Pork shoulder is a delicious piece of meat that can be made into various delectable dishes by grilling, roasting, or braising. Slow cooker pork shoulder recipes soften the meat and melt the fat, making it a cheap cut of meat. Pork shoulder roast recipes, however, are just as tasty.
You can prepare pulled pork sandwiches or grill pig skewers; a substantial Corsican bean soup flavored with pork shoulder will do the trick during the colder months. And if you’re seeking a new favorite taco, what do you do? For that, too, we have recipes for pork shoulder. Please continue reading for even more of our favorite pork shoulder cooking methods.
Best Recipes for Pork Shoulder
Garlicky Roast Pork Shoulder
Because he marinates the pork in lime and orange juices, as well as lots of garlic, before roasting it until the meat is caramelized and crispy, chef Jose Enrique’s rendition of the Puerto Rican traditional pernil asado is especially tasty. It can be cut, minced, or pulled into big chunks for serving. It is understandable why pernil is a beloved Christmas dish that is perfect for gatherings with family.
Slow-Cooker Pork Shoulder With Brown Sugar & Balsamic Glaze
Let’s be honest with each other for a moment and acknowledge this fact. If you’ve ever prepared boneless pork shoulder, you’ve undoubtedly done it on game day in a slow cooker or an Instant Pot. You took some tender potato buns, spread some barbecue sauce on some succulent shredded pork, piled it as high as you could, and then turned on the game. This recipe is a little more refined variation; instead of using barbecue sauce, it calls for brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, ground sage, and mustard powder, resulting in a pulled pork dish sweeter and more organized.
Mojo-Marinated Pork Shoulder
Roy Choi marinates his pork shoulder in a potent mixture of herbs, lemon, and garlic for a whole night before roasting it to perfection. Choi advises chilling the roasted pork first if you plan to use it for sandwiches because it will be simpler to slice.
Cold Saimin salad with Ginger Grilled Pork
This dish for cold ramen noodle salad in the Hawaiian style is topped with slices of savory pork shoulder that has been fried until it is crispy, crunchy bean sprouts; supple egg ribbons, shredded nori, and slices of Japanese cucumber that has been pickled. The dish is brought together with a refreshing dressing consisting of dashi, rice wine vinegar, and sake. It is perfect as a meaty side dish at a picnic or as a light and refreshing meal. Suppose you cannot obtain saimin noodles; Hawaiian wheat noodles are typically served in broth (similar to ramen). In that case, you can either hunt for dried ramen noodles in Asian grocery stores or use the noodles that come in three individual packets of instant ramen.
Wine-Braised Pork with Chestnuts and Sweet Potatoes
After searing the pork shoulder to achieve a fantastic crust, legendary chef Jacques Pépin braises it slowly with stock, wine, chestnuts, and sweet potatoes until it is meltingly soft.
Frijoles con Puerco
The charred onion and garlic, in addition to the dried epazote, a Mexican herb with overtones of camphor, mint, and citrus, provide the Yucatecan-influenced black beans with pork by Chef Jorge Guzman an additional layer of flavor depth.
Pork-and-Apple Bedfordshire Clangers
Sam Jacobson delivers these traditional spiced half-and-half pastries from eastern England to the Stargazy bakeshop in Philadelphia. These half-and-half pastries include either a sausage roll or a fruit pie. A fun fact is that the people who live in Bedfordshire are known as “Clangers” after this unique combination of sweet and salty flavors.
Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Barbecue Sauce
This pork shoulder, which is slow-cooked until it is soft and has a robust flavor, is seasoned with garlic that has been roasted. You can make the ultimate sandwich by shredding the meat and topping it with barbecue sauce, coleslaw, and a spicy habanero vinaigrette.
Spicy Coconut Vinegar–Braised Pork (Tatemado de Colima)
In the sticky, tropical heat of Colima, Mexico, a drink called tuba, prepared from the coconut palm tree sap, is typically served. Colima is known as Mexico’s city of palms. Fermented tuba is then mixed with fruity coconut vinegar produced by the locals, which is used to braise pigs. The famed Tate-made de Colima from this state is so delicious that it might topple your passion for carnitas as your favorite dish from this region. The richness of the pork is cut through by the vinegar, chilies, and garlic, which ultimately results in the pork being extremely soft. Like many other Mexican braises, the flavor of this rendition, which was created by Javier Cabral and Paola Briseo González, is at its peak the day after it is made. This makes it an ideal option for large gatherings celebrating special occasions.
