Pork shoulder roast ideas [Cooking]
2011 Jan 12
the only answer here is to smoke them! see my write up posted awhile back:
Forum - monty's BBQ (v3) - pork butt
re: fat content - pork butt should be fairly well marbled but it has lots of connective tissue, so you want to cook it low and slow.
what internal temperature are you cooking to? i bring the internal temperature of pork butts to 190F+ so they basically fall apart and can be pulled easily. picnic roasts are a little less fatty so i tend to pull off much earlier and slice them, instead of pulling.
Forum - monty's BBQ (v3) - pork butt
re: fat content - pork butt should be fairly well marbled but it has lots of connective tissue, so you want to cook it low and slow.
what internal temperature are you cooking to? i bring the internal temperature of pork butts to 190F+ so they basically fall apart and can be pulled easily. picnic roasts are a little less fatty so i tend to pull off much earlier and slice them, instead of pulling.
2011 Jan 12
I echo Monty's comments. You can find "picnic hams" but don't confuse those with real hams. The picnic and butt come from the front shoulder. A real ham comes from the back legs (bum - not to be confused with butt). Real hams have lots of outer fat - the butt/picnic seems to have much less, or at least its usually packaged that way.
2011 Jan 12
FWIW
For an oven roast method, I've used this recipe a couple times
www.jamieoliver.com
and the family loves it.
It is a very, basic, simple recipe.
For an oven roast method, I've used this recipe a couple times
www.jamieoliver.com
and the family loves it.
It is a very, basic, simple recipe.
2011 Jan 12
Hmmm....
Rub with coriander, salt and pepper and roast with some peeled potatoes on top of a bed of sauerkraut and some sliced onion
Porchetta style - rub with fennel seeds, rosemary, thyme, chile, garlic, salt and pepper and then roast in the oven
Braise with garlic, oregano, chiles, achiote, onion and cumin - shred and make tacos with cilantro and diced white onion
Braise with carrot/onion/celery/thyme, let it cool, shred and make classic rillettes.
Pseudo-feijoada - dice it into large chunks, brown in a casserole dish and then braise with black beans, onion and garlic...or something similar with white beans for a pseudo-cassoulet.
I'll see if I can think of more ideas.
Rub with coriander, salt and pepper and roast with some peeled potatoes on top of a bed of sauerkraut and some sliced onion
Porchetta style - rub with fennel seeds, rosemary, thyme, chile, garlic, salt and pepper and then roast in the oven
Braise with garlic, oregano, chiles, achiote, onion and cumin - shred and make tacos with cilantro and diced white onion
Braise with carrot/onion/celery/thyme, let it cool, shred and make classic rillettes.
Pseudo-feijoada - dice it into large chunks, brown in a casserole dish and then braise with black beans, onion and garlic...or something similar with white beans for a pseudo-cassoulet.
I'll see if I can think of more ideas.
2011 Jan 12
I love the beer-braised on in the Les Halles cookbook, AKA palette de porc à la bière. I've made it and loved it immensely.
Don't have the book in front of me, but I believe that this one here is an accurate copy-and-paste jobbie from Internet:
4 to 6 lb pork shoulder, bone in
salt and pepper
4 tbsp olive oil (not extra virgin: just straight ol' higher-smoke-point olive oil.)
2 tbsp butter
2 small onions
2 carrots
4 garlic cloves
2 tbsp flour
1/4 cup cider vinegar
12 oz beer
1 cup chicken stock
4 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp breadcrumbs
Season the pork and sear in 2 tbsp of oil and 2 tbsp butter. Discard the fat and add the remaining oil. Saute the vegetables until soft and slightly caramelised. Add flour, cook 2 minutes. Stir in vinegar and beer and reduce by half, then add teh chicken stock and bring to a boil. Return pork to the pot and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for two hours or so.
Preheat oven to 450F. Remove the pork from the pot and place on baking sheet. Brush with half the mustard, then press the breadcrumbs on. Brown for 15 minutes, then allow to rest for 5
Strain the cooking liquid into a sauce pan. Simmer about 15 minutes, check seasoning. Remove from heat, whisk in mustard, and serve with the sliced pork.
Don't have the book in front of me, but I believe that this one here is an accurate copy-and-paste jobbie from Internet:
4 to 6 lb pork shoulder, bone in
salt and pepper
4 tbsp olive oil (not extra virgin: just straight ol' higher-smoke-point olive oil.)
2 tbsp butter
2 small onions
2 carrots
4 garlic cloves
2 tbsp flour
1/4 cup cider vinegar
12 oz beer
1 cup chicken stock
4 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp breadcrumbs
Season the pork and sear in 2 tbsp of oil and 2 tbsp butter. Discard the fat and add the remaining oil. Saute the vegetables until soft and slightly caramelised. Add flour, cook 2 minutes. Stir in vinegar and beer and reduce by half, then add teh chicken stock and bring to a boil. Return pork to the pot and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for two hours or so.
