Recently discovered this recipe from Cooks and thought I'd give it a try. Got lucky and found a 9 or 10 pound bone-in pork shoulder for $1/lb!
After de-boning, I cross-hatched the fat cap, then rubbed a paste of rosemary, thyme, fennel, garlic, oil and salt all over, including inside where the bone was. Then trussed and set in the frige for 2 days on a wire rack to allow some dry curing.
Then roasted in a covered pan for a few hours, followed by an uncovered blast of 500°F heat to brown & crisp the exterior.
It was so tender, it was unsliceable...just all came apart after the twine was removed.
Impressions:
A bit salty but not overly so. Crunchy exterior. Interior meat a bit greasy. No need for a fork. The herb + garlic rub was spot on. Great pork depth & richness.
Much quicker roasting in the oven vs. smoking for pulled pork. Of course, you could always perfume one in smoke for a few hrs. then wrap in foil and finish in the oven.
I was hoping to make a pan sauce, but there was nothing to separate: It was all oil/fat afterwards!
The leftovers make great sandwiches!
Next time:
I'll really trim back the fat cap. This one was very thick and shed lots of rendered fat. Their video in contrast shows barely any fat cap. I'll add more coarse cracked pepper to the wet rub.
I'll definitely make this again, especially if I find the pork on sale for $1/lb. What a deal. One of these will easily feed a crowd as the meat is very rich.
After de-boning, I cross-hatched the fat cap, then rubbed a paste of rosemary, thyme, fennel, garlic, oil and salt all over, including inside where the bone was. Then trussed and set in the frige for 2 days on a wire rack to allow some dry curing.
Then roasted in a covered pan for a few hours, followed by an uncovered blast of 500°F heat to brown & crisp the exterior.
It was so tender, it was unsliceable...just all came apart after the twine was removed.
Impressions:
A bit salty but not overly so. Crunchy exterior. Interior meat a bit greasy. No need for a fork. The herb + garlic rub was spot on. Great pork depth & richness.
Much quicker roasting in the oven vs. smoking for pulled pork. Of course, you could always perfume one in smoke for a few hrs. then wrap in foil and finish in the oven.
I was hoping to make a pan sauce, but there was nothing to separate: It was all oil/fat afterwards!
The leftovers make great sandwiches!
Next time:
I'll really trim back the fat cap. This one was very thick and shed lots of rendered fat. Their video in contrast shows barely any fat cap. I'll add more coarse cracked pepper to the wet rub.
I'll definitely make this again, especially if I find the pork on sale for $1/lb. What a deal. One of these will easily feed a crowd as the meat is very rich.
