Cider-Braised Pork Shoulder

"This is a grown-up braise--a company braise," says Piper Davis, co-owner and cuisine director at Grand Central Bakery in Portland and Seattle. "It's a technique more than a recipe." The keys to that technique: cooking the meat in cider with one set of seasonings, straining and reducing the liquid, and then adding fresh vegetables toward the end. The cider's acidity tenderizes the meat, and its sweetness balances the savoriness of the pork. "I don't think anything goes better with pork than apples," says Davis. "There's a reason it's a classic combination."