As it happens, from time to time in the food blogging world, you run a cross a site that you really like. Well, Bill’s suppertimeblues.com is just that. Bill’s thing is about “Cooking Real Food…”. He focuses on dishes that are easy to prepare using locally sourced ingredients.
Us older food blogging guys decided to have a throw down of sorts. A cross-Atlantic challenge! Bill’s throw down (so to speak) is his famous Kansas City Style Pulled Pork along with his KC BBQ sauce. And Bill should be an expert as he hails from Kansas City, right in the center of the USA. This is a great recipe, we’ve already cooked it twice to adapt this US recipe to our Swedish ingredients. Not to worry, too hot or cold to fire up the old Barbie, this one is done in the oven “Slow and Low”. You’ll be amazed at how easy it is to prepare lovely pulled pork, so come in and have a read.
And, for Bill at Suppertime Blues, we sent him a Swedish classic, Orrholmens Salmon in Lobster Cream Sauce. I first tasted it at Birgitta’s (Eva’s mom) and have been hooked ever since. We’ll have a link to his post and the recipe below.
Bill’s Kansas City Style Pulled Pork
Jump to RecipeFor you guys in North America, just head on down to your market and get one of those big-boy pork shoulders or Boston Butt roasts. But, if cooking a whole shoulder or Boston Butt, cut it in half and double the ingredients. If your one of our readers Down Under, I believe it’s simply called pork shoulder. Here in Sweden we recommend using fläskkarré. The secret to this braise is the basting sauce and mostly the “slow and low” cooking method. The “slow” is the cooking time which is about 1.5 hours per pound (3.5 hours/kg). The “low” is your oven temperature which is 250° F (120° C). So, go ahead and put your rack in the lower part of the oven and set it at 250° F (120° C).
This is a super simple dish to cook. Get your pork, onion, garlic, brown sugar and vinegar. You’ll also need a half cup of water (not shown) and chili powder (Ancho in Sweden), paprika, cayenne and salt as well as pepper. The addition of liquid smoke is optional, but packs a load of flavor, so I recommend using it.
Now, get your nice heavy braising pot and get it heating on the stove. Toss in a splash of your favorite fat (I used goose fat, yum). When hot, brown your fläskkarré, Boston butt or shoulder pork roast well on all sides. This will take several minutes on each side. When browned, remove the roast to a plate, then toss the remaining ingredients except the Liquid Smoke (that comes later) into the pot you browned the pork in.
Give the mixture a good stir to mix. Place the browned pork roast back in your pot and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then spoon the mixture on the top of the pork, close the lid and place it in your preheated oven. After an hour in the oven, carefully remove the pot from the oven onto a trivet. Uncover and turn the roast over, being careful not to burn yourself. Spoon a good amount of the mixture over the pork. This is where you use to Liquid Smoke. Dribble 2 teaspoons of the smoke over the top of the roast, replace the cover and return to the oven. Set a timer for an hour, when it ring-a-dings, turn the pork again and baste with the mixture. Repeat this every hour you’re cooking, pouring the lovely juices over the roast.
When your cooking time is complete, remove the roast to a cutting board and let it cool just bit.
Next, using two forks pull (this is where the pulled comes in) the pork and shred it to your preference. If you’re not fond of the shredded effect, chop it on a cutting board to desired consistency.
Bill’s Kansas City BBQ Sauce
You can’t have pulled pork without BBQ sauce. Bill has kindly shared his favorite Kansas City style BBQ sauce recipe for us to enjoy. You’ll find the recipe right below the pulled pork recipe and just above the “Comment Section*”. If you’re pressed for time or can’t find the needed ingredients (see note section in recipe), any high-quality BBQ sauce will work. We used Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce for our first test cook on this recipe and it worked just fine.
* Comment Section? Where you can share your thoughts on the post with us. We’d love to know what you think.
So, pile the pulled pork onto your best bun, add your favorite condiments, drizzle on some more BBQ sauce and tuck in! Are there other ways to eat pulled pork? Sure, loaded on a baked sweet or regular potato, Mexican quesadilla, nachos, toast or an omelet and that’s just a start.
For those of us living in Scandinavia, grab some Tunnbröd and make a Tunnbrödsrulle. For mine, I used some steaming hot mashed potatoes, topped with Bill’s pulled pork with some pickled red onions and sweet pickles. Instead of BBQ sauce, I used a mixture of half BBQ sauce and crème fraiche, drizzled on top. It was very tasty!
