Kneaders BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This is my new favorite pulled pork recipe. I use Lillie's Carolina Barbeque Sauce that I find at Whole Foods. Yum!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tbsp chili powder

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 (about 3.5 lb) pork shoulder roast (or pork loin. I like to buy the large pork loins at Costco. One pork loin is enough for three meals for our family)

1 onion, roughly sliced

1 tsp minced garlic

1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce, divided

4 cups water

your favorite rolls or buns

coleslaw, for garnish (optional)

cilantro, for garnish (optional)

red onion, for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

In a small bowl, combine the chili powder, salt and pepper. Rub the mixture onto the pork until it is thoroughly coated.

Placed the sliced onion and garlic in the bottom of a slow cooker. Add water to the slow cooker. Add the pork covered by a 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce. Cook the roast on high until it is very tender and easy to shred, about 6 hours.

Remove the pork from the slow cooker and place in a 9x13 dish. Strain and discard the cooking liquid from the slow cooker, keeping the onion. 

Shred the pork. Return it, and the onions, to the slow cooker. Mix in the remaining cup of barbecue sauce. Cook until heated through. 

Serve on rolls or buns with desired toppings such as coleslaw or cilantro.

 

 

Honey Garlic Chicken

Honey Garlic Chicken

from: therecipecritic.com

Ingredients:

• 6-7 Boneless Chicken Thighs
• 3/4 cup Honey
• 3/4 cup soy sauce (or coconut aminos for a gluten free recipe)
• 2 tbsp hoisen sauce 
• 2 cloves garlic crushed I used 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger root I used 1 tsp dry ginger
• 1 tsp seseame oil
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 cup water

Instructions:

• In a 5 quart slow cooker add the chicken thighs. In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, soy sauce, hoisen sauce, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
• Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred. Whisk together the cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Whisk it into the sauce in the slow cooker. Return the shredded chicken back to the slow cooker and let cook for another 15 minutes to let the sauce thicken. Serve over rice with roasted broccoli or cooked green beans for a healthy, easy and inexpensive meal. 

Boys say: thumbs up

Husband rating: 4.5 stars

Green Chile Burritos

lightly adapted from lilluna.com

I love finding a new cooking blog or book that inspires me to try new recipes. As you can see from the most recent posts, I've discovered lilluna.com and have found some great recipes. I get bored easily and can't make the same thing over and over! I'm grateful for good cooks who share their talents.


When I saw this recipe I wasn't sure I'd like it but I was so wrong! I'm really glad we tried it.

1 2.5-3 lb beef roast
2 TB Italian Dressing Dry Mix
2 TB Hidden Valley Dry Mix
2 TB Brown Gravy Dry Mix
1⁄2 cup water
1 - 2 cups 505 Green Chile Sauce (or whatever great salsa verde you can find at your store)
Tortillas

Mix Brown Gravy Dry Mix, Hidden Valley Dry Mix and Italian Dressing Dry Mix together.

Place chuck roast in your slow cooker. Pour 1⁄2 cup water over your roast. Sprinkle mix all over the top of your roast. Cook on HIGH for at least 4 hours. 

Remove meat from the slow cooker and shred using two forks. Pour out the liquid from the slow cooker. Place the shredded meat back in the slow cooker.

Add your green chile sauce, mix and cook until your sauce is warm. Serve on warm tortillas. I added chopped red onion and avocado slices to mine. Cotija cheese is another good topping for these burritos/tacos. 

Husband rating: 2 stars

My rating: 4 stars

Boys say: thumbs up

Melanie's White Chicken Chili

The original recipe (that I lightly adapted) comes from a friend's daughter-in-law who happens to have the same name I do-Melanie!

1 large chicken breast 
1 15oz can black beans, drained
1 15 oz can corn, drained or 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 10 oz can mild Mexican-style tomatoes (diced tomatoes with green chilis)
1 package ranch dressing
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 c water
1 8 oz package cream cheese

Put all ingredients in the crockpot, except the cream cheese. Put the block of cream cheese on top. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Take the chicken out and shred it. Put it back in the crock pot and mix all ingredients.

I have to double this recipe because our family likes it so much. The recipe should feed about 4-5 people as is.

Boys give this two thumbs up!

