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Oven-Roasted Pulled Venison Shoulder

No grill needed · the same collagen cut, seared for bark then slow-roasted and wrapped to pull-apart · charcoal version here

~8 · 30 min

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  • 1 venison front shoulder, 3–5 lb (bone-in is fine)
  • 2 Tbsp yellow mustard or oil, as a binder
  • Dry rub
  • ¼ cup brown sugar · 2 Tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 Tbsp each smoked paprika · black pepper · garlic powder · onion powder
  • 1–2 tsp chili powder or cayenne, to taste
  • The fat & the wrap
  • ½ lb fatty bacon or pork fatback (or ¼ cup beef tallow)
  • 1 cup beef broth, apple cider, or cola, for the wrap
  • ¼–½ tsp liquid smoke (optional, for the wrap)
  • BBQ sauce, to finish · soft potato rolls to serve
What you need
  1. Rub, ideally the night before. Pat the shoulder dry, smear with mustard, and coat all over with the rub. Wrap and fridge overnight if you can — a few hours at least.
  2. Sear hard for the bark. Brown the shoulder deeply on all sides — in a screaming-hot skillet with a little oil, or uncovered in a 450°F oven for about 20 min — until the outside is dark and crusted.
  3. Fat on, drop the heat, roast uncovered. Lay the bacon or sliced fatback over the top, set the oven to 275–300°F, and roast on a rack over a pan until the inside reads about 160°F, roughly 2½–3 hr. Expect it to stall there for a while — normal.
  4. Wrap and push to done. Double-wrap in foil with the broth or cider (and the liquid smoke) poured in, seal tight, and return it until it reads 200–205°F and a probe slides in like soft butter — another 1½–2 hr.
  5. Rest, then pull. Rest it wrapped 30–45 min — don't skip it. Open over a pan, lift out any bone and silverskin, and pull with two forks. Pour the saved wrap juices back over and fold in BBQ sauce to taste. Pile on toasted potato rolls and top with a scoop of crunchy kohlrabi slaw.
Steps — tap one to keep your place

✨ Untested — Claude drafted this one from scratch; it hasn't been cooked and amended in our kitchen yet, so treat the amounts as a starting point. Low salt — salt at the end and taste as you go; broth, cheese, and canned goods already bring salt.

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