig prevail. The first is Eastern barbecue, which is distinguished by slow-cooking a whole hog and including both the white and dark meat in chopped sandwiches and platters. Eastern 'cue boasts just a hint of vinegar and red pepper, which is added to the meat mix rather than used as a sauce. Western North Carolina 'cue (aka Lexington-style) is made from pork shoulder only. In addition to incorporating plenty of vinegar, sugar, and spices, it also mixes in a good amount of ketchup to create an actual sauce for the pork. This slow-cooker recipe falls somewhere in between.

Provided by Kendra Bailey Morris

Categories     Pork     Sandwich     Grill/Barbecue     North Carolina

Yield Serves 10 to 12 (about 8 cups of meat)

Number Of Ingredients 24

For the pork:
2 large onions, sliced
5-pound boneless pork shoulder roast
6 cloves garlic, smashed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried red pepper flakes
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup apple cider or apple juice
For the sauce:
2 cups cooking liquid (reserved from the slow-cooked pork)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and black pepper
For assembly:
Buns, slaw, and hot sauce

Steps:

  • Make the pork:
  • Spray the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray.
  • Put the onions in the slow cooker. Make slits in the pork roast and insert the garlic cloves. Rub salt, pepper, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes into the meat. Place the pork in the slow cooker fat side up and pour in the vinegar and apple cider. Cover and cook on low for at least 10 hours and up to 12 hours, until the meat is falling-apart tender.
  • Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred it with two forks. Set aside.
  • Make the sauce:
  • Pour 2 cups of the pan juices into a measuring cup; discard any leftover juices still in the pot. Let cool and skim off any visible fat. Pour this liquid into a saucepan. Add the water, ketchup, cider vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, paprika, dry mustard, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Return the shredded pork to the slow cooker and add 1 cup of the sauce mixture (more if you like it wet). Give it a stir and set the slow cooker to warm until ready to serve.
  • Assemble the sandwiches:
  • Serve the pork straight from the slow cooker with a slotted spoon, along with buns, slaw, and hot sauce. Serve the additional sauce on the side.

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