Italian Sausage and Ravioli Soup – Bumpkin
I took out pork the other day because I was in the mood for pork. When I opened the package to cook it, it smelled to high heaven! I didn’t know pork could smell so nasty. Needless to say, we did not eat THAT pork. But, Townie had already posted pork for the day so I remember I had made this soup about a week ago and happened to take a photo so I would have some stuff in the “archive”. The sausage is made from pork, so it fit the bill!
Our grocery store brand of Italian chub sausage is really good, so I always have some in my freezer. I stock up when it goes on sale to throw into sauce and what not when we need a quick protein. However, when I took it out this last time I was NOT in the mood for pasta and sauce. The weather has turned so I was thinking soup. I had some spinach that needed to be used, a pint of homemade spaghetti sauce and some frozen raviolis. Out came THIS invention, that the family loved and WILL be made again.
I served with a crisp green salad and some crusty sour dough. YUMMY!!
Italian Sausage and Ravioli Soup
Ingredients
1 lb italian sausage
1 pint spaghetti sauce
1+ qrts chicken stock
frozen ravioli (I had a small bag, so maybe 25)
2 c spinach
spices to taste
Parmesan cheese, garnish
Let’s Make It!
In a pan cook sausage until done.
In a large pot, bring spaghetti sauce and enough stock to made consistency you desire, to a boil. Add ravioli and cook until done. Add sausage, spinach and spices.
Serve hot, topped with parmesan cheese. YUMMY!
Slow Cooker Pork and Green Chile Stew
I’m always looking for good crockpot recipes. I threw this in the crock one morning before we left for the day. Unfortunately I didn’t get to taste it that night, but the husband did. He said it was good and spicy. I tried it a few days later reheated. It was ok but probably tasted better fresh. I served it over jasmine rice.
Slow Cooker Pork and Green Chile Stew
Skinnytaste
Ingredients:
2 lbs boneless pork loin roast, lean, all fat trimmed off
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 cup diced onion
2 cans (4.25 oz each) whole green chiles, sliced into thick rounds
2 chopped jalapeño
10 oz can diced tomatoes and green chilies (Ro*Tel Mild)
1/2 cup fat-free low-sodium chicken broth
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Cut pork into 2-inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat a large non-stick skillet on high heat; when hot lightly spray the pan with oil and brown the pork over medium heat on all sides, about 3 – 4 minutes total. Sprinkle 1 tbsp of flour over pork and stir to cook 30 seconds, sprinkle remaining flour over pork and cook an additional 30 seconds.
Add browned pork to the crock pot, along with the remaining ingredients.
Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 houts (if using a Dutch oven, cook on low heat for 3-4 hours). When done, adjust season, salt and pepper to taste if needed.
Cuban Pork 2 Ways – Bumpkin
I had a pork shoulder roast, a HUGE pork shoulder roast. So, I knew there would be leftovers. When I was deciding what to do with it, I went ahead and just decided to make 2 dinners with it and went with Cuban.
Roast Cuban Pork
adapted from elly says opa!
1 (2-3) lb. pork roast
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
2 dried California chilis
1 Tbsp. oregano
1 large onion, thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 oranges, juiced
2 lemons, juiced
2 limes, juiced
1/2 cup chicken broth
I had every intention of doing this in the crock pot, it’s the perfect recipe for it. However, the HUGE aspect of the roast meant it didn’t FIT in my crock pot. So, I roasted it in the oven on 300-degrees, covered, for A LOT of hours…until falling apart and deliciousness set in!
You SHOULD rub all the ingredients all over the meat, wrap in plastic and let it marinate overnight, but I didn’t. It cooks long enough in some pretty hefty flavors that it was still flavorful. Really, I find with a nice bone-in pork roast that sometimes even with just a bit of salt and pepper, it is still delicious. Outside of a great rib-eye, and a perfectly marinated flank steak… I love no other meat as much as I LOVE pork!
