Crockpot Pulled Pork and Homestyle Potato Salad

I've decided to start putting up a few recipes for the crock pot. Since I work on weekends and am not home to make dinner, it's my solution for giving my family a delicious meal. All my husband or daughter has to do is make any finishing touches and serve.

The crock pot I use is a Kitchenaid 7 quart unit. When I purchased it a few years ago, it was the largest on the market and I love it! It's perfect for doing whole chickens, a small turkey or brisket, ribs, etc. It does cook fairly hot, so most of the recipes I'll be posting will use the low setting. When doing large pieces of meat, like roasts or whole birds, I like to slice an onion in about 1/2" thick rings, place them on the bottom and then the meat on top. This helps keep the meat from drowning in grease.

Pulled Pork

For the rub:

1/4 cup smoked paprika
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup kosher salt
2 tbs mustard powder
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4 cup ground comino
2 tbs ground black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

2 tbs cayenne

Mix all ingredients and store in an air tight container

1 boneless pork butt roast, about 5lbs

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 water

1/2 yellow onion, sliced into 1/2" thick rings

Rub enough rub mix over the pork butt to cover all sides, let sit overnight if desired. Place onion rings on bottom of crock pot then place meat on top, fat side up. Pour vinegar and water in pot, cover and cook on low to medium setting for 4 hours. Remove from pot, let rest for 5 minutes then shred for sandwiches.

Potato Salad

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tbs yellow mustard

2 tbs white sugar

7 sweet midgets pickles, diced

2 tbs pickle juice

6-8 medium russet or red potatoes, cubed into 1/2" pieces

6 hard boiled eggs, cubed into 1/2" pieces

2 celery stalks, halved lengthwise and then sliced to 1/2" pieces

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 green onions, chopped

ground pepper to taste

salt to taste

Place potatoes in a large pot, cover with water and boil until fork tender. Drain in colander and rinse with cold water, drain again. In a small bowl mix mayonnaise thru pickle juice, set aside. In another bowl, add potatoes and all remaining ingredients, mix.  Add mayonnaise mixture to potatoes and gently mix. Cover and refrigerate, overnight if possible.