Pulled Pork Sammies

Credit: Catherine Roscoe Barr

Make sure you make extra pulled pork, so you have leftovers for breakfast the next day

Making pulled pork in a slow cooker may very well be one of the easiest dinners you’ll ever prepare – and leftovers for breakfast are truly decadent

How do I love you, pulled pork? Let me count the ways!

I can’t remember when pulled pork came into my life, at least a few years ago, but it’s been a constant fixture on the menu ever since. It’s so easy to make and it’s so delicious, especially when stuffed in a bun with all of the trimmings: crisp iceburg lettuce, crunchy dill pickles, creamy mayo and yellow hot-dog mustard. My dear friend Lisa has revolutionized my life in so many ways and one of those ways was introducing me to leftover pulled pork for breakfast.

Ealier this year, after returning to Canada following nine months in spectacular Sydney, Australia, we spent two wonderful months with my dear friend Lisa and her snazzy new husband Ryan at their home in Whistler. I will take the credit for introducing Lisa to pulled pork, but she took it one step further by putting leftovers on a fried egg for breakfast. And a new tradition was born. Now I always make plenty of extras for an indulgent, mid-week, pick-me-up gourmet breakfast: pulled pork on a cheese-topped fried egg over a toasted ciabatta bun. Yum-o-rama!

A great beer to pair with this meal (for dinner, not breakfast, silly) is one that I discovered at Guilt and Company in Gastown. It’s a Belgian Pale Ale called Caracole Ambrée, and was the night’s feature for their beer and cheese pairing (I had two beers and two large hunks of cheese for dinner that night. Heaven). It’s so good that saying it’s amazing doesn’t do it justice, and it has the cutest label with an adorable, caped snail.

Ingredients

• 1 pork roast or 2 tenderloins (I started out always using tenderloin but I think the roast is tastier), cut into lime-size chunks
• 2/3 cup BBQ sauce
• 3 tbsp vegetable stock or water
• 1 tbsp hot sauce (optional)
• 1 tbsp chili powder (optional)
• 1 tsp garlic powder (optional)
• whole wheat buns
• iceburg lettuce
• dill pickles
• mayo
• yellow hotdog mustard

Instructions

1. Turn on slow cooker: low if cooking for 8-9 hours, high if cooking for 4 hours, and 250-275F if cooking in roaster-oven-style slow cooker for 8-9 hours.
2. Add BBQ sauce, water or stock and seasonings, and whisk to combine.
3. Add chunks of pork and stir well so that each piece is covered in sauce.
4. When it’s done, take two forks and shred meat. Add a little extra sauce, stock or water if it’s a bit dry.
5. Serve on a bun with lettuce, pickles, mayo and mustard.