Ingredients
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
2 tbsp kosher or coarse salt
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp ground black pepper
1/2 tbsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp dry mustard (found in spice section)
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 boneless pork butt, about 3 pounds
1 1/2 cups apple juice
1/2 cup water
1 package plain soft white rolls or other bread
Preparation
Mix brown sugar and dry spices together in a small bowl. Rub all over pork, cover, and let sit in the refrigerator for as long as you have time for (as little as 1 hour or up to overnight). Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Lay pork on a rack insert fitted inside a roasting pan. (The rack should be high enough so the entire spiced butt is sitting above the cooking liquid.) Pour in apple juice and water, cover pan tightly with foil, and slow roast for 5 hours. Remove foil and cook for another 30 minutes, until pork is brown outside and meat is very tender, basically falling apart.
Remove from oven, transfer to large platter, and allow meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While still warm, shred pork into small pieces using 2 forks or 10 fingers. Transfer to bowl for serving, or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. To reheat, just transfer to shallow baking dish, bring to room temperature, and place in preheated 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.
Tip: If the pan drippings aren’t burned, discard fat and mix drippings back into the pulled pork, which will make it even more moist and flavorful.
We used a roasting pan that wasn’t much bigger than the meat itself, so the drippings didn’t spread out and burn.
To serve: Sandwich between rolls and partner with classic barbecue side dishes like bourbon-baked beans or jalapeño creamed corn. Esquire’s note: We ended up with six sandwiches.
