Sunday Funday Pulled Pork

A few weeks ago my cousins came for Sunday Funday and I made Pulled Pork. I never made it before so I was a little nervous but it was so easy. I did use a recipe as a guide but changed and added things. The original suggested to use a pork shoulder but that made me a nervous too, so I used two pork tenderloins instead. I used a slow cooker cookbook from Williams-Sonoma as my guide. I also added some liquid smoke as an added flavor. It adds a little smokiness as if it was cooked in a smoker all day, a little goes a really long way. For the rolls I toasted them with a little butter and garlic powder, it made the bread soft on the inside and crispy on the outside, perfect with the pulled pork.

Sunday Funday Pulled Pork

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Slow Cooking

Serves 12 with leftovers

Ingredients

2 Boneless Pork Tenderloins (about 4 lbs)

salt and ground pepper

4 tablespoons canola oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 cup chicken broth

4 cups (about 32 oz) of barbecue sauce, plus some for the serving

3 tablespoons of yellow mustard

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp of liquid smoke

Soft Round Rolls

Cole Slaw for topping, optional

Directions

Season pork all over with salt and pepper.

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the canola oil. Add the pork and cook, turning frequently, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Brown each of the tenderloins separately to ensure all sides of each are browned. Remove from pan and set aside.

Pour out all but about 2 tablespoons of fat in the pan. Add the onion and saute over medium-high heat until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer the pork to a slow cooker and add the broth mixture. Cover and cook until the pork is very tender, 8-10 hours (I cooked it over night) on a low-heat setting. Using 2 forks pull apart the pork into shreds. Add the barbecue sauce, the mustard, the honey, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and the liquid smoke. Stir well, set temperature to high, and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until the flavors are well blended and the sauce has thickened, about 30 minutes.

Serve the pork on the rolls, topped with the cole slaw. Serve additional BBQ sauce on the side.