Slow Cooker Batch Cook Sweet and Sour Pork Recipe

There's a debate going on in my house.  Hubster says that sweet and sour sauce should be bright red.  This is typically done by adding ketchup but I think that's just making something homemade and then adding a ton of food colouring onto it which in my view defeats the object.  

I've gone with the cook's prerogative and omitted the ketchup.  Add about half a bottle if the colour of your food matters more to you than the taste  (shakes head in confusion).

Ingredients and Tools:

Pork Shoulder Joint 1kg ish

Peppers - 1kg ish

Apples - 1kg ish

Onions - 1kg ish

Tinned Pineapples  - 1kg ish

Chicken Stock - 4Cubes

Brown Sugar - 8 Tablespoons

Cider Vinegar - 4 Tablespoons

Soy Sauce - 150ml

Cornflour - 4 Tablespoons

Unwrap the pork and sling the whole thing into the slow cooker on low.

Dice the onions

And fry until soft

Chop the peppers and add to the slow cooker.

Dice the apples and throw them in - peel them if you want to be posh but there's loads of vitamins in the skins.

Add four stock cubes.

And the tinned pineapples with the juice.

4 Tablespoons of cornflour,

8 tablespoons of brown sugar, 

a small bottle of soy sauce

and 4 tablespoons of cider vinegar.

Give it a stir and cook on low for about 8 hours or high for 5 hours if you're in a rush.

At the end of the cooking time take out the pork and shred the joint using a pair of forks or dice it with a knife.  

Put the meat back into the mixture.

Serve with boiled rice.

Slow Cooker Pork Stew with Summer Herbs

Flavoursome, healthy comfort food perfect for these chilly days.  

Ingredients:
1kg Pork £3.67

Onions 59p

Carrots 42p

Celery 55p

Chick Peas 33p

Chopped Tomatoes 29p x 4 = £1.16

Pasata 35p

Garlic 59p / 4 = 15p

VegetableStock 47p / 3 = 16p

Thyme 79p / 2 = 40p

Oregano 79p / 2 = 40p

Mint 79p

Total Price = £8.97 / 22 portions = 41p per portion

Remove the pork joint from it's packaging and pop it in the slow cooker with the chickpeas and stock cubes.

Chop the carrots.

Chop the onions.

Chop the garlic.

And the celery.

Fry them in a little oil until soft.

Add the fried vegetables to the slow cooker along with the chopped tomatoes.

And the pasata.

Add half a tub of oregano, half a tub of thyme and a full tub of dried mint.

Mix it all together and cook on low for the day (about 8 hours).

Remove the pork joint and shred the meat with a pair of forks before adding it back into the stew and stirring.

9 family dinners all ready for the freezer.

And here's the result served with mash potato.

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Slow Cooked Pulled Pork and Beans Recipe

A tasty and filling recipe packed with a whopping four portions of veggies.

Ingredients:

1kg Pork £3.67

Onions 59p

Carrots 42p

Garlic 59p / 4 = 15p

Tomato Puree 37p

Red Kidney Beans 30p x 2 = 60p

Cannellini Beans 42p x 2 = 84p

Chopped Tomatoes 29p x 2 = 58p

Worcestershire Sauce £1.29

Cayenne Pepper 79p / 10 = 8p

Cumin 79p / 5 = 16p

Ground Coriander 79p / 5 = 16p

Chicken Stock 47p / 3 = 16p

Black Treacle £1.15 / 5 = 23p

Pepper £1.47 / 20 = 7p

Thyme from the garden

Oregano from the garden

Total Price = £9.37 / 20 portions = 47p per portion

Start by popping that joint in the slow cooker.

Add the fresh herbs.

Stock cubes.

Spices.

And the bottle of Worcestershire sauce.

Finely chop the garlic.

And the onions.

Fry them until soft.

And add them to the pork.

Chop the carrots and add them to the slow cooker.

Along with the beans and chopped tomatoes.

Tomato puree and a good sized dollop of treacle.

Give it a stir as much as possible around the meat.

After the best part of a day cooking remove the meat.

Check it's cooked right through.

Then use a pair of forks to pull it apart.

Mix it back into the veggies and sauce.