Pulled Pork Croissant Bake
When you’re entertaining it’s great to have dishes that can be prepared in advance so that you can spend time with your guests rather than being stuck in the kitchen. This Pulled Pork Croissant Bake can be prepared the day before and is guaranteed to be a hit with its decadent combination of buttery croissants, tender pulled pork, and cheesy sauce.
How long will it take?
5 ½ hours
What’s the serving size?
Serves 8
What do I need?
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 2 kg pork shoulder
- 350 mL coca cola
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 120 mL milk
- 1 tsp hot English mustard
- 6 croissants
- 2 rashers middle bacon, roughly chopped
- 80 g mozzarella, grated
- 20 g parmesan, grated
- Handful of sage leaves
- 1 tbsp black sesame seeds
- 1 tbsp white sesame seeds
How do I make it?
- Combine brown sugar, chilli powder, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
- Place pork in a lidded casserole dish and rub with the spice mixture. Pour coke around the base of the pork, cover with the lid, and cook for 3 hours. Remove lid and cook for a further 1 ½ hours, or until the pork is very tender and pulls apart with a fork. Remove from oven and use a fork to shred the pork. Set aside.
- Add butter to a small saucepan over medium-high heat. When butter has melted add flour and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Continue stirring while whisking in milk and mustard and cook for 3 minutes, or until the sauce thickens slightly.
- Cut croissants so that they can be opened out like a sandwich. Layer each croissant generously with pulled pork then close and add them to a lightly greased baking tray. Pour sauce over the croissants, then scatter with chopped bacon, mozzarella, parmesan, sage leaves, and sesame seeds.
- At this stage the dish can be covered and refrigerated until needed.
- To serve, preheat oven to 180C.
- Cover dish with foil and cook for 20 minutes, then remove foil and cook for a further 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Serve with a fresh salad.
TOP TIPS
- This recipe is also great for using up leftovers. If you’ve got Christmas roast leftovers like turkey, pork, ham, or chicken you can substitute these for the pulled pork.
- If using leftover meat, chop it and combine with a little barbecue sauce to ensure it doesn’t dry out too much when baked.
