Slow Cooker: The Best Cookbook Ever (32 page)

I love to serve this red-cooked pork in flour tortillas with hoisin sauce, green onions, and cucumber slices. The pork is infused with a delicious marinade of soy, rice wine, brown sugar, and ketchup, then slowly cooked until it is fall-apart tender. If you prefer, you can serve this with sticky rice and an Asian slaw.

1 cup soy sauce

1 cup rice wine (mirin) or dry sherry

½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

½ cup ketchup

½ teaspoon five-spice powder

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

One 3- to 4-pound boneless pork shoulder, tied with kitchen string

2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with ¼ cup water

combine the soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, ketchup, five-spice powder, garlic, and ginger in a large zipper-top plastic bag. Add the pork to the bag, seal, and turn to coat the meat with the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.

pour the meat and marinade into the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 5 to 6 hours, until the meat is tender. Remove the meat from the slow cooker and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

shred the meat using two forks. Skim off the fat from the sauce and stir in the cornstarch mixture. Return the meat to the sauce, cover, and cook for an additional 30 minutes, until the sauce is thickened.

serve the pork from the slow cooker set on warm.

serves 6–8

Chalupa
in Spanish means “small boat,” and the chalupas that are sold on the street in Mexico are shells of corn flour that are deep fried and then filled with shredded pork and pinto beans, along with cilantro, onion, and maybe a bit of chipotle chile. This slow-cooker dish combines pork, beans, and chipotle for a great stick-to-your-ribs dinner. Serve it on tostada shells or alongside Spanish rice and a pico de gallo salad.

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 chipotle chiles in adobo, minced, with about ½ teaspoon adobo

Salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

One 3-pound pork shoulder roast, excess fat removed, cut into 2-inch chunks (see savvy)

1½ cups coarsely chopped white onion

½ cup gold tequila (optional)

Four 15-ounce cans refried beans (nonfat are okay here)

1 cup beef broth

Freshly ground black pepper

16 tostada shells

½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro for garnishing

1½ cups sour cream for garnishing

1½ cups shredded mild Cheddar cheese or crumbled queso fresco for garnishing

in a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of the oil with the garlic, chipotles, 2 teaspoons salt, the cumin, and cinnamon to make a paste. Using rubber gloves to protect your hands from the chiles, slather the paste onto the pork and massage it into the meat. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over high heat.

add the meat and brown on all sides a few pieces at a time, being careful not to crowd the pan. Transfer it to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Add the onion to the same skillet, adding oil if the pan is dry, and sauté until the onion begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the tequila (if using) and allow the liquid to evaporate by half.

transfer the mixture to the slow-cooker insert. Stir the beans and beef broth together in a bowl. Add to the slow cooker and stir to combine.

cook the stew on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 8 to 10 hours, until the meat is tender and the beans are thick. Skim off any fat from the surface of the sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

ladle some of the meat and beans onto a tostada shell and top with cilantro, sour cream, and cheese. Serve two per person if the tostada shells are smaller than 6 inches across.

serves 8

pork savvy

Pork shoulder is usually cheaper with the bone in, even though you are paying for the weight of the bone. With a dish like this, you can buy it on the bone and cut away the bone before cutting it into cubes. Some markets offer already-cut-up shoulder meat.

Several years ago, my husband and I set off on what I called the “Roots Tour” of Italy. My grandmother was born in a small hill town in Umbria, and I set out to find the family. Umbria is home to many wonderful culinary pleasures, chief among them a roasted pork called
porchetta
, which is not only served in restaurants, but also at roadside stands dotting the countryside. The pork is butterflied and stuffed with aromatic herbs, onion, garlic, and, sometimes, fennel, then slow roasted for hours. The result is meltingly tender pork perfumed with the flavors of the stuffing. This is my take on this traditional Umbrian dish.

One 4-pound boneless pork shoulder, butterflied

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

2 medium onions, finely chopped

1 bulb fennel, ends trimmed, finely chopped

1 cup dry white wine or vermouth

place the pork fat-side down on a cutting board and sprinkle with some of the salt and pepper. Stir together the remaining salt and pepper, the oil, garlic, rosemary, and fennel seeds. rub this mixture all over the pork.

roll up the pork from the short side and tie with kitchen string or silicone loops. Spread the onions and fennel over the bottom of the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Pour in the wine and place the pork on top of the vegetables.

cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 8 to 10 hours. Remove the meat from the slow cooker, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 20 minutes. Strain the contents of the slow cooker through a fine-mesh sieve into a saucepan and skim off any fat from the surface.

bring the sauce to a boil and reduce by half. Cut the strings from the roast. Cut the meat into ½-inch-thick slices or shred the meat with two forks.

serve piled on a platter and accompany with the sauce.

serves 8

Pork chops can sometimes be dry and tough, but in the slow cooker they turn into a meltingly tender and succulent entrée. These chops rest on thinly sliced sweet apples, flavored with Dijon mustard and brown sugar, and are covered with onions and sauerkraut. This one-pot meal is terrific to serve with mashed potatoes and applesauce.

