"Impress your tailgate or backyard BBQ guests! In slider form, these make great starters or sides for bigger barbecue and smoked meat meals, and they’re super fare for football tailgating parties or picnics. Be sure to include on your next tailgate or homegate menu!"
Ingredients for Pork Shoulder:
3/4 pound jar rosemary and garlic brine (I used a brining mix from Williams-Sonoma)
2 pounds pork shoulder
Ingredients for Coleslaw:
2 cups red and green cabbage, shredded and chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons honey mustard salad dressing
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 medium apples (try honeycrisps or galas), cored and chopped
1 medium apple, cored and sliced into rounds
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup shredded carrots
For the Pork Shoulder:
Brine for 24 hours in a rosemary and garlic brining mix. Put the shoulder in the smoker at 220°F, with Hickory Bisquettes during the first 2 hours. Let it smoke overnight for about 8 1/2 hours. Early in the morning the next day, double foil-wrap it and let it go for 2 1/2 hours more. Remove pork shoulder and let it rest. After it has cooled, slice and refrigerate.
For the Coleslaw:
Combine cabbage, carrots, and chopped apples in a large bowl. Mix wet ingredients with a whisk or in a blender. This should be a lightly sauced and barely coated slaw mix. The cabbage, carrots, and apple will give off liquid as they smoke, and the fat in the mayonnaise will render, so avoid ending up with a warmly boiled slaw that does not absorb smoke.
Spread out a thin layer of slaw in a shallow aluminum-roasting pan so the maximum surface area is exposed to the smoke. Smoke at 215°F–220°F for about 2 hours. Use apple wood to complement with the apples in the slaw mix. The cabbage should be a bit less crisp but not limp, with brown toasting on the edges. Toss the mixture to redistribute.
To Serve:
Cut several slices of refrigerated smoked shoulder to fit slider-sized buns. Set naked in a hot pan until they sizzle and brown. Turn each piece and push to one side of the pan. Lay in round apple slices to brown in the rendering fat. When all have color, remove the pan from heat.
Slice a slider roll in half. Spoon on smoked slaw and layer on the pork. Top off this juicy little sandwich with a browned apple slice. There should be ample slaw leftover on the side.
Tip: In slider form, these make great starters or sides for bigger barbecue and smoked meat meals, and they’re super fare for football tailgating parties or picnics.