May 21, 2013

NORTH CAROLINA BARBECUE



On Sunday, Micah orchestrated a North Carolina-themed barbecue to celebrate our friend James' visit. It rained off and on all day, so Micah pulled the grill onto the front porch.

(Weekend Breakfast was spent at Parker & Otis, picking up last minute ingredients.)

We invited a few friends, bought growlers and cans and bottles of local beer, and grilled and smoked all manner of Southern barbecue standards. Pulled smoked Boston butt (pork shoulder – seven pounds of it!) with vinegar-based barbecue sauce on buns with cabbage-jicama slaw. Jalapeno cornbread. Baked beans with local molasses and lots of bacon. Vegetable kebabs. Wings in Cackalacky. Pimento cheese and crackers. Deviled eggs. (And fruit salad from me, the odd man out.) We played records and had roasted strawberry mascarpone ice cream for dessert. Some went back for seconds after a few hours. We ended the night at Fullsteam Brewery, dodging the rain and playing ping-pong (or, in my case, watching it).