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I have a few more recipes to post before 2013 ends. I’m determined to start 2014 with a clean slate and no recipes carried over. New recipe adventures ahead! And, weirdly, I have two separate ones for pulled pork that I tried this year. I may post them both today. This first one is from Cook’s Country, and it was pretty good. In no universe am I claiming to be making real, full-on pulled pork in a smoker. But sometimes I just get a hankering for this dish, which is one of the things I miss the most from my time living in the South in college. This one is great because it’s a small-batch recipe. Even though it’s made for two, I still had some leftovers. Which was fine with me. I made this back in April, which just goes to show how slow I’ve been to post goodies this year. I sense a resolution coming about that.

Pulled Pork for Two (from Cook’s Country)
Serves 2

Use pork blade chops that are 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick. This recipe makes enough for 2 deli-style large sandwich buns or 4 regular soft hamburger buns.
Ingredients

3 pounds bone-in blade-cut pork chops (see note)
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 slices bacon, chopped fine
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup cider vinegar

BROWN PORK Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Cut chops away from bones and slice meat into 1-inch-thick strips (I cubed mine because I do not always read the directions closely). Combine 1 tablespoon brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper in bowl. Pat pork dry with paper towels and rub with spice mixture.

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Cook bacon in Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, 4 to 6 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate.

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Brown pork in 2 batches, 3 to 4 minutes per side, and transfer to second plate.

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BRAISE PORK Add onion to pot and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

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Stir in ketchup, vinegar, and remaining brown sugar, scraping up any browned bits, and bring to boil.

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Return bacon and browned pork and any accumulated juices to pot.

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Transfer to oven and braise, covered, until pork is fork-tender, about 1½ hours.

SHRED PORK Transfer pork to bowl and, using 2 forks, shred into bite-size pieces.

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Return pork to Dutch oven and toss to combine.

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Serve.