How to Braise Pork Shoulder (Pulled Pork)

Mmmm...pork. Typically a pork shoulder doesn’t look too appetizing at the supermarket (but then what raw meat does?). It’s huge and fatty but very inexpensive. What’s it good for, you ask? One of my favourites: pulled pork. Ever have pulled pork and creamy cole slaw on a crusty bun? Try it, you won’t be disappointed.

The secret to great pulled pork is long and slow to tenderize the connective tissue that exists in the hardworking muscle. One tip, some ovens turn off automatically after a certain time, so watch it. I put mine in the oven after dinner one day and it turned off sometime in the middle of the night. With a tear in my eye, I had to throw that beautiful piece in the food waste.

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 200 F.

Step 2

Make your braising liquid. Finely dice some onion, carrots and celery and heat it up in the Dutch oven on the stove. Add a few tbsp. of canola oil. Once soft, add some minced garlic and heat briefly. Add your liquid (stock or tomatoes), then your acid (wine or beer). Add salt and pepper generously.

Now have some fun. Flavor it however you’d like. I like Worcestershire sauce and a little Dijon mustard in mine. If my 9-year-old were making it, he’d put in ketchup because that’s his favorite food. And, voila! There’s your braising liquid.

Step 3

Place the pork shoulder in the liquid. It should cover the bottom half only. Place it in the oven. The purpose of the low temperature is to avoid a boil. If it boils, the meat will become tough, so you want a gentle simmer. Leave it cooking for a long time. Like a really long time. The length of time depends, obviously, on the size of the shoulder. But, for example, 12 hours isn’t unheard of for a large one.

Step 4

Test for doneness by pulling a piece off. If it shreds off easily and is super tender, it’s done. The inside will absolutely be done if you’ve cooked it long, so you won’t have to worry about that. But if you’re nervous about that, make sure the internal temperature is about 190 – 200 F.

Step 5

Once it cools, shred it all off with a fork and store it in the braising liquid. You can freeze it in the liquid, too.