Mix up your Sunday roasts with this easy braised pork shoulder recipe. This recipe is packed with flavor, requires very little active cooking, and can stun a crowd. Beef cuts like Pot Roasts and Short Ribs tend to hog the braised recipe spotlight, but pork shoulder belongs center stage.
Pork shoulder, sometimes packaged as a pork butte or pork picnic, is a low cost traditional butcher cut available at most grocery retailers. This is one of my favorite cuts of meat. When cooked low and slow, it transforms from tough to tender and releases hidden flavors.
The most common method for the low and slow cooking of pork shoulder is smoking. Pork shoulder is a big player in the barbeque world, think pulled pork. Braising is the second most popular and can take pork shoulder from the picnic table to the dining table.
What is Braising?
Braising is a cooking technique that involves browning meat or vegetables in oil, then cooking it in covered pan with liquid. Braising uses long cook times to develop flavor and slowly turn the toughest meats fork tender.
When braising, it is important to get a nice golden brown sear on all sides of the meat before adding your liquids. Also, be sure to deglaze your pan while it is hot. If you are unfamiliar with the term deglazing in cooking, it just means to add liquid to a hot pan.
Deglazing will allow your liquids to release the bits cooked to the bottom of your pan and get the most flavor into your dish. if some of the cooked bits don’t immediately release, use a wooden spatula to scrape the brown bits of the bottom of your pan. These bits are pure flavor and will have a big impact on your final flavor.
How to serve Braised Pork Shoulder
Braised meats are a dish best served hot. I tend to serve this recipe on a bed of mashed potatoes with the braising liquid (including the spent vegetables) ladled over the top. I will also serve this on a bed of rice if I don’t feel like making mashed potatoes. Polenta also pairs very well with this dish and can be used to break you out of a food rut.
I also like to pair this recipe with any of the following sides: Green Beans, Carrots, Squash, Asparagus, and Zucchini.
Braised Pork Shoulder
Equipment
- Dutch Oven (or roasting pan with lid)
Ingredients
- 5-8 lb Pork Shoulder (Bone in)
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Ribs Celery (Chopped)
- 1 Carrot (Chopped)
- 1 Onion (Chopped)
- 5-8 Cloves Garlic (Chopped: Use your heart to decide how much)
- 3 Tbsp Tomato Paste
- Black Pepper (To Taste)
- Kosher Salt (To Taste)
- 3 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 4 Cups Beef Broth (Low Sodium)
- 3 Bay Leaves
- 1 Bunch Parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F
- Cut the pork shoulder into large chunks, then chop the Celery, Carrot, Onion, and Garlic. Put your Dutch oven on a large burner over medium high heat and add Olive Oil. Let the Oil heat up.
- Working in batches, braise all sides of the pork pieces until they have a golden brown crust. Remove the pork and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium and cook the Celery, Carrot, and Onion for a few minutes or until softened. Add the Garlic and cook another minute. Mix in the Salt, Pepper, and Tomato Paste. Cook for one to two minutes.
- Add the Apple Cider Vinegar and use wooden spoon or spatula to deglaze the bottom of the Dutch Oven (Break up the brown bits cooked to the bottom of your pan). This step is important for adding flavor back into the dish.
- Return the Pork to the Dutch Oven and add Beef Broth until all but the very top of the pork is covered. Add the Bay Leaves and Parsley (Yes, the whole bunch), then place the lid on the Dutch Oven.
- Place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven and cook for three hours or until fork tender. Let the dish rest 5 minutes then discard the Bay Leaves and Parsley. Place pork on a plate and spoon a small amount of liquid from the bottom of the Dutch Oven over the meat before serving hot.