Slow Cooker Pulled Pork and Kitchen Claws Giveaway

Wow, this week is wiping me out – it’s been a busy one!  But today’s easy recipe for pulled pork in the slow cooker is actually perfect for busy weeks like this one, and I want to show you some tools you need to add to your kitchen if you’re a fan of easy shredded meat dishes, salads, and roasts.  KitchenReady Tools is sponsoring today’s fun foodie giveaway, and gave me a pair of their Kitchen Claws to put them to the test.

Oh, and I sure did.  We made up this fabulous pulled pork recipe on Sunday for our fantasy draft party, to keep feeding people easy.  I cooked it in the slow cooker… which, as you know, pretty much means you throw a few ingredients together and then let it cook itself.  Win.

Kitchen Claws work great for lifting and shredding meats, and tossing salads.  While I could see the obvious benefit of shredding and tossing, I was really curious to see how they would actually improve my experience in the kitchen for lifting.  (Because, I’m thinking, how is it really all that hard to lift a roast?)  But oh my goodness!  Distributing the weight of a 4-lb roast over a larger area, using both hands, and having the substantial handles to hold it, made me feel a little bit foolish about every time I’ve ever gouged up a beautiful roast by trying to lift it with a pair of forks, or ended up toppling it with a spatula.  I was able to reach into the slow cooker, get under the roast, and pull it right out.  I really didn’t expect to get as much benefit for as simple a task as lifting a roast as I did.

Now, of course in my case, I don’t care if this recipe falls apart because the next step is to shred it.  But when you consider that it’s been slow-cooked for about 8 hours and is pretty much falling apart, lifting it out totally intact like this is actually pretty impressive.

Shredding the whole thing took less than a minute, and it left a lot of perfect bite-sized chunks. (If you’d like to see a live-action demo, check out KitchenReady’s latest YouTube video.)

4.7 from 6 reviews

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

 

Serves: 12

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 6 hours

Total time: 6 hours 20 mins

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Ingredients

• 5 lb. pork shoulder
• ¼ c. brown sugar
• 1½ tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• ½ tsp. chili powder
• ½ tsp. onion powder
• 1½ Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (the original recipe uses canola oil)
• ⅓ c. beef stock (the original recipe calls for beer)
• 1-2 c. your favorite BBQ sauce (we love Weber, it's gluten-free)

Instructions

1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl, and rub roast with half the spice mixture.
2. Heat a pan big enough for your roast and add the oil. Sear roast on all sides for 1-2 minutes until just golden brown.
3. Put the roast into the slow cooker on low. Pour in the beef stock. We added 1 c. BBQ sauce as well. Cook for 6-8 hours, until the pork shreds easily (you can test it with a fork).
4. Remove roast from slow cooker, and shred with Kitchen Claws. Of your remaining spice mixture, add half to the meat, and 1 c. BBQ sauce (this is why I say 1-2 cups - you will probably only need 1 c. if you don't cook it with sauce).
5. Return shredded pork to slow cooker to keep hot until serving. Just prior to serving, you can add the remaining spice mixture if you like.
6. Serving suggestion - I loved this recipe on pretzel buns with a side of coleslaw. As we prepared it, it's gluten-free if served on gluten free rolls!

3.2.2708

KitchenReady is actually a company local to me.  I actually talked to Patrick about how he came to find himself in the business of kitchen tools, and he’s a lot like most of us – a full time food enthusiast.  He’s an amateur chef who got started because he wanted to improve the quality of shredding tools.  After cooking for luaus with his dad for a number of years, he knew that if there was a way to speed up the carving and shredding process of meats, it would allow for a lot more time to enjoy the celebration.  After being disappointed with the quality and design of similar shredding tools, he made improvements and rolled out Kitchen Claws to the public this year.

The heat-resistant polycarbonate is food safe, and the design has a lifetime guarantee.  Kitchen Claws are available exclusively on Amazon, and with every purchase you will also get a free recipe book with great recipes like this one (and some others I can’t wait to try)!  There are some variations in the book for preparing this recipe in the oven, too!  Patrick is also sharing an exclusive 25% discount on your purchase to Happy Hour Projects readers – here’s how to take advantage:

• Visit Amazon.com and add Kitchen Claws to your cart
• Enter code SAVE25HH at checkout to save 25%!

KitchenReady Tools is also giving away a set of Kitchen Claws to one of my foodie friends!  U.S. readers can enter now through September 4, 2014.  Read on – Rafflecopter will walk you through how to enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

So what would you use KitchenReady’s Kitchen Claws for in your kitchen? I’d love to her your ideas, leave me a comment!