Marylander Needing Help/Suggestions on South Carolina Mustard Base Sauce!

[millerk0486]

Good Morning Everyone! I have a slightly urgent situation... My in-laws are up from South Carolina this weekend and my wife wanted me to fix them up some pulled pork for dinner tomorrow. Being the BBQ addict that I am, I was all for it! Little did I know that South Carolina's BBQ is Mustard-Based, which I've never tasted or made before. I am looking for any pointers or suggestions on how I should prepare my pork butts. Below is how I normally do them... Any tips or suggestions on how to prepare this for a South Carolinians taste palate would be much appreciated! FYI... I anticipate on buying the butts and ingredients in approximately 6 hours. Thanks again in advance!

How I normally prepare my Pork Butts:

• Rub Butt down with Yellow Mustard
• Rub Butt with a Sweet and Slightly Spicy Rub (Brown Sugar, Paprika base with some other spices... Similar taste to Jeff's Rub)
• Inject with Unfiltered Apple Cider
• Smoke with Hickory til its done.
• Spritz the Butt with Pineapple juice every couple hours during the smoke.
• Wrap in foil for the last couple of hours...
• Let cool while wrapped for 1-2 hours.
• Pull meat and either serve meat as-is with sauce on the side or add my Sweet and slightly spicy  Ketchup based sauce to it

Now... is SC Mustard-Base BBQ normally thick or runny? Is it normally a mop that is mopped on the pulled when finished? Dipping sauce???

 

[mdboatbum]

In my experience SC mustard based sauce is not terribly thick. They sometimes also use a thin, vinegar based finishing sauce as they're pulling the pork.

Finishing sauce: If you're in a rush, just the vinegar, water, ketchup, brown sugar and pepper flakes will suffice. The other ingredients are just a variation on my usual BBQ sauce and honestly, a little fussy for a finishing sauce. But hey, if I can over complicate  something, I usually will :)

   1 quart  cider vinegar   1 1/2 cup water
   1 cup ketchup
   

2 TB Chili powder. (homemade if you can)    

2 TB dark brown sugar.

2 TB onion flakes                                        2 TB Worcestershire sauce

2 TB Smoked Paprika                                 2 TB Dried Oregano

1 TB Good fish sauce                                 1 TB granulated garlic

1 TB ground black pepper                            1 TB ground coriander seeds

1 TB roasted cumin                                     1 tsp salt

1 tsp red pepper flakes                                1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp ground dried ginger                             1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground allspice                                   1 tsp powdered citric acid

1/2 tsp ground clove                                   1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Mustard Sauce:

16 oz. Plain yellow mustard                          1.5  cups Honey

1 cup water                                                  1 cup white wine

1/2 cup Cider vinegar.                            

2 TB  dried mustard

2 TB Chili powder. (homemade if you can)    

2 TB dark brown sugar.

2 TB onion flakes                                        2 TB Worcestershire sauce

2 TB Smoked Paprika                                 2 TB Dried Oregano

                                                                   1 TB granulated garlic

1 TB ground black pepper                            1 TB ground coriander seeds

1 TB roasted cumin                                     1 tsp salt

1 tsp red pepper flakes                                1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp ground dried ginger                             1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground allspice                                   1 tsp powdered citric acid

1/2 tsp ground clove                                   1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Mix and simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Consistency should be fairly thin, but not watery. Strain and pour into jars or bottles and refrigerate for 48 hours.

Those are what we like. I'm sure your in-laws will be pleased no matter what, it's nice that you're going to the effort! Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[millerk0486]

Thanks for the information MDBOATBUM!

I appreciate over complication of ingredients, that is what gives it character!

A couple questions... When you do the finishing sauce... Do you put that in the meat after you pull it? Then Sauce it? Or do you serve the sauce on the side?

Also, both of your recipes look very good!

 

[millerk0486]

MDBOATBUM, I noticed you said to use home made chili powder. I always try to grow some spices in the summer, but I never knew what exactly makes chili powder.

 

[mdboatbum]

Finishing sauce goes on as or immediately after pulling it. Mustard sauce (or whatever BBQ sauce I'm serving) I usually serve in a dish at the table so people can serve themselves.

Chili powder is really easy. I use a variation of the recipe Alton Brown did on his show.

Here's his:

Ingredients

   * 3 ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
   * 3 cascabel chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
   * 3 dried arbol chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
   * 2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds
   * 2 tablespoons garlic powder
   * 1 tablespoon dried oregano
   * 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Directions
Place all of the chiles and the cumin into a medium nonstick saute pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, moving the pan around constantly, until you begin to smell the cumin toasting, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside and cool completely.

Once cool, place the chiles and cumin into the carafe of a blender along with the garlic powder, oregano, and paprika. Process until a fine powder is formed. Allow the powder to settle for at least a minute before removing the lid of the carafe. Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

I usually just sub red pepper flakes for the chiles he uses (maybe 2TB), and I also add a pinch of cinnamon and allspice. In a pinch, you can use ground cumin, but the seeds really are much more flavorful. Definitely use smoked paprika, it's a thousand times better than non smoked, in my opinion anyway.

 

[mdboatbum]

And the difference in flavor between home made and store bought chili powder is absolutely phenomenal.