Preheat oven to 450F. Remove the pork from the pot and place on baking sheet. Brush with half the mustard, then press the breadcrumbs on. Brown for 15 minutes, then allow to rest for 5
Strain the cooking liquid into a sauce pan. Simmer about 15 minutes, check seasoning. Remove from heat, whisk in mustard, and serve with the sliced pork.
2011 Jan 13
monty, yep our pork butts are well marbled, and as for my cooking thermometer, it's lousy. So that's why I look for clear juices, I do the same with our chickens. Maybe for Christmas next year I'll splurge and get a cooking thermometer that works!
sourdough, having raised and then seen enough pigs hanging, I've got a pretty good idea of what cut comes from where now. The biggest difficulty I have is that some butchers and cookbooks use different terms for the same cuts. To me, the term 'picnic' is one of the most confusing ones. Sometimes I wonder if it is more about describing a method of how the meat is cut, rather than the location on the pigs that it is cut from?
And the rest of you that offered ideas, I'll be looking up those recipes and I see some excellent pork shoulder nights in my families future! Yum!!
sourdough, having raised and then seen enough pigs hanging, I've got a pretty good idea of what cut comes from where now. The biggest difficulty I have is that some butchers and cookbooks use different terms for the same cuts. To me, the term 'picnic' is one of the most confusing ones. Sometimes I wonder if it is more about describing a method of how the meat is cut, rather than the location on the pigs that it is cut from?
And the rest of you that offered ideas, I'll be looking up those recipes and I see some excellent pork shoulder nights in my families future! Yum!!
2011 Jan 14
Here's one I have used from cooks illustrated. I found that T&T was a good source for the bone-in pork at reasonable cost.
Slow-Roasted Pork Shoulder with Cherry Sauce
Serves 8 to 12. Published September 1, 2010. From Cook's Illustrated.
We prefer natural to enhanced pork (pork that has been injected with a salt solution to increase moistness and flavor), though both will work in this recipe. Add more water to the roasting pan as necessary during the last hours of cooking to prevent the fond from burning. Serve the pork with the accompanying cherry sauce or peach sauce or with a sweet-tart chutney.
Ingredients
Pork Roast
1 bone-in pork butt , 6 to 8 pounds (see note)
1/3 cup kosher salt
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
ground black pepper
Cherry Sauce
10 ounces fresh or frozen pitted cherries
2 cups red wine
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 cup ruby port
Instructions
1.
1. FOR THE ROAST: Using sharp knife, cut slits 1 inch apart in crosshatch pattern in fat cap of roast, being careful not to cut into meat. Combine salt and brown sugar in medium bowl. Rub salt mixture over entire pork shoulder and into slits. Wrap roast tightly in double layer of plastic wrap, place on rimmed baking sheet, and refrigerate at least 12 and up to 24 hours.
2.
2. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Unwrap roast and brush off any excess salt mixture from surface. Season roast with pepper. Transfer roast to V-rack coated with nonstick cooking spray set in large roasting pan and add 1 quart water to roasting pan.
3.
3. Cook roast, basting twice during cooking, until meat is extremely tender and instant-read thermometer inserted into roast near but not touching bone registers 190 degrees, 5 to 6 hours. Transfer roast to carving board and let rest, loosely tented with foil, 1 hour. Transfer liquid in roasting pan to fat separator and let stand 5 minutes. Pour off ¼ cup jus; discard fat and reserve remaining jus for another use.
4.
4. FOR THE SAUCE: Bring cherries, wine, granulated sugar, ¼ cup vinegar, ¼ cup defatted jus, and ruby port to simmer in small saucepan; cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 30 minutes. Stir in remaining tablespoon vinegar. Cover and keep warm.
5.
5. Using sharp paring knife, cut around inverted T-shaped bone until it can be pulled free from roast (use clean kitchen towel to grasp bone). Using serrated knife, slice roast. Serve, passing sauce separately.
OVERNIGHT SALTY-SWEET RUB
We rub our roast with a mixture of salt and sugar and let it rest overnight. The salt enhances juiciness and seasons the meat throughout, while the sugar caramelizes to create a crackling-crisp, salty-sweet crust.
LOW OVEN
Just like in a pot roast, cooking the pork low and slow (325 degrees for 5 to 6 hours) pushes the meat well beyond its “done” mark into the 190-degree range, encouraging intramuscular fat to melt, collagen to break down and tenderize the meat, and the fat cap to render and crisp.