Slow Cooker Beef and Sweet Potato Soup

from Cooking Light magazine

1 lb 90% lean ground beef

4 c (3/4 in.) cubed unpeeled sweet potato

2 1/2 c unsalted beef stock

2 c chopped yellow onion

1 c chopped red, yellow or orange bell pepper

1/4 c unsalted tomato paste (about an 8oz size can)

2 tbsp chili powder

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground red pepper

8 garlic cloves, minced

2 (14.5 oz) cans unsalted diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (15 oz) can unsalted black beans, rinsed and drained

1 c chopped fresh cilantro, divided

optional: 1 c sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add beef to pan; cook, stirring often, just until crumbled and mostly browned, about 3 minutes. (Beef will not be fully cooked.) Remove from heat. 

Combine sweet potatoes and next 11 ingredients (through black beans) in a 6-quart slow cooker. Stir in beef. Cover and cook on low 7 hours. Stir in 1/2 c cilantro. Ladle chili into bowls; top with cheese and remaining cilantro, if wanted.

Husband rating: 4 stars

Boys said: thumbs up

Shredded Sweet Pork

lightly adapted from allrecipes.com, submitted by Dean

3 pounds pork shoulder roast
2 cups salsa (not chunky salsa)
1 (12 oz) can or bottle cola-flavored carbonated beverage
1 cups brown sugar
2 tbsp fajita seasoning
2 tbsp taco seasoning mix

Place pork roast in the crock of a slow cooker, and add 4 cups water. Cook on High for 5 hours.

Remove pork from the slow cooker and drain liquid. Shred the pork and set aside. Combine the salsa, cola, brown sugar, fajita seasoning and taco seasoning in the slow cooker. Add the pork and mix. Cook on low for an additional 1-2 hours.

We made tacos and a salad out of this. We used black beans, shredded cheese, chopped tomatoes, cilantro lime rice (cook 2 cups of rice then add 2 tsp fresh lime juice, chopped cilantro and salt to taste), the pork and the Tomatillo Ranch dressing I love. For my salad I also added some guacamole.

This is a perfect meal to have with friends. Everyone can bring something and it makes it so easy.

I have other sweet pork recipes on this blog. I've been trying to find just the right flavor. This is it! This is our favorite sweet pork recipe.

Husband rating: 5 stars

boys say: thumbs up

Sweet and Smoky Pork Tacos

from ourbestbites.com

Ingredients:

1 2.5-3.5-pound pork roast (sirloin is a good lean cut, picnic roast is always delicious but fattier, pork loin is a good middle-of-the-road cut)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons dry onion
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 cup Coke (not Diet Coke)
1 tablespoon adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chilies (2 if you want medium heat, 3 if you really want it spicy; if you’re very sensitive to heat, use 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce or mild enchilada sauce. Keep in mind the finished product will be milder.)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
Juice of 1 lime

Ingredients:

Heat about 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season pork roast with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add the pork roast and sear on all sides. Transfer the pork to a crock pot.

In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, onion, garlic powder, cumin, coriander, oregano, and smoked paprika. Rub it over the top of the pork roast. Whisk together the Coke, adobo sauce, apple cider vinegar, and liquid smoke and pour it around the pork roast. 

Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours or until it shreds easily with a fork. Juice the lime over the pork and stir to combine, then season to taste with salt. Serve with lime wedges, crumbled queso fresco, fresh pico de gallo, sliced white onions, chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, and any other favorite taco toppings.

I found a cilantro cotija dressing in the produce section of our local grocery store. We all loved it with these pork tacos. 

Husband rating: 3.5 stars
Boys say: thumbs up

Pork Shoulder Roast

recipe by Stephanie Baldock

2-3 lb pork shoulder roast

1/2 c cinnamon applesauce

1 sweet onion, sliced

2 generous splashes of teriyaki sauce

Apply nonstick cooking spray inside a slow cooker, or use a liner. Place pork shoulder in slow cooker and top with cinnamon applesauce, onion slices and teriyaki sauce. Cook 1 hour on high heat, then reduce heat to low and continue cooking another 4-5 hours or until pork is tender and fully cooked.

