North Carolina Pulled Pork

Photo: flickr user revjim5000

Ingredients

1 Boston butt - (5 to 7 lbs)

(bone-in pork shoulder roast)

3 tablespoons to 4 of Basic Barbecue Rub (see recipe)

1 cup cider vinegar

1 small onion thinly sliced

1 jalapeno pepper - (to 2) thinly sliced

1 tablespoon coarse salt

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

3 cups North Carolina Vinegar Sauce (see 10 hamburger buns - (to 12)

Coleslaw for serving

Preparation

Sprinkle pork shoulder on all sides with Basic Barbecue Rub, patting it onto the meat with your fingers. Grill right away, or let stand in the refrigerator, covered, up to 24 hours. The longer you cure it, the richer the flavor will be.

Place all the wood chips in the smoker box or in a smoker pouch; using all but 1 burner, preheat grill to high until you see smoke, then reduce heat to medium-low.

To prepare mop sauce: Combine vinegar, onion, jalapenos, salt, sugar, black pepper, red pepper flakes and 1/2 cup water in a nonreactive bowl; stir until salt and brown sugar dissolve.

Place pork, fat-side up, on grill, away from direct heat. Cover grill and cook pork until very tender, 4 to 6 hours (about 195 degrees on an instant-read meat thermometer). After 1 hour, baste the pork with the mop sauce; repeat every hour.

Transfer cooked pork to a cutting board, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 15 minutes. When ready to serve, wearing rubber gloves, pull off skin and fat. Finely chop crisp skin with a cleaver; add skin to pulled pork or discard. Discard fat.

Pull pork into pieces or chop it. Transfer pork to a roasting pan; stir in 1 to 1 1/2 cups of the North Carolina Vinegar Sauce, enough to keep the pork moist.

To serve, mound pork on hamburger buns and top with coleslaw. Serve remaining vinegar sauce on the side.

This recipe yields 10 to 12 servings.