The first night I did the pork as tacos. The kids did burrito style with the beans and everything in a tortilla. They aren’t fans of corn tortillas so they used flour, added a bunch of fixins and ate seconds. Hubby and I went for the taco route, simple and yummy. I like corn tortillas and when I don’t have time to get down to the Mexican market for homemade, I like these hand-made style corn tortillas for soft tacos. The meat is versatile enough you can do just about anything with it (to be honest even after 2 dinners there were still leftovers so I made a pan of green chile enchiladas with it and took that over to a friend who needed some “care”). I’m tellin ya….HUGE pork roast!
LIke the original recipe I made a jicama slaw. I just diced half a jicama, 1 small red bellpepper, about 1/2c. fresh cilantro. Then I used fresh key lime juice, Tapatio sauce, salt and pepper to taste. It added a nice flavor and cruch to the tacos. I served dinner with black beans and rice (mixed together because that is how we Costa Ricans eat our frijoles negros, gallo pinto style!)
The second night I did El Cubanos. Basically, a cuban grilled cheese. They are REALLY yummy! They are supposed to be on a hoagie roll type bread, but I used sourdough instead. They get pressed like a panini. Super easy, and a crowd pleaser:
shredded cuban pork
sliced ham
sliced pickles
swiss cheese
mustard
buttered bread
Have some fun…use your leftovers!
Slow Cooked Filipino Adobo Pulled Pork – townie
We love pork around here. It is the other white meat after all :). This was delicious!! You all should make it soon. When I chopped up the jalapeño I didn’t discard the seeds, but threw them in as well. So this had a really nice kick yum! Don’t forget the scallions either!
Slow Cooked Filipino Adobo Pulled Pork
Adapted from skinnytaste.com
Ingredients:
1.75 lb lean pork center loin
1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 tsp ground pepper
4 – 6 bay leaves
1 jalapeño, chopped
2 tbsp chopped scallions, for garnish
Directions:
Place pork, soy sauce, vinegar, water, garlic, pepper, jalapeño, and bay leaves in the crock pot; cover and set to low heat 6 to 8 hours turning over half way through cooking.
Remove the pork, shred with two forks and put it back in the crock pot for one more hour to let the flavor get into the meat. Discard bay leaves and serve over rice and top with chopped scallions.
crockpot brown sugar and balsamic glazed pork loin – townie
bumpkin told me she was going to make a pork dish — so i took out a pork loin to defrost and then i went off to search for a recipe — i had bookmarked this one on two different blogs so i decided this was the one! the pork itself was ok – nothing special or flavorful.. the sauce though was delicious! i served over egg noodles!
brown sugar and balsamic glazed pork loin
adapted from let’s dish
1 (2 pound) boneless pork loin
1 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup water
Glaze
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Directions
Combine sage, salt, pepper and garlic. Rub over roast. Place in slow cooker with 1/2 cup water. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. About 1 hour before roast is done, combine ingredients for glaze in small sauce pan. Heat and stir until mixture thickens. Brush roast with glaze 2 or 3 times during the last hour of cooking. Serve with remaining glaze on the side.
Grilled Sweet and Tangy Pork Chops – Bumpkin
I took out pork loin chops fairly late in the day. So, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to make a recipe that required marinating. I found this recipe, by The Neelys on foodnetwork.com. I made very few modifications to the original recipe.
It was an all around Food Network night because I made Rachel Ray’s Cheesy Orzo and Giada DeLaurentis’ Spicy Parmesan Green Beans and Kale for side dishes. Dinner tonight was YUM-O
Grilled Sweet and Tangy Pork Chops
adapted from The Neely’s on Food Network
Ingredients
- 4 (1 1/2-inch thick)pork loin chops
- Sweet and Tangy Glaze, recipe follows
- Seasonings, to taste (I used seasoning salt, pepper, cayenne and granulated onion)
Let’s make it!
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
Season the pork chops lightly on both sides with the Seasonings. Remember, we aren’t rubbing the chops.
Grill the chops for 5 to 7 minutes per side. Brush them with the Sweet and Tangy Glaze the last 5 minutes of grilling. Internal temperature should register 145 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the chops from the grill to a serving platter and allow them to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Sweet and Tangy Glaze:
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup tablespoon real maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 dash Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 dash hot sauce (like Tabasco or I used Cholula with lime)
In a small bowl, mix together the apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, and hot sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and refrigerate if not using immediately.