I served this with this potato recipe from ourbestbites.com:

Ingredients:
1 potato per person (any kind of potatoes work; for the sake of sentimentality, I’m partial to Russetts, although red and Yukon Gold potatoes are so smooth and delicious)
1/2 small onion per person (the one pictured is a little large because I used some onions in the corn)
1 Tbsp. butter per person, cut into pieces
1/4 tsp. salt per person
Freshly-ground black pepper
Smoked paprika
Aluminum foil

Tear sheets (1 per person) of aluminum foil into about 16″ pieces. Fold each in half into a sqaure-ish and set aside.

Preheat grill. Slice potatoes into pieces about 1/8-1/4″ thick. Slice onions about 1/8″ thick. Place 1 potato in the middle of each foil square and dot with butter pieces.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and then sprinkle generously with smoked paprika. Remember, paprika is super mild, so it’s hard to add too much. Top each pile with onions.

Fold edges in and secure tightly. It’s important to get a good seal because the moisture will cook the potatoes and onions and you want all those yummy juices, so if it seems like there’s not quite enough foil, wrap packet in another layer.

Turn heat on grill to low. Place each packet on the grill. Close lid for 15 minutes. Turn and allow to cook for another 15 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully open each packet (or, even better, let each person open their own packet–hey, less work for you, right??)

These can also be cooked in the oven at 400 for about 15-20 minutes (just check on them to see how they’re doing) or in a panini press for about the same amount of time.

I think we had a green salad with the pork and potatoes. 

Husband and guest rating: 4 stars
Boys say: thumbs up

Apple Butter Ham Glaze

from allrecipes.com, submitted by CRAFTYLILDEVIL

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup apple butter 1/2 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon dried onion flakes 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Whisk together the apple butter, orange juice, dried onion flakes, and Worcestershire sauce in a small saucepan. Simmer until slightly thickened.

If you have a favorite apple butter recipe you can make your own and use it here. I bought a jar of it from the store. This was a very easy glaze. I put the ham slices in a pan, poured the glaze on and baked it in the oven, at 350 degrees, until it was all warm (about 25 minutes). You could also put this over the ham in a slow cooker.  We had this with our favorite sweet potato dish and some green beans.

Husband rating:  4 stars

Boys say: thumbs up

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

adapted from allrecipes.com, submitted by BUCHKO

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 clove garlic, minced 1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1/2 c red wine 1 onion, chopped 1 1/2 cups beef broth 3 potatoes, diced 4 carrots, sliced 1 stalk celery, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.
2.	Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours. I made some Bisquick biscuits to go with the stew. Husband rating:  3.5 stars Boys say:  thumbs up

Slow Cooker Sweet Glazed Pork Chops

from sixsistersstuff.com

Ingredients:
4-6 boneless pork chops (mine were pretty thick) 
1 (12 oz) bottle chili sauce
1 cup grape jelly

Directions:
Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Place pork chops at the bottom. In a bowl, mix together the chili sauce and the jelly; pour on top of pork chops. Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours (do 8 hours if your pork chops are frozen) or HIGH for 3-4 hours (I prefer the low and slow method for these). 

Husband rating:  3 stars
Boys say:  thumbs up

Slow Cooker Honey Soy Chicken

from sixsistersstuff.com

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup rice vinegar

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chili sauce

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon pepper

1 (8 ounce) pkg. Soba Noodles, cook according to package directions

2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Directions:

Place chicken in slow cooker.  In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, chili sauce, mustard and pepper.  Pour prepared sauce over chicken.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.  Shred chicken and return to slow cooker.  Add in cooked noodles and stir until combined.  Garnish with sesame seeds.

Husband rating:  3 stars

Boys say:  thumbs up

Indian Tomato Chicken

original recipe from allrecipes.com, submitted by SHECOOKS2

See my changes below.

INGREDIENTS:

1 large onion, chopped 4 cloves garlic, chopped 1 slice fresh ginger root 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom 1 (1 inch) piece cinnamon stick 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 2 bay leaves 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 6 skinless chicken thighs 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place onion, garlic and ginger in a food processor and process into a paste. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add onion paste and saute, stirring continuously, for about 10 minutes.
2.	Stir in the cumin, turmeric, salt, pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves and nutmeg. Saute, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Place chicken pieces in skillet and stir them around with the spice mixture until they are well coated.
3.	Saute for another 4 minutes, then pour in the tomatoes with liquid and stir. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 to 2 hours, or until the oil has separated from the liquid. Stir occasionally. (Note: If you simmer uncovered, the sauce will thicken; add water, or keep covered while simmering.)

