Sweet-n-Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork & Hamburger Buns

Sweet-n-Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork & Hamburger Buns

Hi everybody :)

I'm bringing you two in one today. The recipes I'm sharing are Sweet-n-Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork and Hamburger Buns. I prepared the pork by slow-cooking it in my  Super Pot, but it can also be adjusted for a regular crock-pot or slow-roasted in the oven like The Pioneer Woman did on her blog. I also played around with the flavors a little. For the buns, I adjusted it by using part wheat flour, olive oil in the place of vegetable  and adding Vital Wheat Gluten, which is optional. I also cut them bigger because I like really big buns :) But it can be prepared just with all-purpose flour like Jane did on her blog. So with the help of two great bloggers, I put together these delicious recipes. Here's how I did it... 

Sweet-n-Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork

1 cup chopped onion

1 Pork Shoulder Butt (7 - 9 lbs.)

Salt & Pepper

1 teaspoon Lawry's perfect Blend SWEET BASIL, CITRUS & GARLIC RUB 

1 can Dr. Pepper (12 fl. oz)

1/4 cup brown sugar 

Sweet Baby Ray's Sweet n' Spicy BBQ Sauce

Heat the Super Pot to 300 degree (slow-cooking temp). Add the onions. Season the meat with salt & pepper and perfect Blend. Place in pot. Mix soda and brown sugar together, add to the sides of pot. Cover and cook until fork-tender. (This took about 3 hrs and 30 minutes in the Super Pot).

Remove meat from pot and place on a cutting board or work surface. Use two forks to shred meat, discarding the large pieces of fat. Strain as much of the fatty liquid off the top as you can and discard it. Return the shredded meat to the cooking liquid, and keep warm until ready to serve. (Tip: Refrigerate the meat and liquid separately, then remove hardened fat once it's cold.) 

Heat up the liquid and meat on the stove top add the BBQ sauce and serve on buns.(Add a little more Dr. Pepper to thin it out, if desired.)

Variation: Serve on warm flour tortillas. Top with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, grated cheese, avocado slices, salsa.  

Source: partly adapted The Pioneer Woman

Now on to the second recipe:

Classic Homemade Hamburger Buns

Hamburger Buns
Ingredients:
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour, lightly whisked
1 tablespoon Vital Wheat Gluten 
2  1/4 teaspoons yeast 
1 cup warm water
3 oz. olive oil
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
1 ex-large egg, lightly beaten 

In mixing bowl with paddle attachment combine two cups of the flour and yeast on low speed for several seconds. In a medium bowl, stir together the warm water, oil, eggs, sugar, and salt. Add this into the mixer bowl. Beat on low speed for about 30 seconds; stop and scrape the bowl and beaters, then increase the speed to medium and beat for 3 more minutes until smooth.

Remove the mixer bowl from the mixer and stir in the remaining flour by hand. 

If it's extremely soft and still almost liquidity, add in a little more flour, one tablespoon at a time until it seems more workable. (I added 3 tablespoons.) Dump the dough out onto a well floured work surface and knead it until it feels smooth and elastic

Spray cooking spray in a large bowl. Place dough in bowl turning to coat it all over with the oil. Cover the bowl with a sprayed plastic wrap and place the bowl in a warm spot free from draft. Let the dough rise until it's about doubled, perhaps one hour or so. (Because this is a rich dough due to the egg(s) and sugar content it may take a little longer.)

Cover two half-sheet pans with parchment paper or foil. Punch down the dough. On a very lightly floured surface, divide it into three equal portions using a bench knife, or a very sharp chef's knife. Cut each portion into four pieces. (I cut mines into 3 pieces, so I had 9 buns instead of 12.) Cover the pieces with a sheet of sprayed plastic wrap and let them rest for about ten minutes. 
Uncover them and shape each one them into a smooth ball by rolling it in a small circular motion on your work surface, held gently beneath your closed fingers and palm. Tightly pinch closed any seam on the bottom. Place buns on the two half-sheet pans. Press them down into 3 and 1/2 inch circles. 
(I rolled four of them into 8" ropes and tied and tuck them under, the remaining ones I shaped into buns, cut an x on each.)

Cover them again with the sprayed plastic wrap and a light dishcloth and put them in a warm spot. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and let the buns rise for about half an hour as the oven heats up.  Brush the top of each one with melted unsalted butter, just before place them in the oven. (I dusted them all with corn meal.

The buns will bake quickly. Peek at them after about ten minutes. Take them out when the tops are golden and the bottoms are deeply golden. (I baked mines for 13 minutes.)
Source: Jane 's Sweets & Baking Journal
What I Thinks:
 It was delicious; the pork, the buns, it all turn out perfect. If you ever decides to make the homemade buns, you would wonder why you buy them. I think they would also make delicious hotdog buns too. I got to try that next :) The pork was super easy to prepare and was great paired with the buns. Sweet but not too sweet with a little spiciness to add some heat :)
ENJOY! Come again...
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