On Hanukkah....pulled pork sandwiches?

The last few years, I have been much better about the holidays.  We had the menorah out early, lit candles on appropriate days, and set out the Christmukkah tree with much enthusiasm.  This year?  Eh.....well....let's just say that this year, the holidays have taken this girl a little bit by surprise.

Perhaps it's because the past 4 years, the Jewish calendar did not bring about Hanukkah so early in the month?  I think that one year it even started the day AFTER Christmas, making it much easier for me to meld the two holidays.  This year, however, the first night went without recognition in our household and, inadvertently, marked the first night I've ever made.....pulled pork sandwiches.

And while I certainly feel guilty for my blatant slap in the Jewish face,  it was DELICIOUS + celebratory in our own way, and I'm hoping to combat the bad with the kindness of sharing the yummy + really easy recipe with ya'll.  We're totally making this again...and again...and again.

Oven Roasted Pulled Pork Sandwich.

 Topped with COLD + COLORFUL cole slaw and a side of COLD + unadorned cucumber chips.

Oven Roasted Pulled Pork by Tyler Florence

Dry Rub:

• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 3 tablespoons coarse salt

Other ingredients:

• 1 (5 to 7 pound) pork roast, preferably shoulder or Boston butt
• 12 buns (I used Orowheat Sandwich Thins)
• 1 recipe Spicy Slaw, recipe follows (highly recommend this recipe!)
• Pickle spears (switched out for thin slices of COLD cucumber)

Directions:

Mix the paprika, garlic power, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt together in a small bowl. Rub the spice blend all over the pork and marinate for as long as you have time for, as little as 1 hour or up to overnight, covered, in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.  Put the pork in a roasting pan and bake for about 6 hours. Basically, roast the pork until it's falling apart and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 170 degrees F. Remove the pork roast from the oven and transfer to a large platter. Allow the meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While still warm, take 2 forks and "pull" the meat to form shreds. Using 2 forks, shred the pork by steadying the meat with 1 fork and pulling it away with the other. Put the shredded pork in a bowl. Pour 1/2 of the sauce (recipe below...I made it, but then decided to use a bottle of bbq sauce instead) on the shredded pork and mix well to coat.

To serve, spoon the pulled pork mixture onto the bottom 1/2 of the hamburger bun, and top with the spicy slaw. Serve with pickle spears and the remaining sauce on the side.  Fyi, on the telly, Tyler Florence served his sandwich with a side of kettle chips.

Cider Vinegar Barbecue Sauce

• 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
• 1 cup yellow or brown mustard
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

To make the barbecue sauce: combine the vinegar, mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, garlic, salt, cayenne, and black pepper in a saucepan over medium heat. Simmer gently, stirring, for 10 minutes until the sugar dissolves.

Flavorful Cole Slaw

• 1 head green cabbage, shredded (I did one bag each of shredded green and red cabbage)
  
• 2 carrots, grated (increased to 3 carrots)
  
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 red chile, sliced  (forgot to pick it up, so didn't include)
  
• 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Creole mustard (what's a Creole mustard?  used dijon)
  
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Pinch sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed (omg, SO glad I remembered to get some of this.  YUM)
  
• Several dashes hot sauce (went with Tapatio...was the only hot sauce we had besides Sriracha)
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the cabbage, carrot, red onion, green onions, and chile in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar; stirring to incorporate. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss gently to mix. Season the cole slaw with celery seed, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Chill for 2 hours in refrigerator before serving.