Sonny’s BBQ is a popular barbecue restaurant chain based in Florida. They are known for their slow-smoked meats, homemade side dishes, and signature barbecue sauces. One of their most popular menu items is their sliced smoked pork, which customers can order on sandwiches, plates, or by the pound. But what exactly is the cut of meat that Sonny’s uses for their sliced pork?
Origins of Sonny’s BBQ
To understand what cut of pork Sonny’s uses, it helps to know a bit about the history of the restaurant. Sonny’s BBQ was founded in Gainesville, Florida in 1968 by Floyd and Lucille “Sonny” Tillman. The Tillmans decided to open a barbecue restaurant after enjoying the smoked and grilled meats they tried while living in the Chicago area. When they moved back to Florida, they felt there was a lack of quality barbecue places, so they opened their own using Floyd’s recipes and techniques for smoking meats low and slow over an open pit.
The first Sonny’s BBQ location had just 8 tables and was focused on serving take-out orders of smoked pork ribs and chicken. The sliced pork sandwich soon became one of their signature items. Over the years, the restaurant grew in popularity throughout Florida and began expanding to more locations around the state. Sonny’s slowly added other smoked meats, side dishes, and barbecue sauces to the menu as well.
Today, Sonny’s BBQ operates over 200 locations in 7 Southeastern states and serves over 20,000 guests per day on average. While the menu has expanded significantly, sliced and chopped pork remains one of the core items that Sonny’s is known for.
Cuts of Pork
First, it helps to understand the different cuts of pork. Pork comes from pigs and the meat can be separated into four main primal cuts:
- Shoulder – This comes from the front leg/shoulder area and includes cuts like the Boston butt, picnic, and blade roast.
- Loin – This comes from the back area and includes cuts like pork chops and baby back ribs.
- Side/Belly – This is the underside which includes bacon and spare ribs.
- Leg – This is the rear leg which includes cuts like ham and pork knuckles.
These primal cuts are then further separated into subprimals and individual retail cuts.
Common Pork Cuts
Some of the most common retail pork cuts include:
- Pork shoulder/Boston butt – Well-marbled with good flavor, comes from the upper shoulder.
- Picnic roast – More economical cut from lower shoulder.
- Pork loin chops – Tender and lean chops cut from the loin.
- Baby back ribs – Well-marbled ribs cut from the loin area.
- Spare ribs – Longer ribs cut from the belly.
- Pork belly – Fatty cut used for bacon.
- Ham – Meaty hind leg cut that is cured/smoked.
Of these, the shoulder cuts like Boston butt and picnic are the most common for pulled pork and slicing because they are nicely marbled with fat and connective tissue. This makes them well-suited for the long, slow smoking process which helps break down these tissues and results in moist, tender meat.
Sonny’s Pulled Pork
According to Sonny’s own website and various food blogs that have covered their restaurants, Sonny’s uses pork shoulder or Boston butt for their pulled pork and sliced pork sandwiches and plates. As mentioned, this is a great cut for barbecue purposes because the high fat content helps keep the meat moist and tender after hours in the smoker.
Sonny’s smokes their pork shoulders low and slow over hickory wood. The smoking times can vary, but they often smoke the pork for 12-16 hours at temperatures around 225-250°F. This long cooking time helps break down the connective tissues in the pork shoulder so the meat ends up very tender and full of flavor from the wood smoke.
Once smoked, some of the pork is hand-pulled or chopped for sandwiches while another portion is sliced thinly for orders of sliced pork. Slicing it thinly allows the pork to absorb more sauce and makes it easy to pile high on sandwiches.
Other Cuts Sometimes Used
While pork shoulder or Boston butt is definitely the most common cut used for pulled/sliced pork at barbecue restaurants, there are some other cuts of pork that can work as well:
- Pork picnic shoulder – This comes from a slightly lower part of the front shoulder. It can have more connective tissue than Boston butt but becomes tender when slow smoked.
- Pork leg (fresh ham) – Pork leg is leaner than shoulder but can be sliced or pulled after smoking into tender pieces.
- Pork belly – The fatty bacon cut can be smoked then thinly sliced for sandwiches.
So while these cuts may occasionally be used, the pork shoulder remains the classic choice for pulled/sliced pork barbecue.
Why Pork Shoulder Works So Well
Pork shoulder (Boston butt) has qualities that make it exceptionally well-suited for pulled and sliced pork barbecue:
- It contains a good amount of fat marbling which keeps the meat moist during smoking.
- It has a significant amount of connective tissue which breaks down into gelatin during slow cooking.
- The meat remains very tender and juicy after hours of low, slow smoking.
- It can be easily pulled by hand or sliced thinly once cooked.
- It has a good meat-to-bone ratio and affordable price compared to loin cuts.
So those are the reasons why pork shoulder is such a perfect match for pulled and sliced barbecue pork products.
How Sonny’s Sliced Pork is Served
| Menu Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Sliced Pork Sandwich | Thinly sliced smoked pork shoulder topped with Sonny’s signature barbecue sauce on a toasted bun. |
| Sliced Pork Plate | Served with sliced white bread, pickles, onions, and Sonny’s barbecue sauce on the side. |
| Sliced Pork by the Pound | Lets customers buy sliced smoked pork shoulder by the pound to take home. |
| Pork Combo Plates | Combine sliced pork with other meats like pulled pork, sausage, ribs, chicken, etc. |
The sliced pork can be served room temperature or warmed up if customers prefer. It often forms the base of a barbecue plate, sandwich or nachos entree when combined with other meats and sides.
Nutritional Information
Here are some of the basic nutritional facts for Sonny’s smoked sliced pork according to their online nutrition guide:
- A 3 oz serving of sliced pork contains around 210 calories.
- It has 16g of protein per 3 oz serving.
- There are 16g of fat per serving, mostly from healthy unsaturated fats.
- It contains no carbohydrates or sugar.
- The sodium content is around 400mg due to salt used in smoking/preparing.
So while the sliced pork is relatively high in fat and sodium, this is expected for barbecue meat products. The protein and lack of carbs make it a better choice than products made with fillers or sugars.
How to Make Your Own
You can actually easily replicate Sonny’s sliced pork shoulder at home with these steps:
- Purchase a 5-8 lb bone-in pork shoulder/Boston butt.
- Trim off any excess fat cap if needed.
- Apply a dry rub of spices like salt, pepper, garlic powder, etc.
- Smoke the pork shoulder at 225-250°F for 12-16 hours.
- Once fully cooked to 190-205°F internal temp, rest it for 30 mins.
- Carefully slice the pork into thin slices.
- Toss the slices in your favorite barbecue sauce.
- Serve on sandwiches or plates just like Sonny’s!
It takes some time but it’s easy to replicate the signature sliced pork at home. You control the ingredients and wood smoke flavor.
Conclusion
Sonny’s BBQ uses pork shoulder, also known as Boston butt, for their popular sliced pork menu options. This cut is ideal for slow-smoked barbecue because it has marbling that keeps it moist and connective tissue that breaks down into tender meat. While other cuts may sometimes be used, pork shoulder remains the classic choice for pulled and sliced pork dishes, which is why Sonny’s favors this traditional barbecue cut. The sliced pork delivers on the tender, smoky flavor Sonny’s is known for in their restaurants across the Southeast.