This is a version of one of the recipes in my next book, and it could very well be one of my favourites. Ever. The slow-cooked pulled pork in it’s spicy BBQ style sauce, served with a very simple bread roll and crunchy mustard-dressed slaw on the side is a near-perfect combination for me. It’s lazy weekend food at it’s very best. The kind that requires nothing more than simple admiring as it cooks while you sit back with a glass of wine. Also, any leftovers make a very handsome pairing with pasta of any kind – and how can that ever be a bad thing? 
BBQ Pulled Pork
with Radish, Apple and Fennel Slaw
Serves 4 | Preparation time 5-10 minutes | Cooking time 4 hours
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
550g pork belly or shoulder
1 tin chopped peeled tomatoes
1 red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp aniseed
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic
1 level tsp dried chill flakes)
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 cup chicken stock
A pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the radish, apple and fennel slaw
1 radish, finely sliced
2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed about 1cm up the stem and thinly sliced
Half an apple, grated or finely chopped in your food processor
1 tsp whole grain mustard
1 tsp honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp parsley and 1 Tbsp mint roughly chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
WHAT TO DO
1. Pre-heat your oven to 200C. Lay the pork in an ovenproof dish that has a lid. Add in the tomatoes, onion and rosemary. Combine the remaining ingredients and HALF the stock in a mixing jug and then pour over the pork.
2. Cook for 30 minutes at 200C, then turn the oven down to 140C, add in the remaining stock and cook for a further 2.5 hours with the lid on, followed by another 30 minutes with the lid off, or until the sauce has thickened and the meat can literally be ‘pulled’ apart with two forks. Check the liquid at 30 minute intervals, to make sure that the meat is not drying out. If you need to add more liquid, add in about another 100ml stock or water.
3. Remove the pork from the oven, leave to rest for 20 minutes, remove the crackling and set aside to grill until crispy and eat or discard (eat!), and then ‘shred’ the meat using two forks and mix it in with the sauce.
4. To make the slaw, combine all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl and toss gently to combine.
5. Serve the pork piled into fresh bread rolls or folded into wraps, with the slaw on the side.
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