The Great American Slow Cooker Book (41 page)

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All those aromatics should be minced into small bits about the size of the grains of salt to get evenly distributed across the roast.

1
Stir the pineapple, soy sauce, wine, brown sugar, ginger, sesame oil, and garlic in the slow cooker until the brown sugar dissolves. Tuck the pork tenderloin into the sauce.

2
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until the pork is fork-tender. Transfer the tenderloin to a cutting board; slice into rounds about ½ inch thick to serve.

TESTERS’ NOTES

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The pork tenderloin is a small, delicately flavored tidbit from the pig, a favorite for quick cooking but doable in the slow cooker if you follow our timings exactly and don’t allow the cooker to flip over onto a “keep warm” setting.

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Making your own teriyaki sauce from scratch ensures there aren’t a lot of funky chemicals in the mix! And the pineapple flavor will be much more naturally sweet, better for mingling with the tangy soy sauce.

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The pork tenderloins should not be browned because they would be almost cooked through (then rendering them dry in the cooker). Instead, the poaching liquid will turn them velvety and rich.

1
Cut the stem ends off the Brussels sprouts, then thinly shred them. Stir into the cooker along with the allspice, salt, and pepper; drizzle with the wine.

2
Mix the honey mustard and Worcestershire sauce in a small bowl; smear over the pork. Nestle the meat into the shredded sprouts.

3
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until the pork is quite tender when pierced with a fork. Transfer to a carving board; slice into ½-inch-thick rounds. Mound the Brussels sprouts and sauce on the plates or a serving platter, then set the carved pork on top of each mound.

TESTERS’ NOTES

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Some people shy away from Brussels sprouts because of their bitter earthiness. If that’s a concern in your crowd, remember the rule: the smaller the sprout, the less assertive its flavor.

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For quicker prep but more cleanup, use the 4 mm slicing blade of a food processor to shred the Brussels sprouts.

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For larger slow cookers, use more than one pork tenderloin. You may need to slice them to get them to fit. Don’t stack them; make an even layer of tenderloin pieces.

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Mix the apple juice concentrate, cinnamon, cumin, salt, pepper, cloves, and cayenne in the slow cooker.

2
Smear the pork with the butter; set it into the liquid.

3
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until the pork is fork-tender. Transfer the tenderloin to a cutting board and slice into ½-inch-thick rounds.

TESTERS’ NOTES

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The poaching liquid is not really a sauce as is. However, you can ladle it into a saucepan and boil it down over high heat, stirring often, until it’s syrupy like a glaze.

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For some heat, mix a dash of cayenne into the butter before smearing it on the meat.

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Once again, you may need to work with more than one pork tenderloin to fill out the appropriate weight for the recipe. Slice them in pieces to fit in one layer.

Serve It Up!
For a side dish, place small white or yellow new potatoes in a steamer basket or vegetable steamer set over 1 or 2 inches of simmering water. Cover and steam until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

1
Toss the pork loin chunks, chestnuts, scallions, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, and nutmeg in the slow cooker. Stir in the soy sauce, rum, and broth until the brown sugar dissolves.

2
Cover and cook on low for 7 hours, or until the sauce is intensely flavored and the pork is velvety tender.

TESTERS’ NOTES

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This easy braise is all about the balance of aromatics, the way they meld into a sauce over time.

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When shopping for jarred chestnuts, look for them in clear containers so you can see what you’re getting. The chestnuts should be whole, not chipped apart; they should also be firm and rounded, not squished onto each other. Chestnuts are a common ingredient in Chinese cooking, a starchy addition to many braises. Although available in almost every supermarket, they’re much less expensive in Asian grocery stores or from the online sites.

Serve It Up!
Have bowls of white rice ready. But instead of standard long-grain rice, use a medium grain for a chewier, moister side dish.

1
Process the basil, pine nuts, cheese, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large food processor fitted with the chopping blade until there’s a coarse paste with some graininess still in the mix. Smear this pesto all over the pork loin and set it in the slow cooker.

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Cover and cook on low for 5 hours in a small slow cooker, 6 hours in a medium cooker, or 8 hours in a large cooker, or until the pork is fork-tender. Lift the pork to a cutting board; cool for 10 minutes. Carve it into ½-inch-thick rounds.

TESTERS’ NOTES

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A pork loin is one of the few relatively lean cuts that take to the slow cooker without much fuss or care. Here, a simple pesto coats the roast to protect it during the long cooking.

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Large basil leaves can have a somewhat tough, fibrous stem. Remove these before packing the leaves into the measuring cups.

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For a deeper taste, toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet set over medium-low heat, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

INGREDIENTS EXPLAINED
A pork loin is the very definition of eating high on the hog—that is, eating the lean choice cuts, this one the juicy bit right under the ribs. The pork loin can come with the bones attached—and in fact does come that way in butcher shops—which is why we call for a
boneless
pork loin. It may also have a small
amount of fat along its exterior surface. You can trim it off, but we don’t advise it, since the melting fat will keep basting the rather lean meat as it cooks.

ALL-AMERICAN KNOW-HOW
Assuming the slow cooker works properly and the size of the meat is within the recipe’s requirements, a pork loin will be cooked through in the stated time. However, to be certain, take the internal temperature of the pork by inserting an instant-read meat thermometer into the loin’s center and make sure the gauge registers at least 145°F for safe but still pink pork, or 155°F for a more cooked-through finish.