These Really Are In a League of Their Own.
I’m back again with another sandwich recipe – the kind that dribbles down your chin and requires extra napkins. There are so many things you can do with a pork shoulder (Boston Butt). I’ve cooked more of these than I can possibly remember, but they are always a huge hit in my family. My son swears it is his favorite of all meats, and for good reason. Succulent is the word that first comes to mind. Slow roast one of these and this is what you end up with.
The last time I made my Milk Bread recipe , I used half of it for slider rolls and the other half I divided into 6 pieces and made larger buns. I had popped those in the freezer and thought this would be the perfect time to put them to use, because as I’ve explained in the past, there is nothing I love more than a truly great sandwich. I kept the roast in the oven longer than I would if I were going to serve it in slices. When I want pulled pork, it needs to stay in the oven about 30 minutes to an hour longer. I keep testing it by poking it with a fork and seeing if the meat is fully tender and is at the falling-off-the-bone stage.
I initially seasoned it with a rub I put together that had plenty of salt and pepper, gochugaru flakes * (Korean red pepper flakes), dried fenugreek leaves ,* brown sugar, and a couple of grated garlic cloves, so I knew I’d have plenty of flavor. I added a little chicken stock to the pot, put on the lid and let it roast for 4 hours at 300°. An hour before it was done I added a pound of sweet mini bell peppers to the pot, removed the lid and let it finish cooking.
Seeing as how I was using both pepper flakes (gochugaru) and fresh peppers cooked with the pork, I thought I’d reinforce those pepper flavors and stir in some gochujang * (Korean chili paste) and lime zest into a bowl of aioli, which I’d made with lime juice. This stuff is so good you could easily use it for a dip, or you could simply eat it by the spoonful – just sayin. A quick word about the particular gochujang * I used here. It can be purchased with different levels of heat. This time I used a mild version.
Well, so far, so good, but I wanted something crunchy on these sandwiches. I’ve been on a Napa cabbage kick lately. The texture of Napa cabbage lends itself really well to last minute salads. I bought a large head and have gotten multiple meals from it. I used some of it in a stir fry, and made salads from the rest. I felt that it would be the perfect topping for pulled pork. I find that it doesn’t need to be sliced as thinly are regular cabbage. It’s not as dense, so it’s really pleasant to eat when it’s sliced a little thicker. I seasoned it with lime juice, salt, lots of black pepper, a little sugar, toasted sesame oil, olive oil, and black sesame seeds .*
I also added a half teaspoon of MSG (monosodium glutamate) because it greatly enhances the flavors in this salad. I don’t wish to get into the whole MSG debate. If you’d rather not use it, just leave it out.
So, I sliced each roll in half, piled on the pork, spooned on gochujang aioli, added the cabbage topping and a couple of peppers. Wowzers. What a sandwich. Heavenly.
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that, at no additional cost to you, may pay me a small commission and help support the costs of this website. Read full privacy policy here .
Juicy Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Gochujang Aioli
10+
servingsSeason a Boston Butt with a rub containing gochugaru, slow roast it with mini bell peppers until it's falling off the bone. Blend up a batch of gochujang aioli and spoon it on the sandwich, along with a Napa cabbage salad topping. What more could you possibly want?
Keep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
- Juicy Pulled Pork Sandwiches
1 bone-in pork shoulder (Boston butt), 7.5 pounds
1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons gochugaru flakes * (Korean red pepper flakes)
1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves ,* crumbled
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 large garlic cloves, grated
1 cup chicken stock
1 pound sweet mini bell peppers, tops trimmed
12 sandwich rolls - SEE VIDEO (one full batch of my Milk Bread recipe made into 12 larger sandwich rolls)
- Gochujang Aioli
1 large egg - It is important that the egg be at room temperature in order for this technique to work
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 small garlic clove, grated
2/3 cup neutral vegetable oil
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons gochujang * (Korean red pepper paste)
Finely grated zest of 1 lime
Salt
- Napa Cabbage Salad Topping
1 pound Napa cabbage, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
Lots of black pepper
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon MSG (monosodium glutamate)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted black sesame seeds *
Directions
- Juicy Pulled Pork Sanwiches
- Remove pork shoulder from the fridge one hour before roasting. Preheat oven to 300° with a rack in the lower third of the oven. In a small bowl stir together gochugaru ,* fenugreek leaves ,* grated garlic, light brown sugar, and salt. Rub it all over the pork, getting into all the crevices. Place the pork, fat side up, in a large Dutch oven and add the chicken stock to the pot. Cover the pot and bake for 4 hours.
