Pulled pork is a lovely way to prepare your pork and can be used in lots of different ways, like in a pork sandwich, in a burger, or even with other different features on a food plate, such as potatoes or fries.
When cooking raw pork, you need to prepare it in a certain way so that the pork is soft enough just to fall apart and become tender enough to pull apart.
One problem that a lot of people experience when using pulled pork is that they’re making portion sizes too big and end up with a lot of pork leftovers that they might not be able to eat!
To help prevent the amount of food waste being produced, we’ve made a guide to help you with your pork recipe and to help control the sizes of individual portions being produced when eating pulled pork.
At the end of the day, you want to enjoy your meal as much as possible without feeling guilty about throwing away excess pork meat. That being said, let’s get into our guide to all things pulled pork!
What Is Pulled Pork?
Pulled pork is cooked pork shoulder that has been shredded and mixed with some spices that are added during the cooking process. This makes for an easy-to-eat dish that can be served hot or cold.
It’s also quite versatile, which means that you can use it in many different dishes. You can make sandwiches out of it, add it to salads, put it in wraps, stuff it into tacos, serve it over rice, or put it inside a cornbread muffin. The choice is yours.
One of the great things about pulled pork is the way it just falls apart in your mouth. This is down to how the meat was cooked and the way that it has been prepared.
A lot of people also love the taste of pulled pork and will choose to accompany the meat with some BBQ sauce or some apple sauce to sweeten the finished flavors and tones.
What Does Pulled Pork Taste Like?
This all comes down to how you’ve cooked the meat and whether you prefer to grill, slow cook, or even smoke your pork.
For example, if you prefer to smoke your meats then you can always expect a cloudy, rich taste to your food that you’d struggle to find with other cooking methods.
Using a smoker is a great way to add an extra something special to the flavor of your food.
However, if you prefer to grill your food then you’re going to experience a lot of juiciness in your meal because of the way this process implements fats and juices to the cooking process.
On top of this, slow cooking your meat is a great way to ensure that the texture of your food is rich and falls apart in your mouth.
However, on the whole, pulled pork tastes like your standard cooked pork but with different textures and sauces that can complement the meat further than cooking pork in different ways.
This type of meat is certainly one to look out for at your next BBQ.
What Part Of Pork Is Pulled Pork?
When you’re cooking pulled pork, there are two parts of the pork to consider; the loin and the shoulder.
If you’ve ever eaten a traditional pulled pork sandwich before, then chances are you’ll have experienced the loin part being the leaner section of the pork and the shoulder being the fattier part.
The loin is where most of the fat content resides while the shoulder contains more protein. Although both sides of the pork contain similar amounts of fat, the loin is usually a lighter-colored piece of the pork.
However, since this area of the pig doesn’t contain the same amount of fat as the shoulder, it tends to dry out quickly when cooking.
The best thing to do here is to try to keep an eye on the temperature of the meat throughout the entire cooking time. As we mentioned above, the loin is going to dry out faster than the shoulder.
Therefore, if you see that the loin is drying out too quickly, you may need to move on to the next step of the recipe immediately.
Why Should I Use Pulled Pork?
There are so many reasons why you should be using pulled pork instead of regular pork.
Firstly, it’s easier to eat and digest. You won’t feel bloated after eating pulled pork because it’s already broken up into smaller pieces.
Secondly, it’s healthier to consume. There’s less chance of developing heart diseases or high cholesterol levels from consuming pulled pork.
Thirdly, it’s cheaper to buy compared to buying regular pork because it can only be used as pulled pork, whereas normal pork can be made into different things.
Fourthly, it’s a quick and easy meal to prepare.
Lastly, it’s fun to eat!
How To Get The Pulled Texture
To get the pulled texture that you want, you’ll want to start by ensuring that the raw meat is good and not bad. The last thing anyone wants is to eat some raw pork that will make you sick.
Slow cooking your pulled pork or smoking your meat is probably the best way to go because it makes sure that the food will be soft enough to pull apart when it comes to plating up.