I didn't have time to do the recipe as written when I made this last week.  So, I basically put everything in my slow cooker and turned it to low for 8-9 hours.  I didn't do step one at all.  I really tossed everything in to the slow cooker and let that do all the work!  I had to shred the chicken a little and mix it with the sauce before serving.  It was very easy.  

I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  I also used about a 1/2 tsp ground ginger in place of the ginger root.  I doubled the tomatoes and spices and served this over basmati rice.  

We have a world map in our home.  While we ate this we identified India on the map since the recipe and rice was from there.  The boys were amazed the rice could make it all the way to our house from India!  

Husband rating:  2 stars

My rating:  4 stars

Boys said: thumbs up

Kalua Pork and Rice with Steamed Broccoli

I introduced you to this fantastic pork recipe when we used it on our homemade pizzas.  Here is another way to try it.  

3 bacon slices
about 3 lb pork sirloin tip roast
about 1 tbsp coarse red Hawaiian Sea Salt (or another type of sea salt if you can't find that)
Hickory flavored liquid smoke

Rinse the pork roast and pat it dry. Pierce the entire roast with a fork. Sprinkle generously with the liquid smoke (about 1 tablespoon, more if you have a very large roast) and sprinkle with the sea salt (start with about a little less than tablespoon and see how far it gets you; you can always add more after it cooks).   Rub the salt into the roast.  Place the bacon slices on the bottom of the slow cooker.  Place the roast in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until the meat shreds easily with a fork.

Remove the roast from the pan and place it in a serving dish or on a serving platter. Shred the pork.  Drizzle enough of the cooking liquid over the pork to re-moisten it and keep it from drying out.  Serve over rice with steamed broccoli.

Husband rating:  flavor-4.5 stars, overall-3 stars because he likes sauce over his rice and while the meat is moist there isn't sauce to cover the rice
Boys say:  thumbs up

Kalua Pork Pizza

this is a mix of two recipes with my own twist:  ourbestbites.com Kalua Pork and Michelle Tam's Slow Cooker Kalua Pork

Kalua Pork:

3 bacon slices
about 3 lb pork sirloin tip roast
about 1 tbsp coarse red Hawaiian Sea Salt (or another type of sea salt if you can't find that)
Hickory flavored liquid smoke

Rinse the pork roast and pat it dry. Pierce the entire roast with a fork. Sprinkle generously with the liquid smoke (about 1 tablespoon, more if you have a very large roast) and sprinkle with the sea salt (start with about a little less than tablespoon and see how far it gets you; you can always add more after it cooks).   Rub the salt into the roast.  Place the bacon slices on the bottom of the slow cooker.  Place the roast in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until the meat shreds easily with a fork.

Remove the roast from the pan and place it in a serving dish or on a serving platter. Shred the pork.  Drizzle enough of the cooking liquid over the pork to re-moisten it and keep it from drying out. 

Pizza:

pizza crust
sauce
pineapple tidbits
any peppers, red onions or other toppings you like
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Make a pizza dough or buy a pizza crust.  Place crust on cookie sheet (or you could put this on the grill once it's all assembled).  Put pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce on the crust.  Add pork, pineapple and other toppings.  Top with cheese.  Place in oven for about 8 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

I'm not sure I can express how much I liked this pork!  I practically ate the entire pork on my own!  This is great in the pizza (I added chopped red onions and orange and yellow peppers to mine) but is also great for salads, on rice or just plain.  It's soooo tasty!  Try it.  You won't regret it!

Husband wasn't home so my rating is 5 stars
Boys say:  thumbs up (it's a pizza, what else are they going to say?!)

Tasty Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin

from allrecipes.com, submitted by chowsito

INGREDIENTS:

1 (2 pound) pork tenderloin 1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix 1 cup water 3/4 cup red wine

3 tablespoons minced garlic 3 tablespoons soy sauce freshly ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1.

Place pork tenderloin in a slow cooker with the contents of the soup packet. Pour water, wine, and soy sauce over the top, turning the pork to coat. Carefully spread garlic over the pork, leaving as much on top of the roast during cooking as possible. Sprinkle with pepper, cover, and cook on low setting for 4 hours. Serve with cooking liquid on the side as au jus.

