How many meals do you think you can get out of a 5 pound pork shoulder? If you said 3 - you'd be about on track. I try and do as much prep work in the kitchen as I can on the weekends, simply because the week can get so hectic I want good meals, but can't spend hours in the kitchen. This week I took a 5 pound pork shoulder and thought I'd shed it up for some different meals.
I took my shoulder out and let it rest and come to room temperature for about 10 - 15 minutes. Then, I did a spice rub of cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper and rubbed it all over the shoulder. I then heated my big pot and put a little olive oil in the pan to heat. Once I let it get hot I placed my coated shoulder in and allowed it to sear on all sides of the shoulder. (took about 2 minutes or so per side)
Once seared I filled up the pot with water, (although you could use beef stock in place of water for extra flavor) until it almost covered the shoulder. Then I placed in 4 peeled whole garlic cloves and covered the pot. I allowed the shoulder to cook for about 2 hours over medium high heat, turning it every so often.
At the two hour mark I pulled my shoulder out and left the heat on the pot. I shredded the shoulder with two forks and then put the shredded pork right back in the water it cooked in. I allowed it to simmer for about another 30 minutes. At this point you can separate your meat if you plan to use it for different flavors. In my case I used the same flavors for all three of my dishes, so I took all the pork out and placed it in a large bowl. I added about two tablespoons of the water mixture to my pork and then poured in some of my favorite bbq sauce - Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ. I poured in the sauce a little at a time and mixed it - simply because I didn't want to 'over sauce' my pork. Once I thought I had enough bbq sauce on it I separated it into three different portions.
One portion I used for shredded bbq pork chimichangas. For this, I saute some white onion and sprinkle with some sugar to allow them to caramelize just the slightest. Take a large flour tortilla, spoon in some shredded pork, sauteed onions and some shredded Monterrey jack cheese. Wrap them up fairly tightly and set aside. Once they are all wrapped, heat a skillet with about an inch or an inch and a half with oil. Allow the oil to come to temperature and then place your chimi's in with the open flap of your wrap on the bottom - this will allow it to seal itself. Fry on both sides until you get a nice, crispy brown outside. We took a store helper here and heated up some canned Monterrey jack cheese sauce. While the rest of your chimi's are frying, create some guacamole for a topping. You can take another store short cut here, but I prefer homemade guac every time. I took one avocado, sliced it up in chunks, added two roma tomotoes diced, half a white onion diced nice and small and two cloves of garlic, smashed with salt, (almost until it's a paste). Mix all together with some salt and pepper and the juice of one lime. Now, add 2 heaping tablespoons of sour cream to the mixture - and there is some GREAT, quick homemade guacamole! Top your chimi's with some heated melted Monterrey jack cheese and your guacamole. YUM!
The second dish for the week is pulled pork bbq sandwiches. Take your already shredded bbq pork out of the container you put it in and heat through on the stove. For this I add some more bbq sauce and some brown sugar - just to sweeten it up a little more. Once heated through, place on buns and serve with your favorite sides - in this case homemade fries. Simply take 3 russet potatoes and cut into steak fries. Sprinkle with some salt, cumin and pepper and bake at 450 degrees until you get them to the perfect crisp.
The third and final dish I'm going to get out of my pork shoulder is bbq pork pizza. I know I do a lot of different pizza's, but I love to experiment and come up with new flavors. Again, take your store short cut and buy a pizza crust. Roll out and place your shredded bbq over the top evenly. I usually will add a little more bbq sauce if needed. Top with chunks of pineapple and green onions. Bake at 350 degrees for about 18 minutes. Serve with a salad and there is a third meal out of ONE pork shoulder!
Bring on the week cause half of my work is already done!
Cheers!
I took my shoulder out and let it rest and come to room temperature for about 10 - 15 minutes. Then, I did a spice rub of cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper and rubbed it all over the shoulder. I then heated my big pot and put a little olive oil in the pan to heat. Once I let it get hot I placed my coated shoulder in and allowed it to sear on all sides of the shoulder. (took about 2 minutes or so per side)
Once seared I filled up the pot with water, (although you could use beef stock in place of water for extra flavor) until it almost covered the shoulder. Then I placed in 4 peeled whole garlic cloves and covered the pot. I allowed the shoulder to cook for about 2 hours over medium high heat, turning it every so often.
At the two hour mark I pulled my shoulder out and left the heat on the pot. I shredded the shoulder with two forks and then put the shredded pork right back in the water it cooked in. I allowed it to simmer for about another 30 minutes. At this point you can separate your meat if you plan to use it for different flavors. In my case I used the same flavors for all three of my dishes, so I took all the pork out and placed it in a large bowl. I added about two tablespoons of the water mixture to my pork and then poured in some of my favorite bbq sauce - Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ. I poured in the sauce a little at a time and mixed it - simply because I didn't want to 'over sauce' my pork. Once I thought I had enough bbq sauce on it I separated it into three different portions.
One portion I used for shredded bbq pork chimichangas. For this, I saute some white onion and sprinkle with some sugar to allow them to caramelize just the slightest. Take a large flour tortilla, spoon in some shredded pork, sauteed onions and some shredded Monterrey jack cheese. Wrap them up fairly tightly and set aside. Once they are all wrapped, heat a skillet with about an inch or an inch and a half with oil. Allow the oil to come to temperature and then place your chimi's in with the open flap of your wrap on the bottom - this will allow it to seal itself. Fry on both sides until you get a nice, crispy brown outside. We took a store helper here and heated up some canned Monterrey jack cheese sauce. While the rest of your chimi's are frying, create some guacamole for a topping. You can take another store short cut here, but I prefer homemade guac every time. I took one avocado, sliced it up in chunks, added two roma tomotoes diced, half a white onion diced nice and small and two cloves of garlic, smashed with salt, (almost until it's a paste). Mix all together with some salt and pepper and the juice of one lime. Now, add 2 heaping tablespoons of sour cream to the mixture - and there is some GREAT, quick homemade guacamole! Top your chimi's with some heated melted Monterrey jack cheese and your guacamole. YUM!
The second dish for the week is pulled pork bbq sandwiches. Take your already shredded bbq pork out of the container you put it in and heat through on the stove. For this I add some more bbq sauce and some brown sugar - just to sweeten it up a little more. Once heated through, place on buns and serve with your favorite sides - in this case homemade fries. Simply take 3 russet potatoes and cut into steak fries. Sprinkle with some salt, cumin and pepper and bake at 450 degrees until you get them to the perfect crisp.
The third and final dish I'm going to get out of my pork shoulder is bbq pork pizza. I know I do a lot of different pizza's, but I love to experiment and come up with new flavors. Again, take your store short cut and buy a pizza crust. Roll out and place your shredded bbq over the top evenly. I usually will add a little more bbq sauce if needed. Top with chunks of pineapple and green onions. Bake at 350 degrees for about 18 minutes. Serve with a salad and there is a third meal out of ONE pork shoulder!
Bring on the week cause half of my work is already done!
Cheers!
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