Simple Beer Braised Pork
This recipe for SIMPLE BEER BRAISED PORK yields a tender, delicious pork roast to serve simply sliced into thick steaks or pulled apart into “pulled pork”. It is the type of low-stress cooking I love because you just put the thing in the oven and forget about it. It may seem counter-intuitive to say that a whole roasted pork is one of the easiest meals you can make but it truly is. Much of the cooking is passive oven time, with active prep time requiring less than 30 minutes. You can easily cook a roast on a weekend or a WFH day.
4-LB PORK ROAST: I always grab a 4lb pork shoulder (preferably capicollo) whether I’m cooking for my family of four or for a larger group. I know I always have delicious ways to use the leftover meat so apart from the main SIMPLE BEER BRAISED PORK recipe in this post, I’m also sharing 4 different recipe ideas to use the extra pork, so make sure to scroll all the way through this post to see them.
FREEZING: I also provide instructions for freezing the extra meat and also the braising liquid too, if you wish to save them for another day to call upon when you want something healthy and home cooked but are simply too busy to cook.
Thank me later! Recipe is below and all yours :)
p.s. check substitute below if you want to keep it wheat / gluten free.
HEAD NOTE + SUBSTITUTES:
Recipe makes one 4 lb pork shoulder but can easily accommodate a larger piece of meat with simply an increase in the volume of liquid added to the pot. The braising rule of thumb is enough liquid to reach about 2/3 to 3/4 up the side of the meat. Add some extra time in the oven if you're making a significantly larger piece - you can test how tender it is by tugging it with a knife & fork.
Fennel bulb or leeks can also sub in as the aromatic vegetables in the recipe
GLUTEN / WHEAT FREE VERSION: Although I used Sapporo beer in mine because that's what we drink at home, any lager or pale-ale style beer works. White wine is fantastic if you want to keep it wheat (gluten) free!
Simple Beer Braised Pork
Time: 30 minutes active prep + 3-4 hrs passive oven time
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp high heat oil for browning
4 lb boneless pork shoulder (aka pork butt)
1 to 2 white onions, roughly chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and rough chopped into 3-4 pieces
2 stalks celery, rough chopped into 3-4 pieces
3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed slightly with flat side of your knife
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 341 ml bottle of lager or pale-ale style beer (can substitute white wine or more broth for wheat / gluten-free version)
3 C organic chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium (my recipe for bone broth is here)
Salt & black pepper for seasoning
METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 300f. Preheat a heavy bottomed cast iron pot over medium to medium-high heat.
2. While the pot is heating up, season all sides of the pork liberally with kosher salt and black pepper. I use Diamond Crystal kosher salt and use about 1 tsp per pound (use half that amount for other brands, or to your own tastes). Once the pot is hot, add the oil and place the pork in the pot, fattier side down if there is one. Allow it brown 3-4 minutes or until there is golden brown. Continue on all other sides including the 2 ends (lean it against the side of the pot if it doesn't want to stand). Remove from the pot and set aside.
3. To keep it healthier I like to mop up the excess rendered oil by wiping the pot with a few pieces of paper towels held by a pair of tongs. I leave about 2 tbsp of it to saute the vegetables.
4. Toss in the onions, carrots, celery (or whatever aromatic vegetables you're using) and the garlic cloves. Season with kosher salt right away to encourage caramelization of the onions. Saute until the onion has just begun to soften and turn translucent, about 4-5 minutes.
5. Place the meat back into the pot, deglaze with beer or wine. Add enough chicken broth to reach roughly 2/3 to 3/4 of the way up the piece of meat. Cover and bring to a boil, then put the entire thing, lid on, in the oven for 3.5 to 4 hours or until the meat is tender. Depending on how you’d like to serve it, you may want the roast to be sliceable or pulled apart. For pork that is tender but still firm enough to slice into thick pieces, cook to ~170f in the thickest part of the roast. For pork that is super tender that can be pulled apart with a fork, cook to ~180f.
6. Take the pork out to rest on a large cutting board. Once it has cooled enough to handle, you can start pulling apart the meat. I like to first start by using a knife to cut across the circumference and against the grain into large pieces. We often eat the first meal just like this, sliced in large pieces. Then I find it easier to begin pulling the meat apart with forks which yields shorter strands. Remember to season the shredded meat again with salt all over, since the center of the meat had not been seasoned directly.
