This pulled pork sandwich is incredibly flavorful, tender, spicy and delicious! I love the flavor of the pork with the sweet, tart pickled red onions, creamy cheese, cilantro and spiciness of the jalapeno’s and hot sauce. I think that the brioche bun is a really nice buttery choice, but another high-quality bun would be a great choice too.

Spicy pulled pork

-18 Fresh Brioche Rolls (or high quality hamburger buns)
-Sweet Pickled Red Onions
-Pepper Jack Cheese, sliced
-Cilantro
-Hot sauce to taste

Sweet Pickled Red Onions

-2 large red onions finely sliced (with the grain of the onion)
-1 bottle rice wine vinegar
-1/2 cup red wine vinegar
-1/2 cup white sugar

1) Place the finely sliced onions in a medium sized bowl.

2) In a small pot, empty the bottle of rice wine vinegar, red wine vinegar and add the white sugar.

3) Bring the vinegar and sugar to a gentle boil, and whisk to dissolve the sugar into the vinegar.

4) Remove the vinegar from the heat, and pour directly over the red onions.

5) Let the onions sit in the liquid, and cool at room temperature. When they have cooled, store them in the liquid in the refrigerator.

Spicy Pulled Pork

-1 6 lb Pork Shoulder
-Spice rub
-1/2 4oz can of jalapenos in water (not pickled)
-2 cups fresh Pico de gaillo salsa
-1 8oz can tomato sauce
-2 fresh green jalapenos, and 1 fresh red jalapeno, finely chopped

Spice Rub

-3 Tbs cumin
-3 Tbs Chili Powder
-1 Tbs coriander
-1 Tbs kosher Salt
-2 Tsp black pepper
-½ tsp cayenne pepper

1) Rub the pork shoulder with the spice rub, massaging it into the meat on all sides, and then let the meat sit.

2) In a large heavy pot, add the tomato sauce and salsa. Add the pork shoulder to the pot, and then fill it with water until it is almost covering the pork shoulder.

3) Bring to a gentle boil, and then cover with a lid, and lower the heat to simmer.

4) Cook the pork over this very low heat for about 4 hours, occasionally checking to see if you need to add more water to the pot. You will know the pork is ready when it is very tender and falling apart.

5) Remove the pork from the heat, and empty the contents of the pot onto a sheet pan. The water, tomato, jalapeno and salsa should have cooked down to a thick, soft consistency.

6) Let the pork shoulder cool, and then, using 2 forks, shred the pork into bite sized pieces. Add the freshly chopped jalapenos, and mix them in.

7) You can adjust the taste with salt, pepper and hot sauce. I then store the pulled pork in a 9×13 Pyrex pan covered with foil so that it can be easily heated up.

Assembling the Sandwiches

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2) Add about ½ cup water or chicken broth to the pan with the pork. Keep covered with the foil, and bake until the pork is hot, about 15 minutes.

3) Then remove the foil, and let the pork sit in the oven another couple minutes. In the last few minutes of the pork cooking, split the buns and heat them until hot and slightly toasted.

4) Add the cheese to the bottom bun, and then add a generous portion of the pulled pork. Add some fresh cilantro and pickled red onions, then the top of the bun. Pile on a warmed platter and serve immediately.

Note: Many bakeries carry these; I just called my local bakery and ordered 2 dozen 3oz brioche buns.