Porky Joe's

You’ve all heard of Sloppy Joe’s but have you ever heard of a PORKY Joe?! Haha, well now you have. It’s tangy and sweet with a bit of heat and the hard work is done by your slow cooker. I was inspired to create this recipe after seeing a recipe contest on Food52’s website for “coziest slow cooker meal”. Being from the East Coast, I never had sloppy Joe’s…maybe it’s an east coast thing somewhere, but it wasn’t in my home. So my husband (a mid-westerner) and I collaborated on this dish and it came out a winner; one I will definitely be repeating many times.

Recipe by: Tierney Larson with shout out to Adam Larson for being a sloppy joe connoisseur

Ingredients:

2 lbs Boneless Pork shoulder, butt or picnic

Kosher Salt and Black pepper

1 onion, quartered, peeled and stems removed

4 garlic cloves peeled and smashed

3/4 cup ketchup, divided

1-8 ounce can of tomato sauce

1 1/2 tsp yellow mustard

1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 tbl Molasses

1 tsp adobo sauce plus 1-2 chipotle peppers (from the can)

1 tsp whole cumin seeds lightly crushed

Ok now…

Generously season all sides of your pork with kosher salt and pepper.  Combine 1/2 cup of ketchup and all of the ingredients except for the garlic and onions and pour into the slow cooker. 

Place the pork fat side up into the slow cooker and scatter the onion and garlic cloves around the meat.  Place slow cooker on low temperature and cook basting now and then (if you can) for 6-8 hours depending on how big your cut of pork is.

When the pork is fork tender and easily shreds, remove it from the slow cooker and place on a cutting board to cool slightly.

Pour the remaining liquid into a fat separating measuring cup and using an immersion blender, (or pour into a blender if you don't have one) blend until the mixture is smooth with some texture (you basically want to just cut up the onions and garlic).  

Let the mixture sit for 2-3 minutes and skim off any fat, then pour into a skillet over medium heat and bring to a boil.  Cook for 6-7 minutes stirring occasionally until the mixture is thick enough that when you drag a spoon down the middle of the pan, it takes a few seconds to fill in.  Taste and season with salt, then add 1/4 cup of ketchup and stir to combine, taste once more and add a pinch more salt if necessary.  Remove from the heat.

Shred the pork with 2 forks or your hands, and if you left the fat cap on discard it. Then combine in a large bowl with the sauce.   

Serve on brioche buns and enjoy!