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

4 Braeburn apples, peeled, cored, cut into ½-inch-thick slices

½ cup Dijon mustard

½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

Six 1-inch-thick pork loin chops

2 medium sweet onions, cut into half moons

One 1-pound bag sauerkraut, rinsed and drained

½ cup apple juice

pour half the butter into the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Add the apples and toss to coat. Stir the mustard and sugar together in a small bowl and dot the apples with ¼ cup of the mustard mixture.

paint the pork chops with the remaining mustard mixture and put the pork chops on the apples. Heat the remaining butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté until they begin to turn golden, about 15 minutes.

add the sauerkraut to the onions and stir to combine. Spread the sauerkraut mixture over the pork and pour in the apple juice. Cover and cook on high for 3½ to 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours, until the pork is tender and cooked through.

serve the pork chops with the apples and sauerkraut.

serves 6

pork chop savvy

Chops are cut from the loin. Thick center-cut pork chops are the best choice for a slow cooker.

A terrific weekend dinner, these chili-rubbed pork chops simmer in a sweet pepper and onion sauce. Serve this with steamed rice and refried beans for a weekend fiesta.

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions, cut into half rounds

2 medium red bell peppers, seeded and cut into ½-inch slices

2 medium yellow bell peppers, seeded and cut into ½-inch slices

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

One 28- to 32-ounce can crushed tomatoes, with their juice

1 teaspoon ancho chile powder

Six 1-inch-thick pork loin chops

heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over mediumhigh heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, cumin, sugar, salt, and pepper and sauté until the onions begin to turn translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover the cooker and set on low.

heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chile powder evenly over the chops and add to the skillet. Brown the chops on all sides. Transfer the chops to the slow- cooker insert and spoon some of the sauce over the chops.

cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3½ to 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours, until the pork is tender.

serve the pork chops with the sauce.

serves 6

Sweet balsamic vinegar, dried figs, aromatic sage, and pork chops are braised together to succulent perfection in the slow cooker. The sauce is delicious served with polenta or roasted potatoes.

¼ cup olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Six 1-inch-thick pork loin chops

12 dried figs, cut in half

2 medium onions, cut into half rounds

2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage leaves

½ cup balsamic vinegar

¼ cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Sprinkle the salt and pepper evenly over the pork chops and add the pork to the skillet.

brown the pork on all sides. Transfer to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Add the figs to the slow-cooker insert. Add the onions and sage to the same skillet and sauté until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Deglaze the skillet with the vinegar and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert and pour in the broth.

cover and cook on high for 3½ to 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours. Carefully remove the pork from the pot and cover with aluminum foil. Using an immersion blender, purée the sauce and whisk in the butter.

return the pork to the slow cooker and set on warm to serve.

serves 6

This recipe is an improvement on the one from the Campbell’s soup company that cooked pork chops in cream of mushroom soup on the stovetop. Don’t be worried about the amount of onions, for they add sweetness to the sauce. If you have family members who aren’t onion fans, purée the sauce before serving, and it will be our little secret!

6 strips bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 center-cut ¾-inch-thick pork chops

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter

4 large onions, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices

1 teaspoon dried sage leaves, crushed in the palm of your hand

½ teaspoon dried thyme

2 tablespoons sugar

1 cup beef broth

2 cups chicken broth

cook the bacon in a large skillet until crisp and remove it to paper towels to drain. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper in a zipper-top plastic bag, add the chops, and shake to coat.

add the chops to the bacon drippings and brown on both sides. Transfer the chops to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. If the chops don’t fit snugly in one layer, put some on top of each other.

melt the butter in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, sage, thyme, and sugar and sauté until the onions begin to turn golden but not brown. Pour the beef broth into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert and add the chicken broth.

cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours, until the pork is tender. Stir in the bacon.

serve the pork chops covered with some of the sauce.

serves 6–8