Once the pork is fully cooked, you’ll want to grab two forks and make sure that they’re clean. Place the pork onto a plate and place one of the forks into the meat.
You’ll then need to hold this fork in place and use the other fork in a dragging motion through the meat. This should start to pull the pork into the type of meat that you see in pulled pork dishes.
Once the pork is pulled apart to your satisfaction, you need to add your sauce. Although you can have pulled pork on its own without any added condiments, you might notice that it can taste quite dry.
This is easily fixed by adding some sort of barbecue sauce with a smoky flavor. Stir the meat and the sauce together until you can see that the pork is thoroughly covered with the stuff.
This ensures that your meat will be succulent and moist for consumption!
Standard Portion Sizes Of Pulled Pork
You don’t always have to follow the standard portion sizes when it comes to pulled pork. For example, there’s no reason why you couldn’t serve just half a pound of pulled pork per person.
It all depends on how much you like pulled pork and what else you plan on serving alongside it. It also depends on how much money you want to spend because more food will cost more money, of course.
If you choose to go with a smaller quantity of pulled pork, you’ll want to ensure that you cook it for the correct length of time.
If you’re planning on making just a small amount, you’ll want to cook it for about 3 hours at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Remember that the longer you cook it, the drier it becomes. The larger quantities of meat that you have, the more room you’ll need to cook and potentially the longer it will take to have everyone eating their food.
How Much Meat Per Person?
If you’d prefer to know exactly how much pork per person you’re going to be feeding, then we’ve got the answer for you.
First off, remember that there are three main components of pulled pork – fat, lean, and connective tissue.
The first component is the fat which has been separated during the process of pulling. The next component is the lean which is what remains once the fat has been removed.
Finally, the third component is the connective tissue which is found between each muscle fiber. When you cut an animal into different parts, you’ll find that these components vary depending on where you’re cutting.
Because of the nature of pulled pork, you can distribute the portions of the meat quite easily as the food is already cut up and pulled apart for you.
By having a large serving spoon, you should either split the meat into separate portions that look even for everyone eating, or you should focus on having smaller, more frequent portions of meat. It all depends on how you’re eating the food.
For example, if you’re eating pulled pork sandwiches, then the best thing to do is to fill up one or two sandwiches individually and then come back for more if you’re still hungry.
This allows you to regulate the amount that everyone is having and make sure that everyone gets a fair share.
However, if you’re having pulled pork with a salad or some sort of potato side, then your best bet is to give yourself a few big spoons full of the meat and then come back for seconds after.
By having these smaller, more frequent portions, you’re allowing yourself to stay in control of how much everyone is eating and give yourself enough meat at the same time.
After all, there’s no bigger compliment to the chef than asking for more of their food!
Ways To Eat Pulled Pork
There are lots of different pulled pork dishes out there, with many people having their favorites. We recommend trying pulled pork with barbecue sauce, but you could also try it with ketchup, honey mustard, or barbecue sauce.
In addition, you can use any of these with different features on the side, which can unlock whole new combinations of flavors that you might not have experienced before.
Remember that the best way to enjoy pulled pork is by cooking it slowly and letting it rest before serving. This gives the flavors more time to develop and makes the food so much tastier.
So, don’t rush through the cooking processes and ensure that you put lots of time and effort into making your food.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, the best way to share pulled pork portions amongst people is to use a large serving spoon and give everyone a little bit of a smaller portion than usual.
This ensures that everyone gets enough and will be loving their food before you know it.
Because a lot of pulled pork dishes include stuff like burger buns and sandwich bread, you can use these features as a way to measure how much pork you have on a plate at once.
Ultimately, we have to enjoy our food and make sure that everyone gets some, otherwise, there’s not much point in eating a dish as flavorful as pulled pork.
So why not try out a few different dish variations and experiment a little? You might find a new favorite!
In fact, my grilling experience stems from even before that, when I used to watch my father grill outdoors. Some of my favorite memories growing up were surrounding the grill in the backyard, or a portable grill on the beach or in the park.
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