Shredded beef, pulled pork and other mysteries.
 

OK, so what's the deal with "shredded beef"? You Merkins roast a perfectly good joint of beef and then pull it apart with a pair of forks, douse it in bbq sauce and call it food?
And pulled pork - apart from the snigger quotient, is that the same sort of thing?
And what are "hominies"?
And "grits"?

loose meat

oh, please. "we call it food"? yeah, we call it food. Sometimes we even call it brisket, or deshebrada.

glass houses, man.

snigger

Well you could just leave the meat like it is but then you have to pull it apart with your fork and knife, and drag it through the sauce...

Grits are maize/corn with the tasty and nutritious part removed.

more surface area for the sauce to coat. and besides, the meat fits in the tortilla better that way

Ouch!
Maybe you do need to have real American bbq to understand how good pulled pork can be.

grits = polenta. hominy is big boiled kernals of corn, I think, used in pozole (a soup) (do.not.like)

You wish you had good pulled pork over there... it's awesome. Really good pulled pork has very little [vinegar based] sauce added.

Hominy is dried corn that is soaked in lye (alkali) to remove the hull so it can be eaten without breaking teeth. Imagine trying to eat dried dried corn...bleh

it makes you go, "Hominy hominy hominy"

I'm sorry Cloud (and anyone else that I've offended). The problem is that I've encountered a thread in another forum that seems to recommend adding "a bottle of [proprietary brand] sauce" to every dish that involves shredded beef. There are, ABSOLUTELY, days when this is the way that I cook but, to be honest, they're not that often and, for me, they come under the heading "instant food" rather than "cooking" in my head. (And yes, I know that the words "British" and "cuisine" are never met in the same sentence!)
So I'd welcome recipes for shredded beef, pulled pork and other American delicacies that do not include "a bottle of sauce" in the ingredients list. Or if they do, I want to know that's it's a Cellar-approved bottle, and how/where to get it in the UK.
LJ, Jinx, Cloud. Bring it on. Please. I'd love to try it and find it's good!

People who eat Spotted Dick and Bubble 'n Squeak should not be casting aspersions at our pulled pork.

At least pulled pork tastes good!

Grits are made of corn, but aren't the same as polent. Mush is what fancy people go ahead and call polenta, but it's mush. Grits are made of corn too, but they're not that lovely yellow color. Grits are pretty much wallpaper paste tasteless and white, but serve as an excellent transport medium for butter and maple syrup.

Because grits have been mentioned, I am obliged to say "Grits are fifty. They're extra." (now that's obscure)

Wolf, you forgot Toad in The Hole.

My lunch friends very much enjoyed the spotted Dick I served them one day. With custard. Had never made it in the UK though, and only ate it at school when the teachers made me..... ;)

Limey, just think of it as replacing the gravy with BBQ sauce. Then the only difference is that it's made fork ready (cut up and sauce added) in the kitchen rather than by individuals at the table.

Spotted dick and custard is one of the best desserts ever. OMFG. I need some.

Sheldon? How fast can you contract measles?