Slow Cooker/crockpot pork shoulder recipe wanted

Cafe Society
1

We have a high tech slow cooker with lots of different settings. I bought a pork shoulder with bone tonight. Will brine it overnight using an Epicurious based recipe here: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/SLOW-ROASTED-PORK-SHOULDER-52195701

Instead of slow cooking in the oven, I’d like to try the slow cooker. And I’ll do the pork shoulder first, and then later turn it into pulled pork. China Wife is the wrong side of borderline diabetes, so no pulled pork in sweetened BBQ sauce for her

Any good recipes or slow cooker/crock pot hints

2

My favorite, courtesy of Rick Bayless (of Frontera Grill/Topolobampo, Chicago, from one of his cookbooks):

Slow-Cooked Achiote Pork
Half of a 3.5 oz achiote seasoning box
3/4 c lime juice, divided use
Salt
3-lb bone-in pork shoulder roast
Large white onion, sliced ~1/4" thick
Large red onion, sliced thin

Mix the achiote seasoning with 1/2 c lime juice, using the back of a spoon to break up any chunks. Put the pork in the slow cooker, pour the lime/achiote mix over top, then top with white onion slices. Pour 1/2 c water around the meat’s sides, cover, slow-cook on high for 6 hours.

While it’s cooking, combine the red onion with the remaining 1/4 c lime juice, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt, toss, and let marinate. Stir occasionally.

Pull out the pork and onions with tongs. You can skim off any remaining fat and cook down the juices in a pan to about 1 c volume, season to taste with salt. Spoon over the pork. Serve with the marinated red onions, and salsa if desired. Can be served with tortillas, or rice.

3

Get your hands on a bottler of this if you can.
Pull your pork and wet liberally with the mojo criollo - it’s easy and very tasty.

4

Another vote for Cochinita Pibil, though the recipe I use (from the Fonda San Miguel cookbook) has more complexity and depth than the Bayless one. I’ve cooked the entire pork shoulder as a unit instead of cutting it into cubes; just make deep cuts in the shoulder and make sure that the marinade/tomato mixture gets down in there. You could easily replace the part where you bake it in an oven to baking it in a slow cooker, though you’d want to keep the banana leaf-- it adds flavor.

4 lbs pork shoulder or 4 lbs pork butt or 4 lbs chicken, trimmed of tendons and   cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons safflower oil
4 large tomatoes, sliced
2 medium white onions, sliced
1 large banana leaf

Achiote Rub

2 tablespoons achiote seeds or 3 tablespoons achiote paste
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed
1/2 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
12 whole black peppercorns
4 whole allspice
8 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon sea salt

Directions:

Preparing the Achiote Rub:

Note, if using prepared achiote paste instead of achiote seeds, skip the soaking and crushing step. Simply mash the paste with the orange juice and vinegar and then transfer the mixture to a blender.

Mix the achiote seeds with the orange juice and vinegar and soak for 1 hour to soften them.

Using a molcajete, or mortar and pestle, crush the achiote seeds with a little of the soaking liquid.

Transfer the seeds and soaking liquid to a blender and add the remaining rub ingredients; blend to a paste.

Reserve 2 tablespoons of the paste for cooking with the tomatoes.

Rub the pork cubes with the remaining achiote rub and set aside.

Heat Oil in heavy skillet over medium heat. Add tomatoes, onions and the reserved 2 tablespoons of achiote rub. Fry for about 3 minutes and set aside.
Cooking the Pork:.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. have a large heavy dutch oven ready.

Using tongs, carefully sear the banana leaf over an open flame until flexible.

Line the dutch oven with the banana leaf and arrange the pork cubes on the leaf.

Cover the pork with tomato mixture, folding the banana leaf over the top.

Cover and cook in preheated oven for 2 to 2/12 hours basting occasionally with juices from bottom of the pot. Remove from the oven and transfer to a serving platter.

Garnish with cebollas rojas en escabeche [slice red onions thinly, add one sliced beet and a few black peppercorns, and pickle in white vinegar or red wine vinegar or some combination of the two for a few hours up to overnight.]

5

Try some Puerto Rican style roast pork shoulder. There are a million recipes out there - long marinating is the key, and bitter orange juice (or a mixture of orange and lime juice), and LOTS of garlic.

Also, try this fabulous Georgian pork shoulder recipe sometime - don’t skip the pomegranate sauce!

6

My favorite way is to cut the hunk of pork up into largish pieces and season with salt, cumin and Mexican oregano. Place in crock-pot with a chunked up onion. DO NOT ADD LIQUID. After 8 hours the fat will have rendered out and braised the meat and it will be falling apart tender. Put in tortillas with a squeeze of lime. When you get tired of eating that, mix the leftovers with a vinegar based barbecue sauce and serve on buns. You can use country style pork ribs also if they are on sale.

7

My standard for the slow cooker does not involve brining. I don’t feel like its necessary, since the shoulder/butt cooks for 8-10 hours. I cut an onion or two (enough for the whole bottom of the crock) into big chunks, the scatter big chunks of cored, peeled apple on to of that(again, enough to cover the onion layer). About an inch of cider vinegar, then the pork. Seasonings on top, then low till I get home from work. Seasonings vary based on how I’m feeling, but always include a little salt-free lemon pepper, and some hot pepper flakes. I don’t add salt, as the pork is salty already!

8

Oh, and I leave it whole.

9

Not unless it is a cured picnic or butt.

10

Even fresh pork seems to be salty enough to me…and I’m a person who loves her some salt flavor.

11

Dammit, I come in here to tell you to make Cochinita Pibil, and the first two responses beat me to it!

They forgot to tell you to use sour orange juice, though. Naranja Agria at your local Mexican grocery.

12

Make pork chile verde enchiladas. The embedded recipe is for the chile verde. It asks for boneless shoulder, but there’s no reason at all you can’t use the whole shoulder and use a crock pot.

13

1 whole Large Onion, quartered
1 whole Pork Shoulder (“pork Butt”) - 5 To 7 Pounds
Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1 can (11 Ounce) Chipotle Peppers In Adobo Sauce
2 cans Dr. Pepper
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

Cook on low 12 hours.

14

I like this one, how spicy does it get? How do you cook it? Do you prep the shoulder in any special way?

15

It’s just a little spicy. I put the onion in first, the meat in one piece next, then everything else. When I get home from work I flip the meat over. I remove the meat to a cutting board, pull it, and return to the crockpot an hour before serving.