Thursday, February 19, 2009

What a Crock


There are recipes for all kinds of dishes to be prepared in crock pots. Breakfasts of slow-cooked oatmeal; lunches of soup; pot roasts and even the mashed potatoes to serve with them; cobbler like desserts; and just about anything in between can magically simmer in the crock pot while you cut the apron strings to the kitchen and get on with your life. That isn't to say that I believe that everything can/should be prepared in a crock pot. It is kinda like Speedos...just because they are there doesn't mean it's a good thing. A successful crock pot meal requires common sense and most of all attention to your own tastes. Don't like a roast chicken that isn't browned? Don't attempt the crock pot recipe. Want a chili with the blended flavors of chiles, seasoned meat, and beans (for us Northerners) bubbled all day? The crock pot could be your perfect tool.

My crock pot isn't used a lot. Honestly, I am not happy with the texture of many foods after cooking for hours. But, I love the ease of tossing in a few ingredients and not giving dinner a second thought, except to appreciate the aromas drifting through the house. Trial and error has provided a few chosen recipes for the crock pot that I turn back to time and again.

One of those tried and true recipes is a flavorful and spicy method for preparing shredded meat for tacos, enchiladas, sandwiches, nachos, casseroles, and even soups and stews. The original recipe called for beef roasts, and I can attest that it is fabulous. I have also prepared it with lamb and deer roasts with equal success. However, I recently swapped out a few ingredients from the original recipe to create Chipotle Pork. Hubby and I loved it, swooned over it, ate like little piggies and couldn't get enough of it. It is not a crock to have Chipotle Pork On My Plate.

Chipotle Pork

3-5 pounds pork loin roast
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
3-5 chipotle chiles in adobo, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can green chiles
1 (7 ounce) can salsa verde
1-2 cups slice onion
3-5 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth

Place roast in crock pot and season with pepper, chili powder and cumin.
Add the remaining ingredients.
Simmer on high for 5 hours or on low for 7-8 hours.
Shred the meat with a fork and simmer in the sauce on high for additional 10-15 minutes. (Serves 8)
(To make the original Chipotle Beef (or Lamb or Deer) replace the chicken broth with beef broth.)

3 comments:

  1. Every ingredient in there is something I love--this looks really delicious! Making me wish I hadn't given my slow cooker away, hehe.

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  2. mmm, that sounds yummy! and easy. which is what i like the most, hehe.

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  3. I know I know I'm way late on this but I'm trying to be good about letting people know that I've tried their recipes! This is a definite keeper. My only change was to dredge the meat in flour and sear it well and then cook it in the oven @ 250 for about six hours (four hours covered, two uncovered). We piled the meat on top of mashed potatoes and then ladled the sauce over it all. mmmm So so good!

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