Traeger Carolina Pork Shoulder – Recipe and Cooking Guide

The Cooking Process

This is what I did and when:

Preparing the Pork:

1. Trim the Pork: Trim any excess fat from the pork shoulder, leaving a thin layer to keep it moist during cooking.
2. Season the Pork: In a small bowl, mix together the yellow mustard, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper to form a marinade (or a very wet rub).
3. Apply the Rub: Rub the spice mixture all over the pork shoulder, ensuring it’s evenly coated. Let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight, to allow the flavors to penetrate the meat.

I will say here from the outset that this was a really different way of smoking a port shoulder than I was used to. I have always followed the old rub, smoke till after the crawl, wrap will internal temp and then rest as long as possible.

Working with marinades and and then, as we will see below, not wrapping at all, was a a test for me, but it was a lot of fun to learn something new for sure.

Smoking the Pork:

1. Preheat the Pellet Smoker: Preheat your pellet smoker to 225°F (107°C). I used Apple pellets but you can obviously use whatever you like to at the time.
2. Smoke the Pork: Place the seasoned pork shoulder directly on the smoker rack, fat side up. Close the lid and let it smoke for about 6-8 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 195-205°F (90-96°C). – Yep – no wrap!
3. Spritzing: Every hour or so, spritz the pork with apple juice to keep it moist and enhance the flavor.
4. Check for Doneness: Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the pork in several places to ensure it’s cooked through and tender. It should easily shred apart with a fork when it’s done.

One of the reasons I have always wrapped my shoulder was to keep the moisture in. hence, I must admit to being a little nervous about leaving this one on the smoker for so long (needlessly I might add).

However during the cook, I used an apple cider spritz on the meat every half hour to an hour. I also used a drip pan filled with water under the grill tray as well.

Rest the Pork:

1. Rest the Pork: Once done, remove the pork shoulder from the smoker and let it rest for about about an hour (or longer if you can). This allows the juices to redistribute, resulting in a juicier and more flavorful pulled pork.

Making the Sauce

Whilst the pork is smoking away merrily, you can create the sauce as follows:

1. Combine Ingredients: In a medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients into a saucepan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar and blend the flavors.
2. Simmer and Stir: Once the sauce begins to simmer, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer gently for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Adjust Consistency: If the sauce is too thick for your liking, you can thin it out with a bit of water or apple cider vinegar. If it’s too thin, you can simmer it for a few more minutes to thicken it up.
4. Taste and Adjust Seasoning: Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning to your preference. Add more salt, pepper, or hot sauce if desired.
5. Cool and Store: Once done, remove the saucepan from the heat and let the Carolina BBQ sauce cool to room temperature. Transfer it to a jar or airtight container and store it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

This makes one of the tangiest and most delicious BBQ sauces I have ever made and certainly brought back memories of that very first taste way back when.

I did however have trouble getting the mustard to fully dissolve so I actually pushed it through a mesh sieve to mix it properly as well.

Serving the Pork

1. Shred the Pork: Using two forks, shred the smoked pork shoulder into small, bite-sized pieces.
2. Sauce the Pork: Toss the shredded pork with your barbecue sauce or keep it as is and add as you need.