Saturday, March 28, 2009

Slow Cooked Goodness

There are no words to describe how much I love this recipe. The warm flavors of the sauce and the absolute tenderness of the pork, combined with sour cream, warm corn tortillas, and fresh cilantro (from the farmer's market) made for a perfect dinner last night. Add a lager beer, and voila! Dinner was a definite success and you can bet that I'll be making this recipe again. Perfect for large groups, this is a slow-cooker recipe - aka throw it in and forget about it for 7-8 hours. Now that's my style of cooking! :)

from Real Simple

Ingredients:
2 cups store-bought salsa, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
kosher salt
1 2 1/2 pound boneless pork butt or shoulder, trimmed of excess fat
18 corn tortillas
1/2 cup fresh cilantro sprigs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 lime, cut into wedges

Directions:
1. In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, combine the salsa, chili powder, oregano, cocoa, and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the pork and turn to coat.
2. Cook, covered, until the meat is tender and pulls apart easily, on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.
3. Twenty minutes before serving, heat oven to 350° F.
4. Stack the tortillas, wrap them in foil, and bake until warm, about 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, using 2 forks, shred the pork and stir into the cooking liquid. Serve with the tortillas, cilantro, sour cream, lime, and extra salsa.

Tip: When using a slow cooker, resist the urge to lift the lid until the dish has cooked the minimum amount of time specified in the recipe. Each peek allows heat to escape and can increase cooking time by as much as a half hour.

2 comments:

Cindy said...

Nice! What kind of salsa did you use?

CV said...

Unfortunately my local grocery store didn't have many options so it was up to Pace (medium spice) to get the job done. It tasted just fine!