I love pork shoulder for its versatility and fattiness. Back when we had a functioning smoker, i would often smoke a whole shoulder/butt for hours, then finish in the oven, and finally shred it with two big silver forks. I generally forgo any saucing, as the rub I use is aMAZing. I way up the fennel seed amount, bc I adore them.
It’s also great for carnitas, and I always use pork shoulder chops IF I can find them for grilling. “Country-style ribs” are perfect for souvlaki and won’t dry out like leaner cuts that seem far more prevalent, at least in our local supermarkets.
I wonder if one could make a Mississippi roast with pork butt vs. beef chuck? I’m tempted to try with a smaller butt. Have any of my fellow HOs tried this?
Also, would love to hear of other applications you like for this cut. Chili? Pot roast?
Cuban Roast Pork is a regular ar my house. Marinated in homemade mojo (not store-bought!) for a couple of days, then low and slow til it falls apart.
Shredded, then browned kinda like carnitas.
Over black beans and rice (yellow or white), shoveled onto warm Cuban bread with yellow mustard and pickles. .. it’s what’s for dinner (or lunch) in much of Florida any day.
I also forgot I once made the bo ssam, not realizing until much too late that the butt I had was skinless. D’oh! All that crackly skin that wasn’t there.
Tasted good anyway, but I’m not sure I’d want to make it again. Such a production!
I really only use butts for two things. I smoke bone-in butts for pulling. I used to shred the butts with a set of those bear claws that Alton Brown hates, but I learned that it’s even easier to use my KA with the paddle to break the chunks into shreds. I can then make a lot of things with the pulled pork. Sandwiches, of course. Pulled pork spaghetti. Fake carnitas for tacos, tostadas, enchiladas, etc. I’ll use a pound or so to make a quick posole (again, cheating by using canned chile sauce, either red or green).
The other butt application is char siu. I used to buy boneless butts for this, but in the last few years I’ve gotten even lazier and now just buy the boneless country-style ribs from Costco. Two packages (about 9 lbs, IIRC) are a decent batch - which I also do in the smoker - and then I wrap and freeze them individually for later use.
Char Siu
½ C hoisin sauce
2 C sugar
½ to 1 C shoyu
½ C ketchup
¼ C minced garlic
8-10 lbs pork butt, cut into strips about 1½-2"x1½-2"x 5" long (or whatever the width of your butt is, or just buy boneless country-style ribs)
Combine first five ingredients to make a smooth marinade. Put pork strips in a large container and pour marinade over, making sure all surfaces are slathered. Marinate for at least three hours or overnight. Prepare smoker for indirect heat and cook at 250-275F for 3-4 hours using a little bit of hardwood for light smoke. Alternately, lay on broiling pan and cook in the oven at 350F for 35-35 minutes.
ETA: If you want to replicate how it’s made in a restaurant, add pink salt to the marinade. Move your oven rack to the highest place, then use some metal “s” hooks to suspend the strips vertically over a pan of water. Be careful, though. This way is not only very messy, but also a very good way to burn yourself when you’re hanging the pork or retrieving it from the oven. The water pan is mostly to make cleanup easier, but it also keeps the cooking environment more humid so the meat doesn’t dry out as much.
I love the old adage that “Pork feeds the world”.
The main uses of pork butts at the wabi house are for slow roasted pork with a mushroom gravy, smoked to make pulled pork using a Chris Schlesinger “The Thrill of the Grill” rub, Hawaiian style Kalua pork, and making carnitas using Kenji’s sous vide carnitas recipe from Serious Eats.
Real carnitas are braised in lard. I’m just using pulled pork which I heat in a pan and season with chile powder, cumin, garlic, Mexican oregano, and salt.
Sadly, no sous-vide apparatus in this household, and no plans to get one.
I’ll have a look-see at the ingredients to compare with mine, a recipe @mariacarmen shared with my Facebook WFD group many years ago. It’s a group favorite.
No, absolutely not. I find that the smoker makes a nice smoke ring that makes the end result look like restaurant char siu. You could also use pink salt to get the same effect.
Love this Chef Donald Link recipe. I always alter the gravy ingredients to make 1.5 times as much as its so dang delicious. Take the time to make that peanut butter colored roux; it makes the gravy. I also trim a lot of fat from the roast before beginning to avoid a pool of fat to deal with after the braise
Unfortunately, whole lamb shoulder is hard to come by here, even with our annual half lamb share. I could’ve sworn I told the butcher to leave the shoulder intact, but all we got were chops
I bet that bo ssam would be amazing with lamb shoulder.
When I get a pork butt I break it down into 2 to 3 pound chunk depending the size (usually about 10 lbs) and salt it overnight. Then I put the segments in vacuum bags with a quarter onion, slice of orange an a tiny chunk of cinnamon, seal and put in the freezer for use later. It can stay there for a long time but usually use it within 3-6 months.
When it’s time I sous vide the packet for 24 hours at 152f, or 12 hours at 165f. The packet then can go back in the frig or back in the freezer, or use immediately. Then I can do a number of things, crispy carnitas either finished in oven or pan, or use for chile verde. I also make a chile verde base that I freeze.
If the butt or parts of it are flat, I cut into strips like “boneless country ribs”, salt and season it with BBQ rub and vacuum seal for the freezer, or use it then. When it’s time, sous vide at 152f for 24 hours and sauce it with BBQ when it’s time.
The cooked bulk butt is any of these forms besides crispy carnitas is a versatile base of animal protein for general use. fried rice, add to beans, etc. The prep work saves time in the long run and convenient.
Side note, seeing lots of pork and pork butt around and on sale in supermarkeets given beef prices have risen. But it’s already inexpensive in a 10 lb chub. $1.99 regular price at US Chef Store and similar.
