Slow Cooker Shredded Pork With Cilantro-Ginger Sauce

Posted bychristinanifongPosted inMain Dishes, RecipesTags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
pork and rice with cilantro-lime sauceMost years, we buy a local half hog in the spring and another in the fall. We place the butchered, vacuum-packed cuts — thick, uncured bacon, flavorful sausage, tender pork chops — in our deep freeze and we plan our meals around this meat until it runs out. Which means we sometimes have to get a little creative. Pork loins do not appear in our order. But bigger cuts, like shoulders and butts, do. I love shredded pork barbecue as much as the next mom (who was raised in North Carolina BBQ country) but I also like variety. This recipe is one that’s been developing over the last several weeks. A version of the sauce first debuted on some ahi tuna in my kitchen, but I discovered I love it on the pork. Think of this as a twist on Korean pork tacos. It’s a little sweet, a little spicy, a lot citrusy and sooooo good. Here we go …

Ingredients

For the slow cooker
1 5-6 pound cut of pork, can be butt, shoulder or ham roast (this will work for smaller cuts as well; you may want to halve the sauce ingredients — or plan to have extras)
fine sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1 large onion, quartered
4 cloves garlic, halved
For the sauce
 5 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
5 Tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled and minced
5 garlic cloves, peeled and pressed
2 jalapeños, minced
5 limes, juiced
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 batch brown, jasmine or forbidden rice

Instructions

  1. Cut excess fat off pork. Lightly rub salt and pepper over meat, on all sides. Place onion and garlic in slow cooker.
  2. Place meat on top of onion. Cover slow cooker. Set to High. Cook on high for about six hours or until meat is falling off bone.
  3. Prepare and mix sauce ingredients. Refrigerate sauce until meat is cooked.
  4. Once meat has cooked and cooled, remove from slow cooker. Discard veggies and liquid.
  5. Set meat on cutting board. Pull meat off bone with two forks (or your fingers!). Roughly chop meat if you like smaller pieces. Place prepared meat in an oven safe mixing bowl or casserole dish.
  6. Pour sauce atop the meat and mix together. Warm in 300°F oven. Serve with rice.

You can also find this post at Fiesta Friday #163.Fiesta Friday icon