Cooking Class
Bone-In Pork Butt: Fatty, Moist, Flavorful
Instead of the lean, center-cut loin, our choice for roasting is pork butt (also known as Boston butt). This shoulder roast packs plenty of intramuscular fat that melts and bastes the meat during cooking, and it’s available with or without the bone. We prefer bone-in for two reasons: First, bone conducts heat poorly and, in effect, acts as an insulator against heat. This means that the meat surrounding it stays cooler and the roast cooks at a slower, gentler pace. Second, bones have a large percentage of the meat’s connective tissue attached to them, which eventually breaks down to gelatin and helps the roast retain moisture.
Slow-Roasted Pork Shoulder with Cherry Sauce
Serves 8 to 12. Published September 1, 2010. From Cook's Illustrated.
We prefer natural to enhanced pork (pork that has been injected with a salt solution to increase moistness and flavor), though both will work in this recipe. Add more water to the roasting pan as necessary during the last hours of cooking to prevent the fond from burning. Serve the pork with the accompanying cherry sauce or peach sauce or with a sweet-tart chutney.
Ingredients
Pork Roast
1 bone-in pork butt , 6 to 8 pounds (see note)
1/3 cup kosher salt
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
ground black pepper
Cherry Sauce
10 ounces fresh or frozen pitted cherries
2 cups red wine
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 cup ruby port
Instructions
1.
1. FOR THE ROAST: Using sharp knife, cut slits 1 inch apart in crosshatch pattern in fat cap of roast, being careful not to cut into meat. Combine salt and brown sugar in medium bowl. Rub salt mixture over entire pork shoulder and into slits. Wrap roast tightly in double layer of plastic wrap, place on rimmed baking sheet, and refrigerate at least 12 and up to 24 hours.
2.
2. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Unwrap roast and brush off any excess salt mixture from surface. Season roast with pepper. Transfer roast to V-rack coated with nonstick cooking spray set in large roasting pan and add 1 quart water to roasting pan.
3.
3. Cook roast, basting twice during cooking, until meat is extremely tender and instant-read thermometer inserted into roast near but not touching bone registers 190 degrees, 5 to 6 hours. Transfer roast to carving board and let rest, loosely tented with foil, 1 hour. Transfer liquid in roasting pan to fat separator and let stand 5 minutes. Pour off ¼ cup jus; discard fat and reserve remaining jus for another use.
4.
4. FOR THE SAUCE: Bring cherries, wine, granulated sugar, ¼ cup vinegar, ¼ cup defatted jus, and ruby port to simmer in small saucepan; cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 30 minutes. Stir in remaining tablespoon vinegar. Cover and keep warm.
5.
5. Using sharp paring knife, cut around inverted T-shaped bone until it can be pulled free from roast (use clean kitchen towel to grasp bone). Using serrated knife, slice roast. Serve, passing sauce separately.
OVERNIGHT SALTY-SWEET RUB
We rub our roast with a mixture of salt and sugar and let it rest overnight. The salt enhances juiciness and seasons the meat throughout, while the sugar caramelizes to create a crackling-crisp, salty-sweet crust.
LOW OVEN
Just like in a pot roast, cooking the pork low and slow (325 degrees for 5 to 6 hours) pushes the meat well beyond its “done” mark into the 190-degree range, encouraging intramuscular fat to melt, collagen to break down and tenderize the meat, and the fat cap to render and crisp.
Cooking Class
Bone-In Pork Butt: Fatty, Moist, Flavorful
Instead of the lean, center-cut loin, our choice for roasting is pork butt (also known as Boston butt). This shoulder roast packs plenty of intramuscular fat that melts and bastes the meat during cooking, and it’s available with or without the bone. We prefer bone-in for two reasons: First, bone conducts heat poorly and, in effect, acts as an insulator against heat. This means that the meat surrounding it stays cooler and the roast cooks at a slower, gentler pace. Second, bones have a large percentage of the meat’s connective tissue attached to them, which eventually breaks down to gelatin and helps the roast retain moisture.
2011 Jan 14
I think the idea for me now is that I've got half-a-bushel of apples in my basement that need to be eaten, so I'll cut/core/peel them and then microwave them on the veg setting which gives me the easiest applesauce in the world.
Then, no matter what I manage to do with a good piece of pork, I'm set.
Thanks for the ideas.
Then, no matter what I manage to do with a good piece of pork, I'm set.
Thanks for the ideas.
organicgirl
Firstly, I need some ideas for pork shoulder. Anyone have some ideas or recipes they can share?
Secondly, in the "cracklin's" post someone (Rizak I think) mentioned that shoulder is a nice fatty cut. Seems to me like our pork shoulders are much more lean compared to our other roasts, so I always think slow cooking recipes. Anyone have any thoughts on that?
Thanks!