Crock Pot Verde Carnitas

Delicious and simple...what more can you ask for?

You know what I love? Easy recipes. And it doesn’t get any easier than tossing a few things in the Crock Pot. This is one of my tried-and-true slow cooker faves. I don’t know where the recipe originated from but I’ve changed it a little over time in order to make it as simple—and tasty—as possible.

In the past, I’ve always used Pacifico, Corona, or Tecate as my “cerveza” of choice, but I didn’t have any of those in the fridge so a nice maple porter from Sam Adams went into the pot instead. (Really, whichever beer you are willing to sacrifice will do the trick.) You can also swap the beer for water or chicken broth if you are so inclined. Finally, if you don’t like pork tenderloin, chicken works really well in this recipe, too. Here’s what I came up with.

Crock Pot Verde Carnitas
Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
1 medium white onion, chopped (a little reserved for garnish)
1 pork tenderloin (I get the 2-pack at Costco and use one package per meal…it’s probably 1.5 pounds or so)
1 12-ounce beer of your choice
1 large jar of salsa verde a.k.a. green salsa (a little reserved for garnish)
Fresh cilantro, washed, trimmed, and chopped (for garnish, optional)
Reduced-fat sour cream  (optional)
Corn or flour tortillas (I like the carb balance ones from Mission)
Guacamole (optional)

Directions:
Place chopped onion in slow cooker. Add tenderloin and pour beer into the pot. Cover the tenderloin with most of the jar of salsa verde (remember to save a little for later!). Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-6 hours.

When cooking time is complete, shred the tenderloin with a fork (when it’s done, it falls apart easily). Serve taco-style on corn or flour tortillas and garnish with remaining onion and salsa verde and add a little cilantro and sour cream, if desired. (Chopped tomatoes and shredded lite Mexican cheese are good additions too!)

Results:
Really, you can’t go wrong with these yummy carnitas. Be aware this recipe makes A LOT of food. It’s awesome for feeding a group but the leftovers are also great served over brown rice or on top of tortilla chips with cheese and jalapeños nacho style. If you are trying to be all healthy, you can serve this mixture over romaine lettuce and go the low-carb route. It’s really versatile and delicious no matter how you eat it.

The recipe as written above produces a fair amount of liquid. If you don’t like it so “soupy” you can reduce the amount of water or beer you add or leave it out altogether and just let the tenderloin cook in the salsa. Up to you!

Again, I‘ve been making this recipe for years and it’s always a big hit in our household. Give it a shot and let me know what you think.

Until next time,
Ryann

P.S. Happy 70^th birthday, Dad! I love you and hope your day is as wonderful and special as you are.

Crock Pot Hawaiian BBQ Pork

You had me at BBQ sauce and pineapple...

Nothing says 4th of July like pork in the Crock Pot right? Okay, maybe not but I tried this the other night and just had to share.

Many of my cooking inspirations come from Pinterest. It’s like one-stop shopping for great recipe ideas. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that site. But I digress. The other day, someone posted a Crock Pot recipe with only three ingredients: BBQ sauce, chicken, and a can of pineapple. They had me at BBQ sauce…and the pineapple was the icing on the cake.  Plus, who can pass up such a simple recipe with so few ingredients?

Well, I didn’t have any chicken on hand (Gasp! When does that ever happen?), but I did have a pork tenderloin that needed to be used. So I threw it in the Crock Pot, added a few veggies to the mix, and now here I am sharing this slightly-altered variation with you folks.

Crock Pot Hawaiian BBQ Pork
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
1.5-2 pounds pork tenderloin
1 cup carrots, coarsely chopped
½ medium red onion, coarsely chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks with juice (not heavy syrup)
1 (18 ounce) bottle your favorite BBQ sauce (I used the sale brand Sweet n’ Spicy)

Directions:
Place tenderloin in Crock Pot. Layer veggies on top. Dump in canned pineapple with juice. Pour the entire bottle of BBQ sauce over the top. Cook on low 6-8 hours, until pork shreds easily with a fork.

Healthy “Swap”tion:
The obvious health swap here is to make this dish with chicken instead of pork. (Although clever marketing would have you believe that pork is the “other white meat,” that’s not the case…this little piggy is still considered red meat by the USDA.)  I would suggest keeping the amount of veggies and pineapple the same but using 2-3 boneless chicken breasts and maybe half the bottle of BBQ sauce. The chicken will also cook faster. Typically around 5-6 hours on low.

The Result:
How can these ingredients not yield something yummy? It smelled scrumptious in the house all day while this was simmering and it didn’t disappoint. We spooned it over a little brown rice and had a spinach/strawberry/glazed walnut/Mediterranean herb feta cheese salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing on the side. DELISH!

Hope everyone has a happy and safe 4^th of July holiday.

Until next time,
Ryann