Eastern North Carolina Bar-Be-Que (pork shoulder)

In my opinion nothing beats Eastern NC pork bar-be-que. It is pork, a shoulder or a whole pig, cooked over smoke and seasoned with a peppery vinegar sauce. In the western part of the state, they use a tomato based bbq sauce and in some parts of South Carolina, they use a mustard based sauce. We love the tangy and spicy vinegar sauce. Now I love beef brisket in a spicy tomato based sauce, but for pork it has to be the peppery vinegar.

Ingredients:

13-15 lb fresh pork shoulder or ham
1 quart vinegar
3 oz. Texas Pete
1 Tbs crushed red pepper
3 Tbs liquid smoke
2 Tbs. salt
1 Tbs black pepper
4 oz. brown sugar

Directions
To make the sauce: Mix all ingredients well and heat to make sure brown sugar is dissolved. Makes 1 quart.

Wash meat with cold water and pat dry. Rub skin side with salt and pepper to taste. Cut 4 to 6 2" slits in skin and place in your smoker. We used hickory to smoke pork. After a few hours, cut deep holes into meat and pour enough bbq sauce on to cover meat. Smoke longer until a meat thermometer, reaches 165 degrees. Remove from smoker and slice or chop for bbq. Add sauce to taste. Required side dishes include coleslaw and hush puppies. You get extra credit if you serve banana pudding for dessert.

Cider Vinegar Chicken and Garlic Smashed Potatoes

Don't let the picture fool you. It may look white and plain, but trust me it has a ton of flavor. This is a Rachael Ray recipe from my favorite 365 book I've mentioned here before.

4 6oz boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (I cut mine into bit size pieces)
coarse black pepper
2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
2 TB thyme leaves
3 TB honey
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups chicken stock

Preheat skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 TB EVOO. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to hot skillet. Brown chicken. Remove and reserve the meat. Cover it with foil. Add another TB of EVOO to the pan then the onions, thyme, honey, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the onions are brown and caramelized. Add the cider vinegar and stock. Turn up the heat to high and bring liquids to simmer. Add chicken to skillet, cook for about 10 minutes. Serve with your favorite garlic mashed potatoes. The sauce it delicious on the potatoes.