Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

What follows below is my version of pulled pork made in a slow cooker.

You'll need:

1-3 lbs. of "Boston Butt" aka pork shoulder. It depends on the size of your slow cooker. Any amount over one pound is going to yield a lot. This cut of meat comes from the upper front leg area, and may contain a bone depending on how big your cut is. It's a cheap cut of meat in relation to how much it yields.

1 Onion

1 Clove of Garlic

Rub for the pork. My own rub is: 1/4 cup salt, 1/4 cup pepper, 1/4 cup paprika, 1/4 cup brown sugar. In place of garlic and onion power, I use actual onions and garlic, but feel free to substitute if you are feeling thrifty and already have the spice blend. This is a very basic pork rub that most BBQ aficionados are familiar with. You can also add cayenne for more heat. In my recipe, paprika provides some heat, and the brown sugar offsets it beautifully.

As Bobby Flay says, "Everything good starts with onion and garlic." Let's cut the onions and garlic for use (we're doing a rough chop for both). Cut both the top and bottom of the onion off, and then chop in half. Remove the outer shell. Next, cut the weird base off the garlic. After doing so, the garlic will basically fall apart into different cloves. After, use your knife or another flat surface and pound each individual clove to get the skins off. FYI, there are two methods to get garlic skin off. One, use some type of rubber sleeve to rub it off. Second, you can pound it. By doing to, you are expanding the garlic which will naturally force the skin off. You should end up with something like you see below:

Give both a rough chop:

Place the garlic and onion in the bottom of the slow cooker, with a little salt and pepper.

Time to rub your meat (that's what she said): Liberally coat with rub mixture, and make sure to get all the nooks and crannies. If you have time, rub it and wrap it (that's what she said) in plastic wrap, and leave it in the fridge over night. That will really enhance the flavor.

You should end up with something like this:

Next, place the butt in the slow cooker, layering it over the onions and garlic. Then, add water, so the pot is about 2/3 full. You don't need to cover the butt.

Put the lid on, and cook on low heat for about eight hours! The cooking time will vary depending on the size of the butt. You could also cook on high heat for five-six hours.

Here are a few notes: I use filtered water to cover- not straight from the tap. I can always taste chlorine in my water, and I don't want to transfer that taste to my food. In place of water, you could use Coke, which imparts a great flavor onto the butt during the cooking process. Lastly, I know I spent time rubbing my butt, but there is a lazy-man version of this recipe: Put butt in slow cooker, cover with two/three bottles of favorite BBQ sauce, and cook for six to eight hours.

I make my recipe this way so I can end up with some great, non-sauced pork. I am then free to do whatever I want with it.

Stay tuned for the finished product!