Vintage Church Supper Pork Butt

Vintage Church Supper Pork Butt

I never starve at a church potluck. Someone brings a dessert with enough sugar to keep the entire room awake for a week, someone else brings a casserole that has been passed down in their family for three generations, and somewhere near the end of the table is a slow cooker full of pulled pork.

That’s usually where the queue starts. This recipe reminds me of those dishes. Not because it is fancy or showy but because it feeds people well, and does so without making life complicated. The kind of recipe you begin in the wee hours and forget about most of the day, then return to when the house smells wonderful.

“The first time I made it, family coming over on Sunday afternoon. No formalities. Just one of those gatherings where people walk into the kitchen, open the refrigerator without asking, and settle in. I wanted something simple. I grabbed a pork butt, threw some pantry ingredients together, poured everything into the slow cooker and crossed my fingers.

In a few hours the smell had begun to seep through the house. The aroma of sweet barbecue sauce, garlic, vinegar, and slow-cooked pork filled every room. People began to drift into the kitchen long before dinner. The lid was raised by someone. Someone else asked if it was ready.

I took that as a good omen. The pork was falling apart all by itself by the time dinner was served. The sauce thickened and grew rich, coating every shred of meat. We piled it on soft hamburger buns, added a scoop of coleslaw, and stood around the kitchen island eating and talking over each other.

Those are usually, honestly, the best meals. Not ones that cost money. Not the tricky ones. Just good food with people you enjoy spending time with. I make this recipe now whenever I want something I can rely on. Family dinners, game days, backyard get-togethers, random weekends when I don’t feel like cooking much. It always goes well, and for some reason there are never quite as many leftovers as I think there will be.

Ingredients

• 1 3-4 pound pork butt (pork shoulder)
• 1 cup barbeque sauce
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp garlic powder

How to use