Some Carolina Pulled Pork

TentHunter

Moderator
This ones for you Art!

When I lived in North Carolina, I learned to love Eastern Carolina style Pulled Pork. What makes it different is the vinegar based sauce - NO TOMATO! I remember the first time I had it, being raised in Ohio, I didn't know what to expect and wasn't too sure I liked what I was tasting. But once that bug bit me there was no more denying that moist, succulent, smoky, vinegary meat piled on a bun with slaw and headed straight for my mouth.

Here some I did a few weeks ago. I Started with a Pork shoulder, coated with some mustard & rub and onto the smoker. For Carolina Pulled pork its Hickory smoke all the way baby!
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While it smoked I mixed up the vinegar based BBQ sauce using Cider Vinegar, a little brown sugar a little rub mix & a healthy dose of Red Pepper Flakes. I mixed some of the sauce with some beer for a braising liquid and reserved the rest to go on the pork after it was pulled.
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It braised until tender then was put back on the hot smoker to develope the bark. I saved the braising juices to be used later - no way was I gonna waste all that good smoky flavor!
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Once a nice bark formed I strapped on my big black BBQ gloves, pulled the pork Chris Lilly style mixed in some of the braising liquid and the reserved Vinegar BBQ Sauce. Here's the result.
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We ate it North Carolina style: on regular white buns topped with some slaw and a good splash of Red Pepper Hot sauce. Yummy!
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Now Art's from closer to the western part of NC (which is absolutley gorgeous), the further west in NC you go, you start seeing a little tomato mixed in with the sauce, so he may not make it quite this way.

Either way... now I'm hungry!
 
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ACW3

New member
Damn son, that looks good! While I may live toward the "tomato flavor" side of the state, I really developed a taste for Eastern-style when my son went to East Carolina University. My wife and I enjoyed going to Parents Weekend, just to go to the pig pickin'. I still cook pork butts with the vinegar sauce, but I put some Lexington-style (Eastern-style with some ketchup in it) on the side for those who don't know or appreciate good Eastern-style pulled pork. I just attended a pig-pickin' on the Saturday after Turkey Day. I'll look for the pictures and see if I can figure out how to post them.

Art
 

Deb

New member
Very nice TentHunter!

I had never had a vinegar based sauce until this year when Nepas gave me some. It's what I have been serving with my pulled pork lately.
 

FLBentRider

New member
I love vaunted vinegar sauce, on just about everything.

I've had some success thickening it up with arrowroot powder.
 

ACW3

New member
Okay, here are the pictures from a real North Carolina pig pickin'. After spending Thanksgiving with my daughter-in-laws family, my wife and I attended a North Carolina pig pickin' on the Saturday after T-day. I have included two photos of the 114 # pig (minus the head). Part of the fun of being near the grill when the pig gets "flipped" is being able to chow down on some of the ribs. Now that is good eats! That skin is also really good. The only seasoning that was added was some good Eastern Carolina vinegar sauce, after it was flipped.

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Before anyone asks, no it was NOT cooked on a pellet cooker or stick cooker. This was done by a caterer using gas. It still tasted really good. I just had to share.

Art
 

ACW3

New member
I forgot to point out the the low budget "frogmats" used under the pig. They used a second low budget "frogmat" on top and then tied the two pieces together with a number of tie-wraps and flipped the pig. This was definitely a two-man job. Then all you need to do is cut the tie-wraps and remove the top "frogmat". Dinner is closer to being ready to be served.

Art
 
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