Happy Memorial Day! Perhaps the long weekend will offer you more time to relax and fire up the grill, and the following recipe for Hot Slaw and Shoulder Sliders has been a family favorite for generations. My millennial son, Zan, is getting married to Lucy in 4 weeks, I’m hosting a party the night before the wedding, the boy wants mama’s down-home barbecue, and it better be good. Damn good.
Frozen smoked, pulled and sauced pork.
Serving pork, fresh from the smoke, is BQ done right, but that special evening I want to be apart of the revelry–not an ember-scented mama, eyes watering from smoke, fingers sticky with sauce.
So I quadrupled the barbecue portion of the recipe below to feed sixty, and for the past two days, I’ve smoked 4 shoulders in my Big Green Egg; the large Egg accommodates 2 shoulders but it takes 6-7 hours to smoke them. Then, I froze the pulled, sauced pork, which I plan to thaw the night before the party. I’ll serve it from a sterno-lit chafing dish next to the slaw and buns. Heresy, perhaps, but I’ve frozen freshly smoked pork before with excellent results.
And they’ve only been open 10 months. I’ve license to brag, right? Dang.
Family recipes are what will lend sentiment to the occasion; food from Zan’s side of the family honoring family present and those who’ve
Pork should smoke at a constant temperature.
“moved on”: my Alabama mother’s recipe be for smoked pulled pork shoulder (a.k.a. Boston butt); his uncle Allen’s recipe for Hot Slaw; his German grandmother’s recipe for potato salad; his stepmother’s recipe for carrot cake, which she (praise God) will be making. Strategically placed bowls of my own riff on Pimento Cheese, gussied up with bacon and creme fraiche, will be served with pumpernickel bread and celery sticks. Peanuts in the shell at the bar–easy-peasie. Deviled Eggs may make a showing, if I’ve the time. For libation I’m making a whiskey punch, and for fun I’ve hired a fiddler to work the crowd.
Barbecue is, more than likely, the oldest form of cooking in our part of the world; whether its genesis be African slaves, Pilgrims or native Hawaiians; whoever had the great idea of devising that first pit of burning embers, and placing a pig within it to roast. The art of the pit is in it’s golden age with nationwide beloved pit masters and their BQ joints enjoying more local notoriety than their representatives at the White House.
For me, the key to making the best smoked pork is keeping my fire at a constant temperature (250-300 degrees), selecting my favorites woods for smoking pork (hickory and a fruity wood such as apple or cherry) and removing the pork when it temps at 190-200 degrees.
The following recipe is for the typical, popular kettle grill. A couple of years ago, I sprung for a Big Green Egg, which has made smoking infinitely easier, once you get the hang of it. I’m able to skip the drip pan step in the recipe below, regulating heat and keeping a constant heat is a breeze, and one kettle filled with their organic charcoal is enough fuel for 7 hours+ of smoking time.
Last night we had friends over for a Fourth of July warm-up dinner party. The hyper-local menu–Grilled Sumac Lamb Chops, Cherry Couscous Salad and Asparagus–was created with the bulk of ingredients sourced in a one-mile radius; easy to pull off at this time of the year in the orchards and farmlands of Northern Michigan. The day before … Full recipe post »
Deviled Eggs (aka: Stuffed Eggs) have taken on star-status in the past few years. No more are a plate of these rich and tantalizing mortals content to find themselves nestled up to a Maraschino Cherry Jello Mold on a boomerang-patterned formica counter. For good reason. Stuffed eggs are a great canvas for a variety of flavors. A perusal through the web … Full recipe post »
3 Responses to An Outdoor Barbecue Party Featuring Hot Slaw & Shoulder Sliders
Congrats to you, Peggy, on the upcoming marriage of your son. Still hoping, perhaps after the wedding, you will be able to check out ourWednesday wine group. You will love it. Especially a party night.
Thanks, Bobby! Moving times. As mentioned, that’s book club nite for me but keep me posted. Feel free to post the event details here (for other Ann Arborites)
if it’s open to the public.
on The Well at Five Points is re-opening on August 30th.deb in raleigh on North Raleigh relaly needed Sola Cafe! It’s clean and homey and get the TANGERINE AND GINGER ICED TEA.
I welcome your comments!(This site was recently transferred but, unfortunately, I did not have privileges to include past comments. I would love to see a conversation started!)Cancel reply
Hi there! I'm Peggy Lampman...
...a contemporary American author, photographer, and food blogger. Welcome to dinnerFeed. More about me & my site...
The Promise Kitchen: A Novel
Two women at a crossroad trying to find the perfect recipes to reinvent themselves. Visit my Author Website for more. Available on Amazon.com.
The Welcome Home Diner
They've risked it all to refurbish their diner--but what about their hearts? Available on October 10. Preorder at Amazon.com.
Taste buds prickle; wanderlust triggered. An Argentine barbecue (asado)
enticed me to Patagonia. A friend gave me a vial of ground sumac berries--4 months later I was
waking at dawn to the "Call To Prayer" in Turkey. Porcini to Tuscany, and so on. Read more about my chronicles of
trips and favorite associated recipes. Browse my travel recipes...
My Projects
Here are ideas gleaned from others that speak to me;
where I highlight projects that bring friends, neighborhoods, and communities together. For me,
complimentary food makes the project and event more fun. Browse my projects and related recipes...
Congrats to you, Peggy, on the upcoming marriage of your son. Still hoping, perhaps after the wedding, you will be able to check out ourWednesday wine group. You will love it. Especially a party night.
Thanks, Bobby! Moving times. As mentioned, that’s book club nite for me but keep me posted. Feel free to post the event details here (for other Ann Arborites)
if it’s open to the public.
on The Well at Five Points is re-opening on August 30th.deb in raleigh on North Raleigh relaly needed Sola Cafe! It’s clean and homey and get the TANGERINE AND GINGER ICED TEA.