Made this recently for a friend who lost a loved one and again recently for myself and some Halloween misfits just for the hell of it.
Crazy things happen in life, in a long marriage and what once was a passion shared, sometimes suffocates when not properly nurtured and cherished.
They say a way to a man's heart is through his tummy and even so, sometimes keeping him takes more than love and good cooking. Found that out the hard way and in a sly play on a well known saying, one man's leftovers is another man's buffet. Oh well, his loss... these leftovers rock.
Cooking is definitely harder without a partner or loved one to share it, so sometimes that takes a backseat when going through serious shit. However, with the love of friends and family, and no doubt time and perspective, moving on gets easier and then one day in walks someone who blows your mind and makes you laugh like you are going to die from it, die without it.
So for the sweet soul who came into my life like a Southern hurricane and makes me laugh so hard I swear one day he really will make me pee my pants, I made this and a few other of my Thai favorites. Checking his temperature, essentially. Dude's for real.
The first thing he ever gave me was a bag of honey smoked Thai chilis that he made in his smoker and even though we narrowly avoided our very first argument over whether they were serranos or thai chilis, it was a moment that stands still for me. Click. Click. Click. Lock. Aim. Fire. Those suckers rocked my world and I knew I was in for a wild freaking ride. Pretty sure he knew it too. Honey Smoked Chilis. Red Solo Cup. Fort for the Trees.
While this wasn't the best part of the first meal I ever cooked for this freak of nature that can sit on my couch and eat my hot sauce straight from the bottle like a crazy addict, it was a side bar and worth making a note of, just like everything else that has happened since the Universe answered my last letter...
I didn't ask for a crazy mutha like this but I'm so glad She answered my letter knowing more about what I needed than what I wanted. And lucky for me I got both delivered in Cat 5, Southern style. Shock and awe, baby with a pair of dimples and killer blue eyes that could probably kill ya if you look at them too long.
Shoot, I digress, so on with the pork story...The best part of this recipe is truly how easy it is. I guess that's why I had to set it up like Gone With the Wind or something. Whatever. Don't be alarmed that there are really only two ingredients. That's what makes it a real go-to when your days start to run together and even easier than opening up Pandora's box when the Universe delivers a sudden and true gift.
The best things in life, turns out, do not have to be so hard and can be so easy, you really just have to blink like an idiot to make sure it's real. Pinch yourself if you need to know for sure. And sure as hell, hang on to the oh-shi* bar...
Ingredients:
Costco's Sweet Mesquite seasoning which will be your dry rub
10 lb pork shoulder or butt
I know. Hard right? I think the key is to unpack the pork, trim the fat, dry it off with paper towels and liberally cover it with the Sweet Mesquite seasoning which acts like a dry rub in lieu of making a dry rub from scratch.
I put this pork in a large Creuset, lid on and let the pork come to room temperature. I do this overnight, leaving the pot covered in the oven over night. I will turn on the oven in the morning while I'm making my coffee and just let it slow cook for 4-6 hours. No juices are necessary because this pork will release it's own awesome juices during the slow baking process.
Bake:
Bake the pork at 250 degrees for at least 4 hours.
At that point, I usually remove the lid and bake for another 2 hours or so until it just falls apart. Keep an eye on the juices. The last one I did, I got busy with other things and the juices had caramelized but were not burnt. This was really good but I kinda wished I had left just a little of the juices in there. Either way it was really awesome and it had plenty of crunchy, caramelized crispy edges while still being very tender.
Just use a couple of forks to pull or shred the pork and either serve it the way I do, with large baked russet potatoes for stuffed baked potatoes or with tortillas, salsa, sour cream, guacamole and cheese. Either way, it rocks.
I also reserve bacon grease and will gently fry up some of the pulled pork, sweet onions and cilantro that I will serve with eggs for breakfast tacos in the morning.
This also makes a mean enchilada or burrito so get creative and use it for whatever floats your boat. Chile rellenos could also be in order, so I may just break out that recipe for later when my Scrabble buddy comes a-callin'. This time I won't let him beat me so easily...
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