The first step when making smoked pulled pork barbecue is deciding which cut of pork you want to use. Unlike brisket, pulled pork can be made from any fatty pork roast or from a whole hog. The best roast is the shoulder. High in fat and connective tissue, the shoulder is also the most flavorful part of the hog. The pork shoulder is typically cut into two parts, the Boston Butt and the Picnic Roast. You can use either or both, it won't matter a lot. What you do want is a fatty piece of pork. The fat will keep the pork moist while you smoke it. You should also pick a cut with the bone still in. The bone adds flavor and sweetens the meat.
Once you have your meat, trim off any loose fat and skin. These won't aid the pork much and will tend to just get in the way. With the meat ready you can apply a rub to flavor the meat while it smokes. A typical pulled pork rub will have sugar (usually brown), black pepper, cayenne for heat and either paprika or chili powder for color. Pulled pork, either through sauce or spice will have a reddish color to it. It's tradition. Work the rub deep into the meat and let it sit on the meat for at least an hour to mix with the juices from the meat. Now you're ready to smoke.
The smoke of pulled pork is provided by hickory and/or oak. While you can use any mild wood these are the traditional woods. You will want an even 200 to 225 degree F. fire. You need to keep the smoker temperature below 265 degrees F. no matter what. Too high of a temperature will make the meat tough. You want to smoke your pork roasts for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours per pound. This means you will be smoking for a long time. Get it, low and slow. You can remove the pork once it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F., but it won't be tender. Continue until you can easily shred the meat with a fork. Now it's done. Of course if you have trouble smoking for this long you can use alternative cooking methods after a few hours. Wrap the pork tightly in foil and place it in your oven at 225 degrees F. until it is finished.
Once the pork is done remove it from the smoker and let it sit for about 30 minutes. Now you are ready to pull. Ideally the meat will be so tender that you can simply pull it apart with your hands. This allows you to separate out the meat from everything else. Place the meat in a pot over a low heat to keep it warm. Now you can add a simple vinegar sauce to the mixture to give it that authentic flavor. This sauce can be as simple as cayenne, paprika and apple cider vinegar. Mix it all together so that the meat is lightly coated and you are ready to eat.
Tradition also dictates that you provide your diners with a table or finishing sauce. This can be almost any kind of barbecue sauce, but again it would be typically served with a thin vinegar sauce. While this might sound like you'll have a sour dish, the meat will be sweet from the slow cooking and the sour of the vinegar (always apply cider vinegar) will be neutralized by that sweet. You can serve pulled pork on a plate or on a bun, it's up to you.
For more help do your Pulled Pork Step by Step.
