Slow Cooker Pork Shoulder Recipes

Steps:

• Place the pork shoulder into the ceramic bowl of a slow cooker. Pour enough water and white vinegar into the slow cooker to assure the pork is completely covered, maintaining a 2-to-1 ratio of vinegar to water. Add the salt. Put the ceramic bowl in the refrigerator and allow the pork to marinate at least 12 hours and up to 24 hours.
• Drain enough of the liquid from the ceramic bowl until about 1/2-inch of pork is left exposed. Add the onion to the remaining liquid. Season the exposed surface of the pork with the cumin, mustard, chili powder, and brown sugar. Place the bowl into the base of the slow cooker and cook on High until the pork is tender and falls apart easily, 8 to 10 hours.
• Carefully remove the pork to a cutting board; shred the meat into strands using a pair of forks. Remove and discard any excess fat.

Steps:

• Rinse the pork, place on a cutting board, pat dry with paper towels and rub in the salt and pepper. Set the pork in the bowl of a slow cooker, scatter the onion over the pork, sprinkle in the garlic and add the wine. Cook until the meat easily pulls apart with a fork, about 5 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
• Turn off the slow cooker and transfer the pork to a platter. Use two forks to shred the meat.
• If you don't have a slow cooker, you can braise the pork shoulder in a 325 degrees F oven for 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours.

Steps:

• Coarsely chop together the rosemary, sage and thyme, and transfer them to a small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil, and stir to combine.
• Score the fat cap of the pork shoulder in a crosshatch pattern, then rub it all over with 2 1/2 tablespoons salt and 2 teaspoons pepper.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil, and heat until shimmering. Add the pork, fat-side down, and brown it well, 3 to 4 minutes, then brown it all over, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the pork to a large plate.
• Add the wine, garlic and allspice to the pan, bring to a simmer and reduce by about half. Set aside.
• Put the carrots, celery, onions and bay leaves in the insert of a 7-quart slow cooker. Rub the herbed oil all over the pork, being sure to push some into all the natural divisions between muscles; place it on top of the vegetables, and pour in any collected juices. Add the reduced wine mixture and the chicken broth, cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
• Transfer the pork to a cutting board, and tent with foil. Transfer the vegetables to a serving platter with a slotted spoon. Discard the bay leaves, and tent the vegetables with foil. Pour the juices into a liquid measuring cup, and let them settle for about 10 minutes. The fat should rise to the surface; spoon off as much as you can, and discard. Pour the juices into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil.
• While the juices boil, make a cornstarch slurry: For every cup of juices, mix 1 teaspoon cornstarch into 1 tablespoon cold water until dissolved. Reduce the heat so the juices are simmering, whisk in the slurry and cook, whisking frequently, until the sauce has slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Season with salt if necessary.
• Slice the pork against the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices, and arrange on a large platter with the vegetables. Ladle some of the sauce on top. Season the meat with a pinch of salt, and garnish with the remaining 2 tablespoons parsley. Serve with egg noodles, and pass the remaining sauce.

Steps:

• Remove the fat from the pork shoulder (you can get your butcher to do this bit for you). Season the pork with salt and pepper then heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium to high heat. Brown the pork shoulder on all sides then transfer to a slow cooker. Add all the other ingredients, then cook on low for 6-8 hours until the meat pulls apart when pressed with two forks.
• Remove the meat, place on a plate and shred it with two forks. Remove the herbs from the sauce and squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins back into the pot. Put the meat back into its sauce for wonderfully tender and moist slow cooker pork. Serve as an alternative to your Sunday roast with roasted new potatoes, or with a big green salad, mustard and warmed baguettes.

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix the treacle, cider vinegar, paprika, cumin, mustard powder and chilli powder until smooth. Using a sharp knife, make deep slashes in the skin of the pork shoulder to cut through the skin and fat layer, but not the meat. Place the joint, skin-side down, in a large dish and rub the spice paste into the meat (not the fat). Turn skin-side, cover tightly with cling film and put in the fridge overnight, or for 24 hrs to give the pork maximum flavour.
• Heat oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2. Transfer the pork, skin-side up, to a deep roasting tin, rub 1 tbsp sea salt onto the skin and pour 500ml water into the bottom of the roasting tin. Cover tightly with foil and roast in the oven for 5 hrs.
• Remove the foil, turn up the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and cook for a further 1 hr 30 mins or until the pork is very tender and the skin has turned to crispy crackling.
• Once the pork is ready, take it out of the roasting tin, cover with foil and leave to rest. Pour the juices from the roasting tin into a jug and leave to separate. Pour off the fat layer and transfer the remaining juices to a large sauté pan. Simmer over a high heat, stirring, until reduced to a rich gravy.
• Once rested, cut the pork into pieces - it should pull apart with very little effort - and break the crackling into shards. Serve the pork and crackling with the gravy poured over and mustard mash, honey-roasted carrots and quick pickled red cabbage on the side (see goes well with below).