Smoked Pulled Pork with Cholula Swirled Corn Bread
On November 27, 2017 (Updated May 08, 2024)
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This post is sponsored by Cholula® Hot Sauce.
Smoked Pulled Pork with Cholula Swirled Cornbread. A mouthful to say AND to eat! Tender, smoked and shredded pork is layered under golden cornbread swirled with a Cholula® Hot Sauce butter. It’s got all of the flavors I love the most… heat, sweet, savory, and smoky. The whole recipe starts with a great batch of my Simple Smoked Pulled Pork, with the addition of a Cholula® slather before a dusting of Sweet BBQ Rub. If you want to get extra meal mileage, smoke the pulled pork for sandwiches one night and save the leftover pork for this dish on another night!
Once I’ve got a nice pile of tender pulled pork, it’s all about building those flavors. The pork gets nice and saucy with your favorite BBQ sauce (I absolutely LOVE this recipe with my Apple Jalapeno BBQ Sauce) and a healthy few dashes of Cholula® for some heat. Loaded into a 12 inch cast iron skillet and topped with what may be the absolute best cornbread ever created. Buttermilk, a little sugar, and lots of butter make this a rich, but still light and fluffy cornbread cloud from heaven. Finally that cornbread is swirled with a Cholula® and butter blend for a stunning presentation and a little extra kiss of heat.
I like to serve this hot, straight out of the pan with a little extra BBQ sauce and maybe even some honey to drizzle on top. Smoked Pulled Pork with Cholula Swirled Cornbread is a stick-to-your-ribs, keep you warm and full on a chilly fall night kind of comfort food. For those of you without a smoker, any BBQ pulled pork can work as the base. For those of you with smokers and grills that are temperature adaptable, try baking the pulled pork cornbread on your smoker. The little extra hint of wood smoke will set this whole dish off! Enjoy!
Smoked Pulled Pork Topped with Cholula Swirled Corn Bread
Ingredients
- 1 8-10 pound bone-in pork shoulder roast
- 1/4 cup Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub link in recipe notes
- 2 Tablespoons Cholula original hot sauce
In the Skillet:
- 2 cups Everything BBQ sauce link in recipe notes
- 1/4 cup Cholula original
For the Cornbread
- 1 1/4 cups yellow corn meal
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- 8 Tablespoons salted butter melted
Cholula Butter Swirl
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter melted
- 2 Tablespoons Cholula original
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F using hickory wood over indirect heat.
- Slather the pork shoulder on all sides with the Cholula original hot sauce and then sprinkle on all sides with the BBQ rub. Place your seasoned roast on the smoker fat side up, preferably in the middle of the grate avoiding any direct hot spots.
- Close the lid and smoke the pork until it reaches an internal temperature of 201 degrees F. This process typically takes 12-15 hours, depending on the consistency of heat in your smoker and the size of your pork shoulder.
- Remove the pork shoulder from the smoker and wrap tightly in foil. Allow the roast to rest for at least an hour before shredding. Pull apart the shoulder, discarding any chunks of fat or gristle.
- Preheat your grill or oven to 375 degrees F.
- Spread about 2 cups of the shredded pork on the bottom of a 12 inch cast iron skillet. Drizzle with the BBQ sauce and Cholula and toss to coat.
- In a large bowl, combine the corn meal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In a smaller bowl, lightly whisk together the eggs, milk, and buttermilk. Gently stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until the flour and cornmeal are just moistened. Slowly stir in the melted butter.
- Pour the cornbread butter over the sauced pulled pork in the skillet and smooth the top with a spatula.
- In a small bowl, combine the 2 tablespoons of melted butter with the tablespoon of Cholula. Spoon the butter mixture over the top of the cornbread in a swirling pattern. Use a toothpick to drag the Cholula butter through the cornbread and create even more swirls.
- Bake the pulled pork topped cornbread for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry. You can start checking your cornbread at 30 minutes to be sure it doesn't overcook.
- Serve warm.
Notes
Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce: https://heygrillhey.com/kansas-city-style-bbq-sauce/
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Wow. Wow. Wow. Followed the recipe to the letter. Used a 9-lb shoulder. First time I’ve made corn bread from scratch. Judging by the reactions, this will be part of the permanent rotation.
Cholula brought just enough heat and balanced nicely with the rub.
Thank you for a great recipe!