12 Hour Roast Pork

Pork Shoulder...have you ever made one? Up until I tried this recipe I hadn't. Now I am a disciple. Tender, juicy, flavorful, yum! This is an adaptation of a Suzanne Summers recipe that my friend Rhonda gave me. I know... Suzanne doesn't look like she would be making or eating a recipe like this. But...she has and does. It's one of her favorite recipes for a crowd and that is why I'm including it in my Super Bowl recipes. You can shred it and serve it with as many condiments as you can think of. I'll get you started: warm, flour tortillas, guacamole, chopped onions, black beans, shredded mexican cheese, sour cream, salsa. The list is endless. This roast can cook anywhere from 12 hours to 18 hours. It roasts all night while you are sleeping and just falls apart it's so tender. You can not believe how good your house smells when you wake up in the morning. If you get up during the night to go potty, you might not be able to go back to sleep...you'll just be dying to take a peek and a taste!

12 Hour Pork Roast

1 whole pork shoulder with skin (6 - 8 lbs.) *You need to order this in advance from your butcher - most places don't carry pork shoulder with the skin on...and trust me, you want the skin on.
12 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1.6 oz. bottle of fennel seeds (love fennel!)
salt and pepper
8 small dried red chilies - I've also used 2 large dried ancho chili peppers
juice of 3 lemons
4 Tbls. olive oil

Pan Drippings (optional)

1 14 oz. can chicken broth
juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 450*.
Score the entire skin of the pork shoulder (as you would a ham) by slicing deeply through the skin into the meat. Place the garlic, fennel seeds, s & p to taste, and the chilies in a food processor. Pulse until all the seasonings are coarsely ground. Rub this mixture all over the skin of the pork and into the cut areas to cover all surfaces of the meat.

Place the shoulder on a rack in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes, or until the skin begins to crackle and brown. Combine the lemon juice and the olive oil in a glass measuring cup and pour half of this over the roast.

Turn the oven temp. down to 250* for 12 hours or 225* for 12 - 18 hours. and roast the pork. The pork becomes almost shredded, crispy on the outside and moist from the juices inside. It's ready when it is completely soft under the crisp skin. You can tell by pushing with your finger; the meat will give and might even fall off the bone. Baste occasionally with the remaining lemon juice/olive oil.

For delicious pan drippings, remove the meat from the pan. Pour off most of the fat, leaving 2 - 3 Tbls. in the pan. Place the roasting pan with all the bits of meat stuck to the bottom on the stove over medium heat. Scrape the bits as the pan heats up. When the pan is hot, add the can of chicken broth and the lemon juice. Deglaze the pan. Let the broth and juices reduce for about 5 minutes. Spoon the sauce over the meat if desired.

Now you can serve as I suggested above for Super Bowl, or you can serve it with mashed potatoes, a vegetable, and sauteed apples. Let me know how you like it...