My husband has become quite enamored of a sandwich that Iron Hill Brewery, one of our favorite family restaurants, serves and which they have somewhat oddly named The Carolina Pork Barbecue. The pulled pork concoction is light on the smoky, sticky, sweet barbacue sauce that I find so objectionable (frankly, I think it's one of the worst things about summer - why it's impossible to get a grilled chicken breast without for three solid months is beyond me) and leans more toward the lightly peppery and vinegary.


On our last visit I was convinced to abandon my conviction that all barbacue sucks and try a bite, if only so that I could attempt a recreation in our own kitchen. What a revelation! The rich, ever-so-slightly fatty meat blended with the sharp sauce to create what I think you almost call a vinaigrette - fat and vinegar, salt and pepper and just the smallest hint of smoke all worked together to complement the meat's delicate, lacy texture. Abandon my conviction I did and I am currently roasting a rather large pork butt as the first step toward making karmic ammends to pork barbecue lovers everywhere.


Normally, I would have tried slow grilling the meat but I wasn't sure if we had enough propane and refilling stations aren't exactly thick on the ground here in January. So I slid the roast - thickly rubbed with fresh ground rosemary, garlic, pepper, cayenne, black pepper, salt and oregano (the last a remainder of a Sardinian ex-uncle) into a slow (about 250 degrees F) oven about five hours ago, with just the smallest amount of chicken broth at the bottom of the pan. At the last check the pork was just getting to pullability. I'd give it another hour or so.


Even if I didn't make a sauce, the roast would be delicious. The bits I've cut off to taste have been sublime - earthy, pungent, moist and suave. Awesome. But, a Caroline Pork Barbecue needs its sauce, does it not? I've made a couple test batches of sauce but because I need to test them on the pulled meat I won't be able to tell how close I they are to the real deal. Each starts with cider vinegar and proceeds from there into various combinations and amounts of black pepper, Worchestshire sauce, red or cayenne peppers, dry mustard, prepared mustard, paprika, minced onion and/or liquid smoke.


Once the meat is pulled the testing will commence. Tough job but someone has to do it. Oh...and someone will have to go buy rolls tomorrow, too, and I'm guessing that beer would be in order as well. Stay tuned!