Pulled Pork Fajitas

Day before serving:

Trim the pork shoulder of some, but not all, of the fat. (If desired, you may leave all of the fat on.) With the fat side up, cut the pork into three pieces. Most pork shoulders have a bone on one end of the roast. This means that you will not be able to cut the shoulder into three even pieces—but that’s OK. If your butcher has already removed the bone, great! Otherwise, leave the bone in. Trust me, the bone will easily fall out on its own when the pork is done cooking.

For the rub, mix all of the dry ingredients together. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the dry mixture for the veggies. It’s easy to forget to reserve that tablespoon of dry rub so make every effort to remember.

To the remaining rub, add the vinegar and olive oil and mix well. Rub the mixture all over the meat—and I mean RUB IT IN. Get rough with that pork and let it know who’s boss. Place the pork in a roasting pan (fat side up), cover, and refrigerate AT LEAST overnight. It’s even better after marinating for 24 hours.

On the day of serving:

Take the roasting pan out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter while the oven is preheating. Preheat the oven to 275F. Make sure the roasting pan is tightly covered in aluminum foil. Bake the pork for about 5 hours. Take the roasting pan out of the oven and increase the temperature to 375F. Remove the foil from the roasting pan and use a spoon to baste the pork with some of the drippings on the bottom of the pan. Bake, uncovered, for another 45 minutes to allow the meat to brown.

Remove the pan from the oven, cover it with foil, and let it rest for at least 15 minutes. After the pork has rested, take it out of the roasting pan and pull the pork into bite-size pieces.

When the pork is resting, cut the onions, bell pepper, and garlic.

To prepare the veggies, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the olive oil or use some of the drippings from the bottom of the roasting pan. When hot, add the onions and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or until they are starting to char. Add the bell pepper and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic, 1 teaspoon of the reserved dry spice mixture, and the juice of half a lime. Mix well and cook for 1 minute.

To serve, add some of the pulled pork to a warmed tortilla. Add some of the veggies and your favorite toppings.

Note: This tastes even BETTER the next day. You reserved enough of the dried spice mixture to make another 2 batches of veggies for leftovers. The next day, just make another batch of veggies, reheat the meat, and you have quick and easy leftovers.

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