Smoked Pulled Pork with Spring Cabbage

We built a smoke box for smoking the pork, but the easiest way to do this is to roast it overnight in an oven, and then smoke it in a kettle grill the following day. In order to achieve the best results, the pork should be salted and placed in a cool place the previous day.

INGREDIENTS:

Number of servings

Serves 15

List of ingredients

1 piece of pulled pork, 13 lbs. (6 kg)

1 star anise

5 tbs. caraway

2 tbs. whole cumin

3 tbs. dill seeds

5 tbs. fennel seeds

1 tbs. dried chilli seeds

½ cinnamon stick

2 tbs. beer cider

5 tbs. birch or maple syrup

5 cloves of garlic

10 tbs. salt for the spice mixture and for salting the pork

5 spring cabbages

6 carrots, cut into thin strips

2 cucumbers, cut into thin strips

2 fennel bulbs, cut into thin strips

1 tbs. fresh oregano

1 orange

5 tbs. butter

PREPARATION:

• Rub the salt into the pork and allow it to stand overnight in a cool place.

• Using a blender or a mortar, crush the star anise, 2 tablespoons of the caraway, the cumin, fennel seeds, chili seeds, cinnamon stick, dill seeds, beer vinegar, birch or maple syrup, garlic cloves and 2 tablespoons salt to form a spicy paste. Rub the pork with the spicy paste. Cook the pork on a grid overnight at 170 Fahrenheit (75-80 Celsius). Place a fireproof dish beneath the pork to collect the juices.

• Light the grill and place the coals on one side. When the coals are hot, place the pork on the side without the coals and throw on the chips.

• Check to ensure that the temperature remains at around 250 Fahrenheit (120 Celsius). You need to keep checking the grill to ensure that the temperature does not drop or rise too much. The pork should have a temperature of around 150 Fahrenheit (70 Celsius) when it is ready. When the smoke starts to die down, you should throw on more chips. Continue in this way 2-3 times until you think that the pork has been smoked enough. If the meat looks like it might start to burn, you can protect it from the heat by placing some foil between it and the coals.

• Meantime, you can divide the spring cabbage into 4 large boats, removing the stalk/root. Place the cabbage in a large casserole dish or several small ones. Top with the butter and caraway. Cover with a lid and steam the cabbage for 15 minutes over a medium heat until it is soft and the leaves fall away from each other.

• In a bowl, fold the carrots, cucumber, and fennel into the juice from the orange, the orange peel, and fresh oregano.

• Serve the pulled pork with the carrot salad and the spring cabbage.