Pork Fried Rice – Bumpkin
A few years ago hubby and I took a couples, chinese cooking class (say that 5x fast!) with a group of our friends. It was a blast. We love asian food and while sometimes it is really nice to go down to Bamboo City for a meal, it is just as nice to know how to make that stuff at home. We do eat a lot of asian, at home and otherwise. We eat A LOT of stir fry and fried rice in our house. What isn’t to love about throwing a bunch of leftover meat and rice in a pan, add come veggies, frying it up and you have dinner? However, last night I actually made it with fresh ingredients rather than leftovers because I wanted something quick and I had really thin, boneless pork loin chops to use. Of course, you can use whatever meat you like and add/subtract veggies to your preference.
This is my own recipe, based on what I learned at the cooking class we took.
Pork Fried Rice
- approx. 4 cups cooked rice (this time I used 50/50 white and brown) – the Chinese teacher told us to use cold leftover rice, but I use just-made rice all the time.
- 2 cups meat, cut into even sized cubes
- 1c frozen peas
- 1c diced carrots
- 1/2c green onion
- 2 eggs
- 1T sesame oil
- 1T chopped garlic (the stuff already chopped, in a jar, from the grocery store works just fine!)
- dashes of salt, pepper, ground ginger powder
- Sriracha sauce and soy sauce, to taste
Let’s Make it
I season my raw meat with salt, pepper and ground ginger powder. I also do the same with the eggs and I add a few drops of Sriracha when I scramble them in a bowl.
Heat oil in a wok, or large frying pan. Add meat and cook until brown and crispy yummy looking. Set aside.
Add scrambled egg to pan and whisk around until cooked. At this point I ususally add the veggies to give them some cooking time against the hot metal before adding the meat and rice.
Add rice and meat. Stir to combine. If you like crispy pieces in your fried rice, keep it on heat longer before serving.
Sprinkle with soy sauce (as much as you want to add to make rice the color you like your fried rice to be. I add about 1-2T for the entire batch. Stir to combine.
Serve! I top mine with Sriracha and Sweet Chili. YUM!
slow cooker green chili pork tacos – townie
i really had low expectations for this one. a pork loin, some salsa verde and a little lime juice?? well i was wrong — this came out really good — and of course the cilantro added a ton of good flavor! unfortunately i didnt have fresh tomatoes, so i drained some canned ones really well instead.
Slow Cooker Green Chili Pork Tacos
adapted from C+C marriage factory
fiesta pork over black beans & rice – townie
i made this dish originally back in june and had said next time i would make some changes — so this time i did!
sorry no picture as it was a repeat for me 🙂 this time i served it over vigos black beans and rice
here is the recipe with the modifications i made!
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 boneless pork chops sliced into strips
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
- 2 cups frozen bell pepper strips, thawed and patted dry (used a bag of archer farms roasted peppers)
- 1 bunch scallions, green portions thinly sliced, white portions finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed (i didnt thaw – just threw them in)
- 1 can of black beans, rinsed
Directions:
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over high heat, swirling to coat the pan. Add the pork to the skillet in an even layer and season with the chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring, until just brown all over, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the pork and any juices to a plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the bell peppers, corn, black beans and finely chopped scallions to the skillet and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.
- Return the pork and any juices to the skillet and cook, stirring, until heated through, about 1 minute. Stir in the sliced scallions.
Carnitas Tostada – Bumpkin
I had some loin chops out thawing on Tuesday. I was under the weather that day and went to bed early. Hubby brought home pizza. The plan was to cook them the next evening. However, when I realized that was Ash Wednesday, being Catholic, I couldn’t eat meat. So, the next day I had to cook them up. Thursdays are Girl Scout days so I always run to the crock pot. I went in search of a crock pot pork/boneless chop recipe but decided to modify this carnitas recipe instead. Mexican is always a good idea.