Thank you chowsito-whoever you are-for this tasty dinner!  I loved it.  I made it exactly as directed except for cooking it longer.  SO GOOD!

Lemonade Pork Chops (or Chicken)

from my friend Linda

6 pork chops or chicken pieces (enough for 6-8 servings)
2 eggs, whipped with small amount of milk
1-2 c flour, mixed with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper
1 12 oz can lemonade
6 tbsp ketchup
6 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp vinegar

Dip meat in egg mixture and roll in flour.  Brown in hot oil.

Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl to make sauce.  Place meat in slow cooker.  Pour sauce over meat.  Cook on low for five hours.

I was short on time so I skipped the egg mixture and browning the meat.  I just threw the pork in the slow cooker and covered it with the sauce.  I should have seasoned the meat with salt and pepper so don't skip that!  The sauce is not thick so you can't really expect to have some to serve over the meat.

We had this with corn and a salad.

If you skip putting the meat in the flour you'll have a gluten free meal.

Husband Rating:  3 stars
Boys say: thumbs up

Sunday Beef Stew

from ourbestbites.com

1 1/2-2 lb. lean stew beef, cut into even smaller bite-sized pieces (just pull out a pair of kitchen shears and cut anything that looks like you’d need to use a knife and fork on)4-5 medium red potatoes, chopped
4-5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 cups roughly chopped onions, one large or 2 small
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
2 12-oz. cans or 3 c. vegetable juice cocktail (like V8 or even Bloody Mary mix)
1 10-oz. can condensed tomato soup
10 oz. water (just use the can from the tomato soup to measure)
1 tsp. basil
2 beef bouillon cubes (or 2 tsp. beef base)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large dutch oven or other oven save dish with a tight fitting lid.  Cook for about 3 hours at 350, or in a slow cooker on low for 9-10 hours or high for 5-6.

Honestly, we're not big stew fans, but this is pretty good as far as stews go!

Husband Rating:  3 stars

Slow Cooker Chicken Cordon Bleu

from Six Sisters' Stuff

Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
6 slices deli ham
6 slices Swiss cheese
1 (8 ounce) package herbed dry bread stuffing mix
1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions: 
Mix together the cream of chicken soup and milk in a small bowl.  Pour enough of the soup into a slow cooker to cover the bottom.  Layer chicken breasts over the sauce.  Cover with slices of ham and then Swiss cheese.  Pour the remaining soup over the layers, stirring a little to distribute between layers.  Sprinkle the stuffing on top, and drizzle butter over stuffing.  Cover, and cook on low for 4-6 hours, or high for 2-3 hours.

My recommendation would be to crush the stuffing mix into finer pieces.

Husband Rating:  3 stars

Slow Cooker Ham, Raspberry-Pear Salad

Slow Cooker Ham

INGREDIENTS:

1 (6 pound) bone-in country ham 30 whole cloves 3 cups apple cider, or as needed 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup maple syrup 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground nutmeg 2 teaspoons ground ginger 2 tablespoons ground cloves 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (optional) 1 orange's peel

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Press whole cloves into the ham so they are evenly distributed. You may score the ham for easier insertion if you wish. Place the ham in a slow cooker. Pour in apple cider until only about 2 inches of ham is above the surface. Pack the brown sugar on top of the ham, pressing into the cloves. This will get washed away in the next step but any that stays on is a bonus.
2.	Pour the maple syrup over the ham. Season the apple cider with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, ground cloves and vanilla. Add the orange peel to the pot. Fill the slow cooker as full as you can with apple cider without going over the fill line. Cover and set to Low. Cook for 8 to 10 hours.

I used a dinner ham that had no bone in it.  I cut the recipe in half and did only 7-8 cloves and 1/2 tbsp cinnamon instead of 1 tbsp.  Next time I will shorten the cooking time to 4-5 hours on low.  This had a great flavor.

Raspberry-Pear Salad

spinach

pear, cut up

raspberries

poppyseed dressing (I like Brianna's)

sliced almonds (optional)

Put spinach in a bowl.  Add desired amount of dressing and toss.  Add fruit and top with almonds, if desired.

Husband rating:  4 stars

Boys say:  thumbs up