Tender, slow-cooked pork is a delightful and forgiving dish. When pulled and tossed with its own sticky onions, which should be really dark and caramelized to give plenty of flavor when mixed in with the juicy pork, it pairs beautifully with a simple green salad and new potatoes. Alternatively, serve it in toasted brioche baps with a side of crunchy coleslaw for a more casual option.
Serves 6
3 onions, peeled and sliced
1kg boneless pork shoulder (bone-in joints work well too, just use a piece about 20% bigger)
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp salt
200ml apple cider vinegar
250ml cider
50ml maple syrup
salt, as needed
Preparation Time: 15 minutes. Cooking Time: 6 hours 30 minutes.
1. Line a deep roasting tin (the AGA hard anodised half sized roasting tin is ideal) with Bake-O-Glide. Add the sliced onions and place the pork joint in, skin-side down.
2. Mix together the chilli flakes, mustard and garlic.
3. Smear the spice mixture all over the flesh. Turn it over and place the flesh side on top of the onions in the tin. Rub a couple of teaspoons of salt into the skin which will now be facing you, working it right into the cuts down to the flesh.
4. Score a diamond pattern into the skin with a sharp knife and rub the salt into the skin, working it right into the cuts down to the flesh.
5. Pour the cider, cider vinegar and maple syrup round the pork.
6. Cook until tender and falling apart. CAST OVEN: roasting oven or oven on R8 setting, on the 3rd set of runners oven for 30 mins until the skin has turned golden and crispy. Cover the dish with foil and transfer to floor grid on the floor of the simmering oven or oven on B1 setting and cook for at least 6 hours. FAN OVEN: preheated to B3/140°C/275°F for at least 4-6 hours.
7. Check if the pork is cooked and tender by putting a knife into it which should come out easily. If the juices in the tin are more than 1 cm deep, remove the pork and cook the onions and liquid on the simmering plate or hotplate on simmering setting or in a saucepan on the induction hob on medium until reduced to a thick sticky sauce. If all the juices have disappeared, simply add a little boiling water back to the onions and continue as above.
8. To serve, first remove the crackling and divide into pieces with a knife or scissors. Then ‘pull’ the pork by roughly shredding using two forks and tossing in the sticky onions and juices.