No matter if you pull it, chopped it, slice it or spoon it into a bun, potato, a taco or a Tunnbrödsrulle, Bill’s Kansas City Pulled Pork is a fine example of American pulled pork!
Be sure to check out Bill at www.suppertimeblues.com and his take on his challenge from us. A Swedish classic, Orrholmens Salmon in Lobster Cream Sauce.
Look out for those fingers dad, I’m tucking into this Kansas City Pork!!!!
“Bill’s Kansas City Pulled Pork” recipe has been tasted and tested by Chloe and eagerly approved for dog (cut the sauce) and human consumption. Chloe has given this recipe her 5+ – paw rating 🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾+
Thanks so much for reading. And don’t forget to check out Orrholmens Salmon in Lobster Cream Sauce post over at Suppertime Blues.
Bill's Kansas City-style Pulled Pork
A great simple “Slow and Low” oven pulled pork recipe. You’ll be amazed at how easy it is to prepare lovely pulled pork.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs pork shoulder, Boston or fläskkarré, see note 1
- 1 large onion thinly-sliced
- 1/3 cup (3/4 dl) Brown sugar or Brun Farin Farinsocker (Sweden).
- 1/3 cup (3/4 dl) Apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon (1 msk) Minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon (1 msk) paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon (1/2 tsk) Chili powder or Ancho chili peppar (Sweden)
- 1/2 teaspoon (1/2 tsk) Cayenne
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt + a bit or 1 msk of Flingsalt (Sweden) see method
- 1 teaspoon (1 tsk) black pepper + a bit see method
- 2 tsp (2 tsk) Liquid Smoke (optional)
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 250° F (120 C°).
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Trim the meat to remove any large chunks of fat. A reasonable amount of the fat will dissolve with cooking.
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Sear and brown the meat several minutes on each side in a Dutch oven. Remove and set aside.
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Everything except the meat and Liquid Smoke into the Dutch oven and stir well.
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Place the trimmed meat atop the mix and spoon the mix over the meat until well-basted.
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Sprinkle the meat with salt and pepper (this is the + a bit).
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Braise, covered, in the oven for 1.5 hours per pound. After each full hour, turn the meat and re-baste with the mix.
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(Optional) If you want "smoked" pork, after the first hour spoon 2 teaspoons of liquid smoke over the meat. Bill recommends Wright's Original.
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Once done and tender (3 hours for 2 pounds, for example), on a cutting board use 2 forks to tear the meat into bite-sized shreds. This is the "pulled" part. Discard any remaining connective tissue, fat, or any other parts you don't want to eat.
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Serve on white bread, hamburger buns, Kaiser rolls, or potato rolls with as much bbq sauce (see next recipe) as you prefer. Bill likes a few dill pickle chips as well, but that's me.
Recipe Notes
Please note that the quantities can be changed by entering the amount you wish in the quantity indicator. However, the metric will not change.
- For this recipe we use a small (2 pounds) pork shoulder, perfect for two. When the kids or friends are over, double it to 4+ pounds. But, split that into two 2+ pound pieces and separate them a couple of inches in the pot so the time's the same. Rule of thumb is 250° F (120° C) for 1.5 hours per pound (same as high on most slow cookers). As for the cut of pork, for you guys in North America just head on down to your market and get one of those big boy pork shoulders or Boston Butt roast. But, if cooking them whole don't forget to cut it in half and double the ingredients. If you're one of our reader Down Under, I believe it's simply called pork shoulder. Here in Sweden we recommend using fläskkarré.
Bill's KC BBQ Sauce
Kansas City is known for its combination of tomatoes, molasses, honey, vinegar, and spices for a tangy jar of wonderful. This is Bill's take, not too sweet, not to spicy and vaguely mirrors Bill's pork shoulder spices.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces tomato sauce or passata (in Sweden), see note 1.
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup white vinegar or in Sweden use cider vinegar, see note 2.
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup unsulphured molasses or Muscovado sirap in Sweden, see note 3.
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder or Ancho chili peppar in Sweden, see note 4.
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt + more to taste if desired
Instructions
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Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over medium and heat gently. Reduce the mixture by half (takes about 15-20 minutes or about an hour when using passata).
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Adjust seasoning if needed.
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Refrigerate after using. Use or discard within a couple of weeks.
Recipe Notes
Please note that the quantities can be changed by entering the amount you wish in the quantity indicator. However, the metric will not change.
