kimchi MOM ™

Recipes and stories from a Korean American kitchen

Spicy Seoulful Pulled Pork Sandwiches #SundaySupper

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#SundaySupper is a group of bloggers who are on a mission to bring back sunday supper around the family table in every home. This week we are sharing our favorite cookout recipes for #LaborDay weekend!

We are having a very relaxed and lazy Labor Day weekend. The calm before the storm so to speak. We did not plan any last minute trips to the beach or the outlet malls. We are taking it easy and will be firing up the grill and dining al fresco since we have been blessed with some warm, dry weather!

I’ve had plenty of pulled pork sandwiches, but have never attempted to make it home until now. I was inspired by a slow cooker recipe by the folks at Cook’s Illustrated and I thought I’d put a Korean spin on it. The heat mellows out as it cooks, but the unique tangy and sweet flavors from the kochujang (Korean red pepper paste) still linger. And if you happen to have any leftovers, this also freezes really well!

Spicy Seoulful Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Adapted from The Best Make-Ahead Recipes by Cook’s Illustrated

Serves 6-8

4 1/2 pounds pork butt
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup fine kochugaru (Korean red pepper powder)
1 Tablespoon onion powder
1 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup kochujang (Korean fermented red pepper paste)
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
salt and pepper

6-8 potato hamburger buns or rolls (because potato rolls are my favorite!)

1 – Cut the pork in half lengthwise for more surface area for the spice rub.

2 – In a small bowl, mix together the kochugaru, brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. This is your spice rub.

3 – Massage the spice rub all over the pork. Make sure you cover the entire surface of the pork pieces. Work that rub!

4 – Wrap each piece of pork tightly in plastic wrap. Make sure it’s wrapped well because, believe me, there will be leakage.

5 – Refrigerate the pork overnight.

6 – To make the kochujang sauce: in a small bowl, whisk together the kochujang, vinegar, brown sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Make sure the sauce is well blended.

7 – Unwrap the pork and place the pieces in the slow cooker insert. Pour the sauce over the pork. Set on high for 5-7 hours or on low for 9-11 hours.

8 – Go run some errands, take a nap, and have a glass of wine. Not necessarily in that order.

9 – Check on the pork. You’ll know it’s done when it’s fork tender. Oh yeah.

10 – Once it’s done, with a slotted spoon or tongs, scoop the pork into a 9×13 baking dish. Let the remaining sauce in the slow cooker settle for about 5-10 minutes.

11 – In the meantime, you can pull apart the pork with 2 forks. It should pull apart pretty easily at this point. Cover loosely with foil.

12 – With a large shallow spoon, degrease the sauce. Skim the grease from the top and discard. Once you’ve taken as much grease out as possible, pour the sauce over the pulled pork. Toss the pork until well coated.

13 – Generously spoon pork onto your rolls and enjoy!

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Join us this week around the family table for our #SundaySupper and we will share with you our favorite cookout recipes.  We hope to inspire you with our recipes!.  We will be sharing them all day long and would love for you to share your favorite cookout recipes during our #SundaySupper live chat at 7pm ET on Sunday, September 2nd.

Labor Day Cookout Recipes:

Starters & Snacks

Main Dishes

Salads & Sides

Drinks

Desserts

Wine Pairings

  • Labor Day Cookout Food And Wine Pairings byENOFYLZ
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Comments

    • kimchi_mom says

      I couldn’t resist with the play on words.
      And yes, you really can’t go wrong with pork and Korean spices!

    • kimchi_mom says

      Yeah, it was pretty delish and dangerous…one day I ate it for breakfast (great with eggs), lunch (great with greens), and dinner! Thanks for stopping by!

  8. Eileen Gross says

    I can do step #8, hubby will do the other 12 ~ this is amazing! and using the slow cooker is even better! I am always looking for crowd pleasing slow cooker meals for big parties, and this one is the next one I’m {{actually, hubby}} will make!
    Cheers!
    Eileen Gross | Wine Everyday

  11. Jennie @themessybakerblog says

    This looks absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to try it. Pinned. Happy #SundaySupper!

  13. diabeticFoodie says

    Okay, it’s time for me to find a source for Korean spices. I love pulled pork and your version sounds scrumptious!

  20. Brandie says

    Your Korean twist on pulled pork sandwiches sounds amazing! I’m gonna have to search out this kochujang…is it easy to find? I’m guessing there is somewhere in Vegas that sells it.

      • Brandie says

        Thanks Amy! I believe 99 Ranch is the store I’ve seen them shopping at for the current Top Chef Masters….didn’t even think of that. I’m excited to make this!

        • kimchi_mom says

          I’ve been watching TC Masters also. I thought they just went to Whole Foods! I guess I wasn’t watching that closely. 😉

  22. Erin Sellin says

    I love pulled pork! This look incredible, I love the Korean twist to it. I will be trying this in our house!

  24. Family Foodie says

    Amy, this is an incredible recipe that I can’t wait to try. Beautiful photography. Thank you for sharing during #Sundaysupper

  27. Paula @ Vintage Kitchen says

    Just a wonderful pulled pork sandwich! Love the list of ingredients and the pic looks yummy!

    • kimchi_mom says

      It’s not overwhelmingly spicy so even kids can even enjoy it! Thanks for stopping by Laura!

  29. Carla says

    I love your Korean twist on an American classic! I never cook Korean food (not sure if I’ve eaten it?!), so this would be great to expand my cooking horizons. Pinning so I can remember it for later!

  31. Sarah says

    We are going to take over the world with Korean spices and flavors. Can you hear my evil laugh? Mhahaha

Trackbacks

  20. […] recipes is the #SundaySupper Recipe Index.  I remembered that Amy, Kimchi Mom, had made beautiful Spicy Seoulful Pulled Pork Sandwiches for our Labor Day Party.    The fact that  Amy had taken a recipe adapted from The Best […]

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