Jacqui and I had a fairly heated discussion the other day, over pulled pork! Now I realise there may be more important things we could be discussing but pulled pork is a very serious business and one which has been left to do it’s own thing for far too long.

Jacqui’s opinion was that she is totally and utterly over pulled pork and to some extent I agree. Once you see a dish go from a thing of joy to every pub menu and even a supermarket sandwich filling, then yes it’s days are numbered. But proper, hot, succulent, sticky, slow cooked pig should never go out of favour. It should have meltingly soft strands with the occasional crispy bit. It should be flavoured with herbs and spices and tossed in a smoky, sweet, spicy sauce. It should make you salivate just at the thought.

Sadly though and this is where Jacqui is right, too many places get it wrong. Some recent examples that I’ve experienced include one that was perfectly cooked but smothered in fennel seeds. Another didn’t add flavour at all, which made the meat somewhat unloved and neglected. Cold pulled pork in a bun is a huge no – the meat needs to be warm but not hot. Dripping in bog standard barbecue sauce is another no-no. If you can’t be bothered to make your own, at least buy a decent one, I’d happily recommend Daylesford which has the perfect balance of a thick, smoky, spicy sweetness.

The days of pulled pork may well be coming to an end if so many places can’t get it right. The recent news that KFC have introduced a pulled chicken burger has just made me sigh repeatedly for days. They are serving it in a brioche bun with two pieces of their normal chicken and a Kentucky Black sauce along with some allegedly Southern coleslaw… Sigh. Interestingly, they haven’t actually launched it in Kentucky itself. I can’t imagine why.

Anyway, if you want really good pulled pork make it yourself. Get a good shoulder, massage a good rub right into it and then slow cook it for as long as you can. Finish it off on a barbecue so you get that smoky flavour (assuming you cooked it in the oven) and then slowly pull it apart so you get shreds and chunks, mixing succulent meat with those amazing burnt ends then drizzle over your awesome homemade bbq sauce. Sorted!