Although October is officially 4-H Month and National Pork Month, these two are celebrated daily by this Story County farm family. Bryce and Beth Caple of Maxwell have been farming together since they both graduated from Iowa State University and were married in 1994.
“We encouraged our kids to become involved in 4-H because we knew first-hand the benefits of the 4-H program,” says Beth. “The skills they make will be invaluable to their futures, and the friends they make will last a life time.”
Bryce and Beth were both nine-year 4-H members. Bryce’s favorite 4-H project was swine and he especially enjoyed showing at the county and state fairs. He also attended Citizenship Washington Focus as a high school student. As a 4-H volunteer, Bryce has served as swine superintendent at the Story County Fair for about 15 years. He also was in charge of county livestock judging contests for several years.
Beth served three years as the president of her local 4-H Club. She served on the Delaware County Council for two years and also was selected to serve on the Iowa State 4-H Council. She also attended Citizenship Washington Focus and traveled to Switzerland through the International Four-H Youth Exchange (IFYE). Beth’s favorite 4-H project areas were visual arts and foods, plus she enjoyed showing dairy cattle. She continued being involved in the 4-H program as an adult volunteer, serving four years as a Clover Kid leader. Beth is currently serving her second year as 4-H club leader and also serves on the Story County 4-H Foundation.
With experiences like this, it’s no wonder all three of the Caple children are active in the 4-H program. Drake, 15, and Creighton, 14, have taken flower gardening and food plus hogs to the county fair. Hannah, 11, is involved with all three of those projects plus she takes visual arts and sewing projects. They’ve all received top awards and purple ribbons. Each child has also exhibited a champion flower garden, as well.
These avid Iowa State fans enjoy their season tickets to Cyclone football and women’s basketball games. When traveling to Ames, it’s a tradition to tailgate in the football stadium parking lot. That’s why today Beth is sharing a go-to tailgating recipe for Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork. It’s also a perfect “fix it and forget it” recipe to serve during fall harvest – or anytime of the year!
Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
- 1 (4 pound) pork shoulder roast
- 1 cup barbeque sauce
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp. chili powder
- 1 extra large onion, chopped
- 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
- 1.5 tsp. dried thyme
- 8 hamburger buns, split
- 2 Tbsp. butter, or as needed
Directions
Directions
- Pour the vegetable oil into the bottom of a slow cooker.
- Place the pork roast into the slow cooker; pour in the barbecue sauce, apple cider vinegar, and chicken broth.
- Stir in the brown sugar, yellow mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, onion, garlic, and thyme.
- Cover and cook on High until the roast shreds easily with a fork, 5 to 6 hours.
- Remove the roast from the slow cooker, and shred the meat using two forks.
- Return the shredded pork to the slow cooker, and stir the meat into the juices.
- Spread the inside of both halves of hamburger buns with butter.
- Toast the buns, butter side down, in a skillet over medium heat until golden brown.
- Spoon pork into the toasted buns.
Note: Great tip when using a slow cooker, always use Reynolds™ Slow Cooker Liners. Easy clean up!
Recipe Notes
From Beth Caple
One of our family’s favorite meals is Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork, which I found on allrecipes.com. Because we always have pork in our freezer, I enjoy trying new pork recipes. As a working mother of three very active children, I always appreciate being able to serve a delicious and nutritious meal without a lot of hassle (or dishes!). This recipe serves 8, and the prep time is only 15 minutes.