Pulled pork

Could you tell me the best way to cook pulled pork? I tried just roasting it very slowly in the oven, and although it was tender, it was also dry. Mavis

here’s much to be debated about with pulled pork, from the cut (I prefer shoulder or belly) and the cooking method (it originates from the southern American states and is barbecued slowly over charcoal at a low temperature) to the flavourings — should it be packed full of powdered garlic and dried herbs (no thanks) or just a little sugar, salt and smoked paprika (yes please). In my mind, I cook pork the same way as I do a lamb shoulder if I’m wanting the meat to be tender, stringy, moist and juicy. We occasionally make a samosa at The Providores that was created by one of our ex head-chefs, Cristian Hossack, who is now head chef at Casita Miro on Waiheke. Crisso marinated the lamb shoulders in plenty of Indian spices and then slowly cooked them, covered with foil, for an eternity. The slow cooking and sealed-in atmosphere ensured that the flavour and moisture was retained. He’d take them from the oven, pull out the bones as it’s easier to cook them on the bone, we’d all eat quite a lot of it, then whatever was left would be pulled apart, mixed with diced cooked potatoes and peas and get wrapped up in brick pastry and deep-fried. Served with yoghurt and pomegranate molasses they were the best “samosas” in London, even if the pastry was totally inauthentic.

But I digress. You want to know about pulled pork. I’d suggest you use pork shoulder, either on or off the bone — although the latter will take up less space in your oven. If you’ve got an organic or free-range beauty, which will be full of delicious porky flavour, you might want to keep the flavours quite simple when cooking it and serve with a variety of tasty salads and dressings. In this case, you needn’t take the skin off, but simply slash it 5mm deep through the skin. In this case I’d rub an average-sized shoulder in a mixture of 1 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 Tbsp coarse flaky salt (use ½ if using fine salt) and 2 tsp smoked paprika. If you want to go crazy with flavours like the beforementioned dried garlic or a premade barbecue spice mix, then you’re best to remove the skin completely as it forms a barrier between meat and flavour.

Turn the oven to 220C, fan-bake. In a deep-sided roasting dish, sit the shoulder on a few peeled and sliced carrots and onions, along with a few star anise, a cinnamon stick and a head of roughly chopped unpeeled garlic. Or