In a desperate effort to compete against the ever-growing competition from the other titans of fast food, the King is boldly going where most burger joints dare not tread. With Taco Bell crushing it in all things wrapped in a tortilla, and Mcdonalds still at the top of the burger ladder (despite making little to no innovations in recent years), Burger King is, for better or worse, adding pulled pork to their menu.
Going into the Pulled Pork King, I already knew based on its marketing that it wasn't going to resemble the kind of "barbecue" that makes my southern homeland so endearing, despite pulled pork being the common ingredient. It's filled with a sizable portion of capital BBQ - which is to say that it is defined by sauce it is drenched in rather than the meat itself. The fact that there's meat involved is largely irrelevant considering that it is likely kept submerged in sauce prior to being served, which renders what may have otherwise been tender meat into a paste that has lost its porky texture. A real shame if you ask me, because instead of being first and foremost a pulled pork sandwich, it ends up being a frighteningly gummy sloppy joe.
According to the King's press release, the Pulled Pork King is topped with pickles and crispy onion straws - likely in an effort to add complexity to the flavor, but more realistically is there to provide some much-needed texture to the mush. The pickles were a pleasant addition and offered a very subtle hint of the vinegar that I prefer to be present in my barbecue, but the onion straws were entirely, for the most part, undetectable. I did get a couple of vaguely crunchy bites, but for the most part those delectable crispy straws were entirely overcome by the sauce. If I'm being honest, the only thing about the Pulled Pork King that wasn't soggy was the wrapper it came in.
I can't help but lament the Pulled Pork King's untapped potential, though I realize that once again I need to temper my expectations for what an international burger chain can and even cares to produce. Being a limited-time offering and not an ambitious new staple for the company, the Pulled Pork King likely isn't intended for pulled pork enthusiasts like myself, but rather is simply an unexpected, festive alternative to what would otherwise be a bbq-sauce drenched heat-lamp burger.
