Pulled Pork Brine Recipes

PULLED PORK

Steps:

• Video: Watch Alton make this recipe
• Combine molasses, pickling salt, and water in 6-quart Lexan. Add Boston butt making sure it is completely submerged in brine, cover, and let sit in refrigerator for a minimum of 8 hours. 12 hours is ideal.
• Place cumin seed, fennel seed, and coriander in food grinder and grind fine. Transfer to a small mixing bowl and stir in chili powder, onion powder, and paprika.
• Remove Boston butt from brine and pat dry. Sift the rub evenly over the shoulder and then pat onto the meat making sure as much of the rub as possible adheres. More rub will adhere to the meat if you are wearing latex gloves during the application.
• Preheat smoker to 210 degrees F. Place butt in smoker and cook for 10 to12 hours, maintaining a temperature of 210 degrees F. Begin checking meat for doneness after 10 hours of cooking time. Use fork to check for doneness. Meat is done when it falls apart easily when pulling with a fork. Once done, remove from pot and set aside to rest for at least 1 hour. Pull meat apart with 2 forks and serve as sandwich with coleslaw and dressing as desired.

BASIC PORK BRINE

Steps:

• Mix water, brown sugar, and salt in a bowl until sugar is dissolved. Stir in garlic and ginger.

PULLED PORK BRINE RECIPE

Steps:

• ​For this pulled pork recipe, combine all of the brine ingredients together in a large bowl.
• Make sure that you stir well so that all of the spices get completely dissolved in the mixing bowl.
• Once the brine is complete, place the pork butt in a food-safe storage container and pour the brine inside.
• As for the refrigerator, once everything is sealed up tight and the pork is just about completely covered, refrigerate 12 to 18 hours.
• When it is time to cook the pork butt, remove it from the container. Dry the pork off using some kitchen paper towels. ​
• You can use the ingredients listed above to create a rub that pairs well with the brine used.
• Either way, always put a lightly coated "binder" on the pork so that the rub will have a better chance of sticking.
• Once you have the rub on, allow the pork butt to sit with it.
• Ideally, the pork should sit for about 20-30 minutes.
• While the pork sits, you can take the time to prepare your smoker, starting by preheating it to 225ºF.
• When the smoker is ready, place the pork butt inside and close the lid.
• At the beginning stages of the cooking process, it isn't too important to monitor the internal temperature of the pork.
• Since we're smoking the pork butt here, we're aiming for a cooking time anywhere from 9 to 12 hours long, so prepare yourself for keeping a watch on that smoker.
• Around the four hour mark or so, use a good thermometer to begin checking on that internal temperature.
• When the pork butt reaches an internal temperature of around 160ºF, wrap it up in aluminum foil.
• Keep an eye on that internal temperature.
• The optimal temperature for a well-finished pork butt is 195ºF. Sometimes, the pork can reach that around 9 hours or so.
• Once that target temperature has been met, remove the pork butt from the smoker.
• Be sure to let this rest for a good amount of time. It is ideal to rest for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
• When it's time, remove the pork butt from the aluminum foil.
• This liquid is packed full of flavor, so you will want to save it; it can be mixed into the meat later on.
• Take a fork and knife, a pulling claw, or your hands as long as they are properly protected with the right gloves.
• Regardless of what you use, as the internal temperature of the pork is 195ºF, it should shred with relative ease.
• If you plan to serve up the brined pulled pork pork immediately, then you can use that liquid you saved from the aluminum foil and mix it in with the meat, add some homemade barbecue sauce.

EASY PORK BRINE

Steps:

• Mix brown sugar, salt, mustard powder, and garlic powder in a large bowl. Pour in cider vinegar; stir until sugar and salt have dissolved. Add water; stir until well combined.

HONEY BRINED SMOKED PULLED PORK

Steps:

• Combine the hot water and the salt (brine ingredients) in a 54-quart cooler. Stir until the salt dissolves. Stir in the vegetable broth and the honey. Add the ice and stir. Place the pork in the brine, fat cap up, and cover with cooler lid. Brine overnight, up to 12 hours.
• Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry thoroughly. Rub the butt(s) with the vegetable oil. Then add your favorite rub mixture (I included recipe for mine above). Wrap in plastic wrap and allow to sit in fridge at least 3 more hours. Then remove and rest at room temperature for 1 more hour while you pre-heat the grill to 250 degrees F.
• Using a smoker, place pork over indirect heat in smoker with hickory wood, (if you have one, insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the pork, and set the alarm for 165 degrees F. If you don't have one, you will have to use a stick thermometer every hour after about 10 hours.) Close the lid and cook for at least 4 hours.
• After 4 hours check the pork; if the surface is golden brown, cover with aluminum foil tent and continue cooking. Once the butt(s) reach 165 degrees F (about 14 hours), remove from grill, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 1 hour. Shred then add favorite bbq sauce. (The best brand is Sven's Sizzlin Sauce, but if you can't find that Famous Dave's Sweet and Zesty will work as well.).
• For my homemade Carolina Style bbq sauce (also good as a marinade):.
• 5 cups cider vinegar 5 tbl kosher salt 2 ½ tsp cayenne pepper 1 tbl + 2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes ¾ cup brown sugar.
• Combine and allow to sit at room temperature for at least 6 hours to let flavors blend before using. I usually make it just before I load the meat into the smoker. Then add this sauce to moisten the shredded meat about 1 cup at a time until meat is wet enough to your liking. (About 3½ to 4 cups per 10 pounds of meat for me, you may not like as much or more, here's a hint: taste often until it's the way you like it.) Then you can add some of the store brand sauce of your choice, to "kick it up a notch", if you wish.
• Then, I usually finish it by adding a little more of the dry rub. Feel free to experiment with this one, you may or may not want to add any more once the sauce is applied.

PULLED PORK

Steps:

• Brine: Mix liquids (beer, water, apple juice, and vinegar) together and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add remaining brine ingredients. Stir until brown sugar and salt are dissolved. Let stand for 10 minutes. Add ice cubes and allow to melt and cool down brine.
• Put pork into a crock pot and add brine. Ensure that brine completely covers pork. Cover and put in refrigerator for 12 hours or more.
• Cook/Smoke in your smoker for 10-12 hours at 200-240 degrees. Cook until it virtually is falling apart. Let rest until it is cool enough to handle. When done, the internal temperature should be 215 degrees.
• Using a fork, pull the pork apart and place in crock pot with BBQ sauce.
• Cook over low heat for another 1-2 hours. Serve over hamburger buns.