Recipe: BBQ Pork

By Alex Chester

I'm a heathen Jew. I love pulled pork, and pork ribs, and bacon. I’ve been lucky enough to have tasted BBQ from all over the States, and so far this recipe is my favorite; and lucky for you dear readers, now you too can make the best damn pulled pork! I like to use Pork Butt or Baby Back Ribs/Spare Ribs. Both are perfect to BBQ. Pork butt however, is great for pulled pork, if you don’t like gnawing on bones like me. It’s nice and fatty with plenty of meat, and it is usually pretty cheap, roughly 4 dollars per pound at Whole Foods.

BBQ Pork Ingredients:

4 pounds of pork butt or 2 pounds of Ribs.

Dry Rub: salt, pepper, garlic powder, brown sugar, paprika

I don’t measure my seasonings. I just eyeball each ingredient, which then equals less than 1 cup all together. Now mix all together in a bowl.

Line a baking pan with foil (trust me you're gonna want to do this, less clean up after); place the pork butt in a baking pan and rub the dry rub into the meat.

You have the option of covering the pork in foil and throwing it in the fridge overnight, or you can place it in the oven at 250 degrees right away. Personally I like keeping it in the fridge overnight. The rub soaks into the meat and when you get up in the morning all you have to do is uncover the pork and throw it in the oven at 250 degrees.

Now here's the boring part. The pork is gonna have to roast 2 hours for every pound. I know, I know, you're probably thinking holy sh*t that's 8 hours! I don't wanna wait 8 hours. Well, tough! Good things come to those who wait, and believe me you're gonna wanna wait for this. However, while you wait you can get cracking at making the BBQ sauce.

BBQ Sauce Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups mustard
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup cider vinegar
2 tbs of butter
a couple of splashes of Worcester Sauce
garlic powder
a couple of splashes of hot sauce.

Whisk together on stove top, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 15-20 mins. You may have to add more or less of each depending upon how you want the BBQ Sauce to taste. Boom, you've got yourself some finger licking BBQ Sauce!

Around the last hour of cooking the pork you are gonna want to start basting the meat with the bbq sauce you just made.

After 8 hours are up take that pig out of the oven and let it rest for a 1/2 hour or so before digging in.

If you are making Pulled Pork, all you have to do is use a fork or your hands to shred that meat. Voila, you have yourself some amazing BBQ and you didn’t even have to leave your home

Alex Chester is the creator and producer of the theatre company WeSoHapa — a theatre based on diversity and inclusion. She is a New York City based columnist for On Stage Blog and contributing writer for ManhattanDigest.com and HuffPo. She also hosts a podcast with fellow writer Melissa Slaughter, We're Not All Ninjas. Follow her on Twitter/Instagram @AlexFChester if you like food and cats.