For our Swedish readers, I've included the suggested substitutes for the USA ingredients in the recipe.
- Tomato Sauce in the USA is cooked and processed tomatoes, usually with herbs. It is not common to find tomato sauce in Sweden, so we’re suggesting using passata. One can use Swedish tomato puree, but it’s not as tasty. When using passata or puree you must cook the sauce about twice as long (about an hour) to cook down the tomatoes.
- White vinegar as noted in the recipe is not Ättika! In Sweden substitute cider vinegar.
- In Sweden there is not a direct duplicate to "unsulphured molasses"(Black Treacle in the UK). The best substitute I was able to find is Muscovado sirap, it's close, but lacks the depth of molasses.
- American chili powder is different than Swedish Chili peppar, Ancho chili pepper is closer and the best substitute.
Mimi says
Ooohhh, I love your idea for the tgunnbrod….. and mixing the BBQ sauce with creme fraiche!!! What a fabulous meal that must have been!. I’d never experienced pulled pork until I moved to Texas. That was also where I had my first experience with BBQ. I never buy BBQ sauce because they’re typically way too sweet, or vinegary, or both! Can’t wait to check out your salmon!
Ron says
Mimi – Thanks for stopping buy. Well having been born and raised in Texas, I too I’m picky about my sauce as well as BBQ.
You know, if you can’t Tunnbröd, I think any soft flatbread will work. Tunnbrödsrulle is a great meal one can eat with their hands. In Sweden is common to have it with two Swedish varmkorvar (wieners) mashed potatoes, sweet relish, onion and topped with honey mustard and catsup. Do try the Salmon dish, it so good.
Eha says
Ron – what a delight! Well, all the way from Sweden you have made me want to buy a pork shoulder in next week’s on-line shop! Want to try this here-and-now !! Taking the amount of meat into account I would have thought more ‘chilli’ would be required . . . learning . . . Also want to try Bill’s Bbq sauce – normally use but little and rarely make my own:. This early morning of Australia Day I am somewhat enchanted that you in Southern Sweden, Bill In Kansas and I all the way down south of Sydney, Australia should be having this delightful exchange . . . thanks guys!!! [Oh Chloe, you were born to be lucky . . . .!]
Ron says
Didn’t mention in the post, but this Pork dish freezes well after cooking. I’d freeze it with the juice and not shredded. We’ve tried it both ways and found freezing whole pieces to be better.
For me that’s what makes blogging fun is when people connect from different place all over the globe. I must say, once you make your own BBQ sauce you’ll likely not buy store bought again (except Sweet Baby Ray’s). Hopefully you had a wonderful and cooler Australia National Day.
Chloe says
Oh Ms Eha, I’m lucky indeed. I’m spoiled rotten every day. I’ve been eating pulled pork for days, yum.
Bill says
I’m so glad you guys enjoyed the BBQ — especially Chloe, I know her’s is the most discerning palate. Our food preserves and continues our cultures, creates memories, gets blended by geography, and we carry it around with us wherever we go. It doesn’t get much better than that. I look forward to next time.
Chloe says
Mr Bill – my discerning palate enjoyed every bite and thanks for considering my primal culinary needs….
Kath says
Looks great, Ron! Don’t you love how easy it is to cook a pork roast “low and slow” in the oven? I think pulled pork is almost better on a cold winter night than it is when it has been barbecued on a summer day.
Ron says
Totally agree, it’s so simple and has a great flavor. I’ve had pulled pork many ways and I actually prefer the oven method. As for pulling, I must confess, I much preferred chopped pork. Thanks for taking time to read and comment. I hope you had a chance to click on the link to Summertime Blues and see how they made and liked the Swedish classic Orrholmens Laxgryta that we sent over to for their through down.
Eva Smith says
The pulled pork was delicious and the pork fork a Christmas gift from the Queen of Tasting aka Chloe.
Karen Burns-Booth says
I’m a huge fan of American pulled pork and this recipe ticks all the taste boxes for me! When I lived in the US many moons ago, I remember my friend’s mother made the most amazing pulled pork as well as sticky BBQ ribs. Saved to try soon!
Ron says
Thanks so much for dropping by. I’m glad it caught your eye and I do hope you and your’s enjoy it as much as we do.
Jeff says
Like Mimi, I also love the idea of mixing BBQ sauce with crème fraiche. Brilliant!
Ron says
Thanks! I’d like to take credit for the BBQ sauce with crème fraiche mixing, but a chef in Stockholm came up with the idea..