Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork

Steps

1. Stir the rub ingredients together and rub them all over the pork chunks.
2. Set the pressure cooker to sauté on high and add the oil.
3. Brown (how to brown)

   Brown Cook food in a hot pan until its surface turns brown, which adds rich, roasted flavor. 1. Pat the food dry; for ground meat, let the pan get hot first.2. Add a little oil and spread the food in one layer.3. Leave it alone for a few minutes so the bottom browns, then turn or break it up.4. Work in batches if it won't fit in one layer.5. Pour off extra fat if the recipe says to. Done when: Most surfaces are brown, not gray, and the bottom of the pan has browned bits (they are flavor, not burn). Safety: Hot oil spatters: dry the food first, lay it in the pan moving away from you, and keep a lid nearby. Never put water on an oil fire; slide the lid over it and turn off the heat. Browned outside doesn't mean cooked inside: ground beef needs 160°F, poultry 165°F.How to brown meat and vegetables: mistakes to avoid

   the pork in two batches, turning a few times. Move it to a plate.
   ⏱ Brown pork: 8 min
4. Turn off the sauté setting. Add the onion, broth and vinegar and scrape the bottom until nothing sticks. This prevents a burn warning.
5. Set the pork on top of the onions and pour any juices from the plate over it.
6. Lock the lid and set the valve to sealing.
7. Cook at high pressure. (The pot takes 10 to 15 minutes to come up to pressure before the countdown starts.)
   ⏱ High pressure: 1 hr
8. Let the pressure release naturally.
   ⏱ Natural release: 15 min
9. Turn the valve to venting to release any pressure that remains, then open the lid away from your face.
10. Move the pork to a cutting board. It should be very tender, at least 145°F (63°C) and usually well above 195°F. If it doesn't shred easily, cook it 10 minutes more at high pressure.
11. Shred (how to shred)

    Shred Pull cooked meat (or cabbage and other vegetables) into thin strands. 1. Let cooked meat cool just until you can handle it, and take out any bones.2. Hold the piece in place with one fork.3. Drag a second fork through it, following the grain, so it pulls apart in strands.4. Toss the strands with a spoonful of the cooking juices so they stay moist. Done when: The meat pulls apart with almost no effort. If it fights you, it needs more cooking time. Safety: Meat straight from the pot holds steam inside; open it up and let it cool for a few minutes first.How to shred cooked meat with two forks: mistakes to avoid

    the pork with two forks, discarding any fatty pieces.
12. Spoon the fat off the liquid in the pot. Return the pork, add the barbecue sauce and about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid, and stir.
13. Set the pot to sauté and

    simmer (how to simmer)

    Simmer Cook liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles breaking the surface now and then. 1. Bring the liquid up over medium-high heat.2. As soon as bubbles rise steadily, turn the heat down.3. Adjust until only a few small bubbles break the surface every second or two.4. Stir now and then and check that it hasn't crept back to a boil. Done when: You see lazy, small bubbles, not a rolling boil. A "bare" simmer has just a bubble here and there. Safety: Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to simmer: mistakes to avoid

    , stirring, until the sauce clings to the meat.
    ⏱ Simmer: 3 min
14. Pile the pork on buns with coleslaw, pickles and extra sauce.

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Tips

• Pork shoulder is safe at 145°F, but it only gets tender enough to shred at about 195°F to 205°F, so cook it by tenderness.
• Cutting the shoulder into chunks helps it cook evenly and pick up more seasoning.
• Use a separate cutting board for raw meat, and wash hands, boards and knives in hot soapy water after handling it.

Storage

Refrigerate in an airtight container within 2 hours, up to 4 days. Freeze with some of the cooking liquid up to 3 months.

Make ahead

Make up to 3 days ahead. Reheat in a covered pan with a splash of the cooking liquid until hot (165°F).

Cook once, eat twice: Double it (16 servings instead of 8), eat half and freeze the other half. It keeps 3 months frozen, by the storage note above. Print a freezer label · More freezer meals

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage. In season: cabbage (October to March).