Recipe: Pork in a Barbecue Sauce

This has been something of a favourite recipe in my family for as long as I can remember. It originally appeared in my Mum’s repertoire when she found a recipe for Pork Spareribs a la LBJ in one of the UK national newspapers, and the recipe was one of former US President Lyndon Bird Johnson’s favourites, apparently, hence the reference to LBJ.

Over the years, I have tweaked and adapted this to suit differing tastes, and this is the version we, as a family, all love.

It’s very simple, but packed with flavour, a sort of cross between Sweet and Sour and Barbecue Pork.

Ingredients

5 or 6 Pork Shoulder Steaks
1 Onion, chopped
1 Red Pepper, chopped
1 Clove of Garlic, finely chopped
A couple of tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Sweet Paprika
2 Bayleaves

For the Sauce

100 ml Tomato Ketchup
15 ml Worcestershire Sauce
15 ml Dark Soy Sauce
25ml White Wine Vinegar
60 ml Lemon Juice
150 ml Red Wine
Water to make up to 700 ml
Chicken Stock Cube
2 Tbsp Honey
Cornflour for thickening

Method

In a measuring jug, combine the tomato ketchup, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, lemon juice and red wine and then add water until you have around 700 ml liquid.

Gently fry the onion, red pepper and garlic in the olive oil in a large sauté pan with a lid. Once the onion and pepper have started to soften, remove with a slotted spoon.

Brown the pork shoulder steaks in the olive oil and season with salt and a generous sprinkling of paprika. It is best to brown these steaks a couple at a time, or they tend not to brown very well.

Once you have browned the meat, return all the ingredients to the pan and sprinkle in a chicken stock cube. Pour in the sauce mix and then stir in the 2 tablespoons of honey. Add the 2 bayleaves and then cover with the lid.

You want to let this simmer for a good hour until the pork is beautifully tender and the sauce has a rich colour. Taste it as this point to check the seasoning. If it is a little too sharp, you can always add a dash more honey, but this shouldn’t be necessary.

Towards the end of the cooking time, mix 2 teaspoons of cornflour with a dash of red wine and then add this to the pan, giving it a good stir until the sauce thickens.

This is a dish that works well if you cook it in advance and leave it to sit for a while before heating up to serve. It goes well with jacket potatoes, fries, sautéed potatoes and even rice. As a vegetable, I love cabbage with this dish; it just seems to work very well.