EDNA’S BLIND DATE WASN’T ANYTHING TO WRITE HOME ABOUT, BUT HE DID AT LEAST TREAT HER TO LUNCH AT THE BEST BARBECUE RESTAURANT IN TOWN. Edna ordered the BBQ special—no pickles, extra pie. They only served her favorite buttermilk pie on Fridays, so Edna knew better than to hold back. Her date ordered baked chicken and no dessert, dealing yet another blow to his otherwise pleasant demeanor.
IN A SMALL BOWL, COMBINE the brown sugar, paprika, salt, cumin, garlic powder, and onion powder. Coat your roast all over with the mixture. Put the roast in a slow cooker, cover, and cook on high for 8 hours. Drain the liquid from the cooker into a 4-cup glass measuring cup and allow it to settle while shredding the meat. Remove any excess fat from the meat. Remove any bones. Shred the meat and return it to the cooker.
SKIM THE FAT FROM THE RESERVED JUICES. Pour 1 cup of the juices over the meat. (Save the remaining juices for another use.) Toss your jam and barbecue sauce with the shredded meat. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour longer.
THIS SHREDDED SLOW-COOKED PORK is wonderful plain or piled on squishy white sandwich buns and topped with our slaw (page 65) or in a warm corn tortilla with diced onion, plenty of fresh cilantro, and a generous squeeze of lime. Clementine’s H-Town Queso (page 90) makes a great accompaniment.
THE REMAINING LIQUID from cooking this pork roast can be used as part of the broth in Zelda’s Late Lunch Caldo.
WE LOVE the orange–chile de árbol marmalade that Stephanie McClenny makes at her Austin jam kitchen, Confi turas. You might want to go ahead and try it in this recipe in place of the apricot jam, or keep it in your cupboard in case of emergency.