Why You Should Skip Toasting Your Buns For Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Is there anything more satisfying than biting into a bun loaded with tender shredded pork, crunchy slaw, and lashings of smoky barbecue sauce? These are the components that make up a typical pulled pork sandwich; a cookout staple that celebrity chef Guy Fieri once described as "the ultimate comfort food" (via Veg News).

And while this dish's namesake — pulled pork — is and should always be the star of the show, there's nothing wrong with giving some attention to the ingredient that literally brings it all together, aka the bun. This is often served toasted, but if you really want to make your pulled pork sandwich stand out from the crowd, consider trying the opposite (read: a soft bun). Not only will this provide a pleasant textural contrast to the other elements of the dish (crisp vegetables, meat with a slight bite); it will also prevent them from firing out in all directions as you chow down. But perhaps most importantly of all, it will capture any of those precious juices that try to escape!

Creating this game-changing sammie starts with selecting the very best bun for the roll role. Brioche hamburger buns and Hawaiian rolls are both great choices, as they are naturally squishy yet robust enough to carry the remaining ingredients without descending into a soggy mess (the latter are often used in French toast for this exact reason). And while you won't be heating these buns up by way of toasting, warming them through is definitely still the way to go — not only will this make them more tender, it may even improve their flavor. This can be done by steaming them, a method often used by hot dog vendors.

Warming the buns in this manner is super simple, even without a proper steamer — simply pop them on a plate in the microwave with a small cup of water for about 20 seconds, or create a makeshift steamer from a sieve or colander, placed inside a pot over some boiling water (make sure this isn't touching the buns, or they will end up soggy). Drop them down inside, cover with a kitchen towel for a couple of minutes, and voila — your buns are officially ready for pulled pork duty. Now all that's left to do is load on as much meat, slaw, and other goodies as you can possibly handle.