Mtsvadi (Grilled Pork Skewers with Pomegranate and Onions)
These grilled meat skewers come from Georgia and are called mtsvadi. They are made from well-marbled pork shoulder mixed with raw onions and finished with freshly squeezed pomegranate juice. You’ll get sizzling, juicy meat with plenty of crispy bits if you don’t remove the fat before cooking. In Georgia, the skewers are frequently roasted over the coals of grape vines when prepared for consumption. Tkemali, a delightfully sour plum sauce, is traditionally what they are served with when guests order them. If you want to have a dinner party in the style of Georgia, serve these kebabs alongside khachapuri, eggplant, and walnut rolls. Alternatively, you might throw a summer barbeque, including these kebabs.
Portuguese Braised Pork and Clams
A staple dish along the coast of Portugal is a straightforward braise like this one. Because it has clams from the ocean and pork from the mountains in the area, it reflects the geography of Portugal and its culinary traditions. Its garlicky soup is delicious with crusty bread and dry Portuguese wine.
Corsican Bean Soup with Greens and Pork
This warming soup may be pleasant, but despite its abundance of substantial winter veggies, it is not heavy. Dried beans are the secret to the satisfying richness of the broth. If you wish to use canned beans to save time but still get the delicious richness of the broth, toss them in at the very end of the cooking process.
How to Cook a Roast from the Pork Shoulder?
A chef mentioned that the ideal temperature for cooking meat is close to the temperature it reaches when it is ready to be served.
Even though I don’t think that’s always the case (flame-kissed steaks and burgers, anyone? ), when I thought about it in terms of a big tough hunk of meat, like this boneless pork shoulder roast, which requires low and slow cooking to go from being impossible to tender, it made nice sense. You cannot expect any success by rushing the process; instead, the temperature should be kept low, and the time should be extended.
How to Slow Cook Pork in the Oven?
When you slow cook a pork shoulder in the oven, whether you leave the bone in or take it out, you have a lot of flexibility, which is a wonderful thing to have when entertaining guests. The roast might withstand an additional hour or two of cooking time at this low temperature without suffering any degradation in quality. As a result, it can be placed on the table in a matter of seconds whenever everyone is ready to eat.
Fat Side Up and Down?
This recipe calls for boneless pork shoulder, which is easier to cut. You can use bone-in pork shoulder instead of boneless pork shoulder if you choose since it will take about the same amount of time to cook and will be just as easy to cut.
The directions state that the fatty side should be facing down in the pan, and while this does provide the opportunity for a lovely crust to form on the top, it is ultimately irrelevant. Some people prefer to leave the layer of fat on top, which acts as a basting for the pig as it cooks but results in a less crispy surface. It’s your decision, and you can’t go wrong with it.
Leftovers are fantastic and should be used whenever possible when serving pork shoulder roast. This ingredient is so versatile that it may be used to make delicious quesadillas, enchiladas, burritos, soups, stews, sandwiches, etc.
How to Cut Pork Shoulder for Cooking?
The pig shoulder and the picnic shoulder are the other two cuts of pork typically required in a recipe for slow-cooked shredded pork. You may find these cuts of pork in most recipes. The two pieces are indistinguishable; the only difference is that one is known as “pork butt” and the other as “Boston butt.” It is common to practice selling pork picnic shoulder with the bone and skin still attached, both of which contribute to the increased desirability of this cut. When making roasted pork shoulder, the skin becomes quite crispy, and the bone helps to keep the meat from drying out, which is necessary when cooking the pork for a considerable amount of time.
Conclusion
Pork shoulder is a delicious piece of meat. The people of Bedfordshire, England, are known as “Clangers” after their unique combination of sweet and salty flavors. This pork shoulder, which is slow-cooked until it is soft and has a robust flavor, is seasoned with garlic that has been roasted. The richness of the pork is cut through by the vinegar, chilies, and garlic, which ultimately results in the pork being extremely soft.
To Cook, a Pork Shoulder Roast is low and slow to go from the temperature it reaches when it is ready to be served. When you slow cook a pork shoulder in the oven, you have a lot of flexibility whether you leave the bone in or take it out. The roast might withstand an additional hour or two of cooking time at this low temperature without suffering any degradation in quality. You can use a bone-in pork shoulder instead of a boneless one.