7. Freeze the pulled pork: You can now divide the meat into several portions. Place in airtight freezer-safe containers (preferably glass not plastic) and freeze for up to two months. The exact number of portions and amount in each portion will depend on what you plan to make with it. For example, my pulled pork brussels sprout fried rice recipe calls for 1.5-2C of pork, whereas my galette recipe calls for 3/4-1C). If you haven't decided, you can package them into 1/2C and/or 1C portions and take what you need later -- just remember to label the amounts on each package! When you need it, simply defrost overnight in the refrigerator and use in your recipe.
Freeze the braising sauce: Using a blender or immersion blender, puree the braising liquid with the vegetables until you have a nice smooth sauce. Freeze in glass mason jars or other freezer safe container, remembering to leave enough head space if using glass jars for expansion in the freezer! You should have about 4C of sauce, which you can freeze into two 2-cup portions or four 1-cup portions for flexibility (since you can always defrost two 1-cup jars even if you need 2 cups). This stuff is incredible with pasta!
Okay so I did promise you would have several different meals out of this single braise. Below are precisely the four meals I made out of this piece of pork. I hope you are inspired!
Now that you know how to make a basic Braised Pork, here are 4 other meal ideas using it:
1 of 4 ideas :: PULLED PORK & BRUSSELS SPROUTS FRIED RICE {Click for Recipe}
2 of 4 ideas :: PAPPARDELLE WITH PULLED PORK & WILTED SPINACH {Click for Recipe}
3 of 4 ideas :: PULLED PORK TACOS WITH Roasted Poblano Avocado Cream {see below for details}
To use pulled pork in tacos, you simply need to reheat it and load on your favorite taco toppings! Use amount based on number of people you're serving. A little meat goes a long way in tacos given the other toppings. Pictured above, I used shredded purple cabbage, raw radish slices, pickled red onions, pickled jalapeno peppers served with a dollop of roasted poblano avocado cream (recipe provided below) on homemade corn tortillas. But there are no rules here! Use what you like and have on hand. As for the meat, I typically put about 2 tbsp of meat per taco, and assume about 4 tacos per adult.
To reheat the pulled pork: Preheat a pan on medium. Once hot, add a drizzle of oil and add the pulled pork (brought to room temperature if previously frozen) along with a splash of chicken broth or water, and heat it through. If you want to get fancy and spicy, you can add some chipotle in adobe or hot pepper flakes or chili powder while you reheat the meat. Otherwise simply salt and pepper to season.
To make the roasted poblano avocado cream: Preheat oven to 425f. Drizzle a bit of oil over the poblano pepper and roast for 30-40 minutes or until the skin is blackened and charred. Cool enough to handle and peel off the skin with your fingers. Pull off the stem and discard. You can scrap off the seeds or leave them if you like it spicier. Into a blender or food processor, put the roasted poblano pepper, along with 1 pitted and roughly chopped ripe avocado, juice squeezed from 1 lime, 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and 1/2 to 1 tsp of salt depending on your taste. Whiz until smooth. Add water as necessary to adjust consistency i.e. thinner for drizzling or thicker for dollops.
4 of 4 ideas :: GALETTE WITH PULLED PORK, CORN, TOMATO & BASIL {see below for details}
Here I've used the pulled pork in a savory galette. I love a savory pie just as much as a sweet one! First make your favorite pie dough, or get a store bought pie dough to save time. Preheat your oven to 400f. Roll the dough out to about 12"-13" in diameter. Brush on some extra virgin olive oil all over, and scatter the pulled pork around (I used about 3/4C worth here), leaving about 1.5" border which will be folded over. In the version pictured, I also added confit cherry tomatoes (recipe from my friend Teri @ nocrumbsleft.com ) but you can simply use fresh cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise. Throw on a smattering of fresh or frozen corn kernels. Fold the edge over. Brush with egg wash, then sprinkle the crust with thyme leaves rubbed in a bit of oil (to prevent burning) and salt the entire galette. Pop the whole thing in the oven for 35-45 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and toppings are heated through. This was SO good!!