The Pork Diaries: Another Go at Pulled Pork

Last month I had a go at roasting one of the pork shoulder cuts on the big unit.  The post, located here:  http://hawksbillcabin.blogspot.com/2012/05/pork-diaries-pulled-pork.html, worked through the process and really kept track of my first attempt at this noble activity.  It was a relaxing thing to do, and I have to admit, the product was so good that I couldn't wait to try it again, and I did on Sunday.


The first time I did this, I was winging the rub recipe, basing it on cumin, for the most part.  This time, I looked up a recipe, repeated below - the major changes were to leave out the cumin, substituting in some powdered mustard, and including a few herbs - oregano and sage.  In fact, here is the list of ingredients from the recipe I used (you can find it on "cookthink.com"):


2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper2 tablespoons granulated sugar3 tablespoons garlic powder2 tablespoons onion powder3 tablespoons paprika1 tablespoon ground sage 2 teaspoons dried oregano1 teaspoon dry mustard1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

My grill was hot when I started out - the early temperatures were over 300.  Over the course of the first hour it settled into the mid-200's, where I managed to keep it for the next five or six hours.  I had to restoke the grill once, in the fourth hour - there's got to be a technique to this and I haven't gotten the hang of it.


I kept the hickory smoke going for the first hour.  After the first 90 minutes, I also "mopped" the roast once every half hour while it was cooking, with a mixture of unfiltered apple juice, salt and chili powder.  


Finally though, that roast was done - the picture at the top of the post is how it looked when I finally took it off of the heat.  Then the second post...I let the pork rest in the fridge over night before pulling it.  I called it claw hammer pulled pork.  We've been enjoying it for a couple of nights now.