Pantry Raiders | Slow cooked pork perfect for busy families

By NewsLine Staff
mail@floridanewsline.com

Slow cookers can help busy families enjoy home cooked meals without hurrying to get those meals on the table each night. A surefire hit for even the pickiest of eaters, the following recipe for “Braised Pork Buns with Quick Pickled Cucumbers & Bean Sprouts” from Michelle Dudash’s “Clean Eating for Busy Families” (Fair Winds Press) can satisfy hungry families.

Braised Pork Buns with Quick Pickled Cucumbers & Bean Sprouts
(Yields 11 servings)

For pork:

2 tsp. expeller-pressed grapeseed or canola oil
3.15 lb. Boston butt, cut into three pieces along natural muscle separation, trimmed of surface fat
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup vermouth, rice wine or dry sherry
2 ½ cups thinly sliced red cabbage
1 small onion, sliced (about 1 cup)
3 tbsp. molasses (or honey)
2 tbsp. reduced sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp. minced garlic
2 tbsp. minced ginger
1 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds

For cucumbers:

1 tbsp. honey
⅛ tsp. salt
3 tbsp. rice vinegar
2 large cucumbers, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, seeded with a spoon, thinly sliced
⅛ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

To assemble:

11 soft whole-wheat hamburger buns
2 ¾ cups mungbean sprouts

To make the pork: Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Season the pork on all sides with salt and pepper. When oil begins to shimmer, add pork and brown on all sides, about four minutes per side. Add browned pork to a slow cooker. Off of the heat, add the vermouth and then place on low heat, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Add contents of the skillet to the slow cooker, along with cabbage, onion, molasses, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and sesame seeds. Cover and cook on high for one hour; then reduce heat to low and cook for four hours (alternatively, cook the pork on low for the entire duration, six to seven hours).

To make the cucumbers: One hour before serving, in a medium bowl, stir and dissolve the honey and salt into the rice vinegar and then add the cucumbers and pepper. Chill.

To assemble: Toast the buns cut side up under a broiler or in a toaster oven. Fill the buns with pork, drained cucumbers and bean sprouts.

Photo courtesy MetroCreative

Braised Pork Buns with Quick Pickled Cucumbers & Bean Sprouts