I had some pre-made tostadas in the house. I don’t typically buy these because I like to fry my own shells, for tostadas and tacos, but I bought these on a whim last week and they are actually pretty good. Sometimes being in a place with a large hispanic population is good for my kitchen stash! I have to admit I have much more access to hispanic items than to other ethnicities such as Indian, most Asian, etc. Another reason Mexican food is always a good idea.
I put black beans, lettuce, cheese, quick guacamole (I had an avocado about to go, so I added some fresh lemon juice and some jarred salsa) and tomato on the tostada with my carnitas. I served this with rice, which was cooked with garlic, diced onion and diced red bellpepper. YUM!
Carnitas
Modified from food.comIngredients
- 1 – 2 lbs (about 6 chops) pork loin/loin chops
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons onion powder
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon chipotle powder
- 1/4 fresh cilantro, chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- juice of small orange and small lemon
- ¼ teaspoon salt (to taste)
Let’s Make It!
-
Throw everything in crock pot
-
Cover and cook on High for 4 to 6 hours or until most of water is reduced and a thick gravy like sauce forms.
-
Shred meat and serve on tostada, in tacos, burritos, salad.
-
YUM!
crockpot asian pork – townie (& bumpkin, a few days later!)
This week Victoria asked me if I had some pork to cook — of course I did… and pork in the crockpot is super easy and usually turns out delicious! this was no exception it was REALLY REALLY good! definitely use some cilantro and scallions as toppings! the spinach didn’t add too much flavor to the meal but was a good way to sneak in some veggies! I served the pork over rice noodles. we’ll definitely be making this again.
BUMPKIN’S NOTES – I made this last night, for guests (but didnt’ take a photo). It was a hit with adults and children alike. I didn’t add the chili during the cooking because of the kid factor, but served it with Sriacha sauce and it was DELICIOUS! I added some left-over veggie tray veggies (carrots, snap peas and brocolli), in addition to the mushrooms and spinach. Served over rice. This meal WILL be making another appearance in our house. Also, I concur with Townie – the fresh scallions and cilantro are a MUST!
Crock Pot Asian Pork
adapted from skinny taste
Ingredients:
- 2-3 lb lean boneless pork loin roast
- kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
- Non-stick oil spray
- 1 cup low-sodium fat-free chicken broth
- 1/2 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp hot sesame oil (aji oil) (or use sesame oil + pinch red pepper flakes)
- 1/2 tsp Chinese five spice
- 3 cloves crushed garlic
- 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger root
For topping:
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Directions:
Season pork on all side with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Heat a skillet on medium-high heat, spray with a little oil and brown the pork on all sides for about 7 – 8 minutes.
In the crock pot, combine the broth, soy sauce, balsamic, sugar, sesame oil, Chinese five spice, garlic and ginger; add the pork and set the slow cooker to 4 hours on high.
remove about 1 cup of the broth and reserve if needed. When done, shred the pork using two forks. Add baby spinach cover a few minutes until it wilts.
slow cooker pulled pork – townie
shoprite had pork loin on sale – when its on sale i buy it and cut it into 3 pieces each about 2-3lbs depending on how big it is. we had a birthday party to go to yesterday late afternoon so i figured it would be good to have something ready when we got home. we were kind of skeptical when we saw what the pork looked like after cooking on low for 8 hours… it had shrunk and looked like it was gonna be super dry! after shredding the pork and adding the barbecue sauce the pork was delicious!!! the recipe originally called for root beer which i didn’t have, so i used a can of coke instead. Cole slaw would have been REALLY good with this, alas we didn’t have any. a pickle made an ok substitute
Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
adapted from allrecipes
Ingredients
- 1 (2 pound) pork tenderloin (i used pork loin)
- 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle root beer (i used a can of coke)
- 1 (18 ounce) bottle your favorite barbecue sauce (i used a bottle of sweet baby ray’s)
- 8 hamburger buns, split and lightly toasted
Directions
- Place the pork tenderloin in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours. Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker. Drain well. Stir in barbecue sauce. Serve over hamburger buns.
Town Mouse and Country Mouse 