This pulled pork nachos recipe is perfect as a snack or appetizer. Includes easy step-by-step instructions for smoking pulled pork on a Green Mountain Pellet Grill and making a homemade sauce and rub.
Written by Don Porter and taken from StoryQue magazine by permission.
Two of my favorite cuisines are barbecue and Mexican. Occasionally, the temptation to combine them is irresistible, as in this recipe. These pulled pork nachos are the result of my quest to duplicate one of my favorite dishes—the sweet pork nachos served at a “fast-casual” restaurant, Costa Vida. I like the place, but they never give me enough meat. So I thought, “Why not make it at home, with a barbecue boost?”
I started with a pair of Costco meat counter pork shoulders, about five pounds each. I rinsed them off and patted them dry, then dusted them with a rub adapted from Jeff Phillips’ cookbook Smoking Meat, where he credits Todd (BigBaldBBQ) at www.smokingmeatforums.com.
Rub
Coat all the surfaces and let the meat come up to room temperature.
With the rub on, fire up the smoker to 225 degrees F. Since this promised to be a long smoke, I used my trusty Green Mountain Daniel Boone pellet grill, with cherry pellets. Once it was up to temp, I put the shoulders on and inserted my temperature probe. I was aiming for an internal temperature of 205 degrees F.
About twelve hours later, the shoulders hit my target temperature. I pulled them off the pit and shredded them, making sure to preserve all the delectable char and “cracklings” which add so much flavor. I used one roast for this recipe and wrapped the other in foil and plastic and put it in the freezer for later use.
When you’re ready to stir up the pork mixture, get the sweet sauce ready.
Pulled Pork Nachos
Sweet Sauce
In a medium pot, mix the red enchilada sauce, Dr. Pepper, salt, garlic salt, and brown sugar. Heat until it just starts to boil, then turn the heat down to low and add all the shredded pork from one shoulder. Mix the sauce and meat well and let it simmer for at least an hour—two, if you have the time.
Now get busy making the guacamole.
Guacamole
Peel and slice the avocados, cut the Roma tomatoes into small squares, and place them both into a smallish bowl. With a sharp steak knife, sliver the avocado slices and tomato cubes in the bowl into fine pieces. Now add the milk, lemon juice, garlic salt, onion salt and sea salt. Adjust the spices if you wish to suit your taste.
Once that’s done, get yourself out to the smoker and crank up the temperature to 350 degrees.
Nachos
Open your bag of tortilla chips, spreading them out evenly on a pizza pan or cookie sheet. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the top and add the beans in whatever amount you prefer.
The pork and sweet sauce should be just about perfect by now. Remove the meat from the pot with tongs, allowing most of the sauce to drain off the pork so the fluid doesn’t make your chips soggy. Pile as much meat as you like on top of the chips, cheese, and beans, and put the platter of nachos in the hot smoker until the cheese melts.
Once the cheese is melted and the nachos come off the smoker, fix the individual plates quickly so the cheese, meat, and beans don’t cool off before serving. Add whatever you like to the nachos: guacamole, sour cream, jalapeños, olives, you name it.
It’s a great meal, with the sweet and smoky pork complementing the salty chips and cheese. I hope you like it as much as I do.
Preparation time:
Pork shoulder: 10–13 hours
Sweet sauce: 1 hour
Guacamole: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 8–10
Smoker temperature: 225 degrees F
Wood: Cherry
Doesn't that look amazing?
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