Cole Cooks: Big Green Egg North Carolina Pulled Pork
The Big Green Egg is perfect for cooking North Carolina pulled pork. We add our rub and use our classic North Carolina vinegar sauce. This recipe is easy to prepare but it does take an entire day of cooking.
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Much of my family is from North Carolina and I attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The North Carolina style of pulled pork is a family favorite. Unfortunately, this style is extremely hard to find in San Diego. Thankfully, I can use my Big Green Egg to make my own version.
One of our favorite cookbooks is Steven Raichlen’s BBQ USA. This cookbook contains regional recipes for BBQ dishes. For pulled pork it includes about 8 different recipes from various regions of the country (including New Jersey).
There are two pulled pork recipes from North Carolina. Our method is similar to what Raichlen calls Lexington Pulled Pork. This is inspired by Lexington Barbecue, a legendary restaurant our family makes a point of visiting when we are in the area.
Lexington is in the center of North Carolina. Unlike the eastern section of the state, the focus is on just the pork shoulder. In eastern North Carolina they are noted for cooking an entire pig on a much larger smoker.
The other difference between central North Carolina and eastern North Carolina BBQ is the sauce. Both regions use a tangy vinegar sauce, but in the central regions the sauce is tamed with a little ketchup. However, this is still a spicy vinegar sauce and many people simply do not like it. You can see a more detailed overview and guide here.
The goal with pulled pork is a long cook at a low temperature. The meat needs to come to about 200 degrees and this can easily take 9 hours. Smoking needs to be started early in the morning to serve for dinner. For lunch time BBQs you need to cook it overnight.
With the Big Green Egg this recipe is simple and almost foolproof. The big challenge is learning how to get the egg to cook at a low temperature, around 250 degrees.
We have a guide to the Big Green Egg, but the main thing you want to do is start heating it up to around 200 degrees and then close the bottom and top of the egg to where just a little air can get in. This can take some practice but the main thing to remember is to seal off early. When the temperature gets too high it is hard to bring down.
Go here for general Big Green Egg tips
In terms of preparing the pork we like to add salt the night before. However, this is not necessary. Instead you can add the salt to the rub.
The rub goes on right before cooking. I have created my own rub, but almost any meat rub will do. There are many store-bought rubs that can work.
Once the Big Green Egg comes to about 250 degrees you add wood chips and let them start smoking. Usually we use apple or hickory wood chips. Once the chips start smoking add the insert plate (the convEGGtor) and place a drip pan on top of the plate. The grill goes on top of the plate and the pork is cooked indirectly on the grill.
At this point, it is simply a matter of waiting until the pork cooks to a temperature of around 160 degrees. This point is called the stall and it can take from 5 to 7 hours.
At the stall cooking slows dramatically. To help the meat cook faster it is recommended that you wrap it tightly in aluminum foil. At this point the pork has absorbed all the smoke so it is just a matter of getting it up to 200 degrees.
Once wrapped in foil the pork should cook fairly quickly. Plan on 1 to 2 hours at this point. However, having cooked many shoulders, I know it is best to always plan on it taking longer. If the meat is done early it can rest.
You will want to rest the meat at least a half hour before pulling the pork. If the meat is cooked an hour or more before it is ready to serve, it should be kept warm. There are several options for keeping the meat warm.
- You can turn off the Big Green Egg and keep the pork on. The temperature should still be in the 200 range for a few hours.
- Place the pork in a 200-degree oven until about a half hour before you want to pull the pork
- Place the pork, still wrapped in foil, in a cooler topped with towels. This will keep the meat at temperature for a few hours.
Of course, whatever method you use the internal temperature of the pork should be kept at least 150 degrees to avoid contamination. The beauty of pulled pork is you do not really have to worry about overcooking the meat.
To pull the pork you can use your hands (of course with gloves) or use two forks. The meat should shred easily. Any large fat pieces can be easily discarded.
We add about a cup of vinegar sauce to the meat and serve it on a platter. Additional sauce is served on the side. If there are concerns about people not liking the vinegar sauce simply let each person add their own sauce.
A popular way to serve North Carolina BBQ is as a sandwich with coleslaw. Unlike most slaw recipes, the slaw we use does NOT have mayonnaise. It is simply cabbage tossed with the vinegar sauce. You can see our recipe.
If you don’t have a Big Green Egg you can use any smoker and even add smoke to a regular grill. We have also developed an oven method that uses sous vide. This is great for cold winter days.
Big Green Egg North Carolina Pulled Pork
Ingredients
- 5 to 7 lbs boneless pork shoulder
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 cup wood chips cherry or hickory
Rub
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
Sauce
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons hot sauce Texas Pete, Franks, Crystal
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- The day before cooking add salt to pork and refrigerate overnight.
- Heat Big Green Egg to 225 to 275 degrees. Combine rub ingredients in a bowl and coat pork on all side.
- Add wood chips to Big Green Egg, close lid and wait for smoke to appear (about 10 to 20 minutes). Place convEGGtor insert plate in grill. Place drip pan on convEGGtor, place grill above drip and place pork directly on grill.
- Cook the pork until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees, about 5 to 7 hours. Remove pork and wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Return pork to Big Green Egg and continue cooking until pork temperature reaches 200 degrees.
- Remove pork and let cool for 20 minutes. Using fingers or forks pull pork into long thin threads. Transfer to serving platter and coat with 1 cup of sauce. Serve pork with coleslaw, hamburger buns, and additional sauce.
- To make the sauce combine all ingredients in a bowl. Whisk to dissolve salt and sugar. Store in a jar and refrigerate any leftover sauce.
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