Pork and pickles are a tried and true flavor pairing. A great ham sandwich? Gotta have baby dills. A plate of charcuterie? Bring on the cornichons. A pulled pork sandwich? Bread-and-butters, duh. A classic combo and yet, somehow, it took me this many years to braise a piece of pork in pickling spices and pickle brine. This recipe comes just in time for Memorial Day– a day of large-format meat-eating in America. Think of this as an alt to your go-to pulled pork/carnitas situation. It can be served a myriad of ways–with cornbread and slaw like a good ‘ole Southerner, on flour tortillas with pickled onions and sour cream (my personal fave), on sliders with more pickles and a big pile of coleslaw, in a hotdog bun, or straight up as is, for the best dang sloppy joe-adjacent jimmer jammer of your life.

If you’re the type to keep a drawer full of dusty spices, this could be your opportunity to clean it out. Making your own pickling spice is as easy as dumping together a mix of seasonings, but you could, of course, use store-bought pickling spice instead. If you do choose to DIY, here’s a loose guide: Combine 12 allspice berries, 3 bay leaves 1 heaping tablespoon coriander seeds, 1 heaping tablespoon fennel seeds,1 scant tablespoon caraway seeds, 1 heaping teaspoon mustard seeds, 1 ½ teaspoons black peppercorns, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon cloves, and 1 teaspoon dill weed. Place in a spice grinder or large mortar and pestle and grind until coarsely ground. If you don’t have all of the above spices, don’t fret! Just use as many spices as you’ve got on hand. (Just try not to snooze on the dil weed, which is what will give this pork a subtle dill pickle-y flavor.)