5 Slow Cooker Pork Ideas

No pictures today folks. Just yummy ideas!

Pork loin is my go-to dinner helping love.

The possibilities are endless.

Literally endless.

Pork is very affordable. When I'm grocery shopping for a "cheap week" or a really busy week, I usually buy an unseasoned pork loin from the grocery store for around $10 and I can easily get 4 or 5 meals out of it with the help of seasonings and simple condiments. The trick is to buy unseasoned pork. The minute you choose a Smithfield seasoned pork loin, you have easily doubled your cost of meat. By choosing unseasoned pork, you save money and give yourself more recipe options. Add a simple side salad, some baked beans, couscous, rice, steamed vegetables, or macaroni and cheese and you have an easy, effortless meal in no time. Plus, your house will smell delectable when you come home from work! Here are 5 of my favorite pork recipes.

BBQ Pulled Pork version 1: (milder) Before you leave for work in the morning, put your portioned-out pork in your slow cooker with some chicken stock and pepper. Let it go all day on low. When you come home, drain off the liquid and "pull" the pork apart with two forks (should be tender enough at this point to pull easily). Put the pork back into the crockpot with your favorite BBQ sauce and let it heat through for about 20 minutes. Serve on a kaiser roll with some baked beans or corn on the cob.

BBQ Pulled Pork version 2: (stronger) Instead of cooking your pork in stock, cook it in two bottles worth of your favorite BBQ sauce. I personally like tangy BBQ sauce rather than sweet. I also add some crushed red pepper flakes and a tablespoon of vinegar because it tends to sweeten itself up the longer it cooks.

Porkchops and Applesauce: This one takes less time to cook. Go home for your lunch break and put your portioned pork into the crockpot with a bottle of your favorite cinnamon applesauce and some pepper. Cook on high for 4-5 hours. When you get home, it should still be sturdy enough to slice through like pork chops. Use the applesauce as a sauce over it. Serve with steamed broccoli and garlic bread.

Lemon-Pepper Pork: The trick with this is using just enough liquid to conduct heat and leave your pork moist, but not so much that it saturates the pork. Add just enough chicken stock to your crockpot to come 1/3 of the way up the porkloin. Add a liberal amount of pepper, some salt, the zest of one lemon, and 1/4 c. lemon juice. Cook all day on low. This is great with mashed potatoes.

Mustard Crusted Pork: Stir 2 Tbsp of pepper, 2 tsp of salt, 3 Tbsp of dijon mustard, 3 Tbsp of olive oil, 2 tsp of garlic powder together and rub onto a pork loin. Marinate overnight. Come home for lunch the next day and put it in the crockpot on high with just enough liquid (chicken stock, broth, water, or even white wine) to keep the bottom of the pork wet. Cook 5 hours or so. Serve with roasted asparagus, couscous, applesauce, crescent rolls, etc.

And with all of these recipes, the leftovers make for a fantastic lunch the next day!

Enjoy a week of easy cooking!