- Remove the lid from the pot and place the peppers around the pork. Continue to roast for another hour. At this point the top of the pork should be crisp and the meat should be done. Test it by sticking a fork into the meat, twist the fork and the meat should show very little resistance. It should easily fall off the bone. Remove the pork from the pot and let it rest on a cutting board for at least 20 minutes. Remove the peppers to a bowl. Skim off the fat from the juices left in the pot. Using 2 forks, shred the pork and spoon on some of the cooking juice.
- Slice each roll in half, pile on the shredded pork, top with a healthy spoonful of gochujang aioli, some of the Napa cabbage salad, and a couple of peppers. That’s it. You’ve now got a fantastic sandwich.
- Gochujang Aioli (Using J. Kenji Lopez-Alt’s Technique)
- Place the egg, lime juice, Dijon mustard, and garlic in a container that will just fit the head of your immersion blender. The egg mixture must reach to the top of the blades on the blender in order for this technique to work. If you need to double the recipe in order for the ingredients to reach the top of the blades, please do so. Pour the vegetable oil and olive oil in the container and let it rest for 15 seconds. Place the blender into the container and turn it on high. Do not lift or pulse the blender. The aïoli should start to emulsify almost immediately. It’s okay to move the blender around some once it starts emulsifying. Continue blending until you have a beautifully smooth and emulsified sauce. Stir in the gochujang * and lime zest. Taste and season with salt. Refrigerate until needed. The aioli can be made a day or 2 in advance.
- Napa Cabbage Salad Topping
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the lime juice, salt, black pepper, sugar, and MSG until well combined. Whisk in the sesame oil and olive oil. Stir in the sliced cabbage and black sesame seeds .* Taste for salt and refrigerate until you’re ready to make the sandwiches. This will keep in the fridge for a day or 2.
6 Responses
Hi Renée!
I used your rub and my smoker! It was delicious!!!! I set up our smoker, a basic Mastercraft, to achieve a temp of 225°F in the smoke oven and smoked the butt until its internal temperature reached 170°F. I used Hickory chips. After the pork reached temp in the smoker, I wrapped it up in 2 layers of heavy duty aluminum foil and placed it into a 250° to 275°F oven and let it cook until the internal temp reached 205°F. Keeping it wrapped, I let it rest for an hour+ before shredding it. It was soooo good! Note about smokers: use a temperature probe that tells you the oven temperature and the meat temperature! I have a MEATER. Smoker thermostats are not very accurate; the whole dynamics of a poorly insulated oven exposed to the temperature du jour, and large piece of meat in a small chamber is not conducive to accuracy.
Hi, Anne. I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the rub. Sounds like it turned out very well in your smoker.Thanks for letting me know!
Today I had the opportunity to make this pulled pork recipe. RaNae, I love the combination of the smoky pulled pork, the crunchy sesame and lime cabbage, and the gochujang aioli! This was my first time making an aïoli, and your directions were perfect! I always learned something from your recipes. Thank you so much.L.
Tim, I couldn’t be happier to hear this. I so love that you made all 3 elements because you really do end up with a good sandwich, don’t you?? And that aioli could hardly be easier, right? Thanks so much for letting me know and Happy Eating!!
I’m wondering about smoking this and if you did, what type of wood to use. You’d definitely want something that enhances those Asian flavors. Although, I’m not sure I could wait for it to come off the smoker!😂. Also, this should be easy to cut in 1/2. I’m ready for it here at 6 am. My mouth is watering!😋
Hi, Angela. Sorry, but I can’t give you any advice on smoking this pork. It’s been many years since I smoked a Boston Butt. You’ll need to use other sources for advice on the type of wood to use. And you could definitely cut it in half, although it does freeze beautifully. And it really doesn’t need to cook for that much less time when you make a smaller one. It still takes 4 hours or so. I hope you enjoy it!!