Spork and Skewer

Party food is tricky, especially when you're expecting a crowd. We try to opt for something informal, inexpensive, and tasty. That can be a tough bill to fill. Pulled pork sandwiches are a great answer. This fare is close to my heart because my in-laws hosted the grooms dinner for our wedding with a pig roast. The fun, casual vibe was perfect for our friends and family to socialize and celebrate the eve of our wedding. These sandwiches are reminiscent of that day. The root-beer pork is my method (tender, tangy, and crock pot friendly), and the smoked shoulder is my husband's version (we're talkin' low and slow). Try one; try them both. Which will you prefer?



















Root Beer Pork
*I prefer a crock pot method for this recipe. I tried it once on the stove top, and I ended up chiseling burnt sugar off the bottom of the pot. I probably should have kept a closer eye on my dinner. No such problems since; I heart crock pot.

You will need:

1 3-4 lb. bone-in pork shoulder
2 tablespoons BBQ seasoning
2 liters root beer (NOT diet)
BBQ sauce to serve
Hamburger buns to serve




Begin by rubbing the shoulder with the BBQ seasoning. Place in crock pot.






Next, pore in root beer. I used nearly the whole bottle.






Cover, and cook. Depending on the size of your roast, cooking times will vary. I set mine on high for 3 hours, and switched to low for an additional hour. The meat should be VERY tender. You should be able to fork-off a taste. Yum!


Well, hello there, Handsome. It's getting a little steamy in here.

This is optional, but I ladled some cooking liquid into a saucepan, brought it to a boil, and reduced to about half. I then added some BBQ sauce to mix-in with the pork once it was pulled. MMMmmm, root beery.



While your sauce reduces (if you chose to do that step), pull your pork. You can do this by hand. Yes, it's that tender. Or you can do with this with two forks (or two sporks, hehe). Shred it up to desired size pieces.





Mix in your sauce; return to the crock pot; call everyone to dinner, and dig-in. No matter how much you make, don't count on leftovers.Trust me.