Kalua Pork

My sister in law Kelli made a version of this for us this summer and we loved it! It can't get any simpler, only uses 4 ingredients, and is really really yummy!  We ate it too fast for a picture, so I borrowed the above pic from the same place I adapted the recipe from here. We had ours over rice and I used a 4 pound roast. I think I did about 5 ounces of spinach but that could have easily been doubled-just depends on how much you like spinach. ;)

Kalua Pork

Serving size varies (4 pound roast will feed 4-6)

1 4-6 pound pork Butt roast

1 Tbsp liquid smoke, hickory flavored

2-3 tsp red Hawaiian sea salt (or just sea salt if you can't find Hawaiian)

Bag of washed spinach (5 + more ounces depending on your liking)

Pat the roast dry (and you can trim some of the fat if you feel like you need to, but really that's what gives it the flavor). Pierce all over with a fork and rub it liberally with sea salt. Place it in a slow cooker and pour the liquid smoke evenly over the roast. Cook on low for 8-12 hours (I did mine for 10 hours). 

Once it's done shred the entire thing up right in the crockpot (this is where you could trim some of the fat you notice too as you are shredding), add a bag of spinach and stir it all together. Cover and cook 5-10 more minutes or until the spinach is wilted. 

Serve over rice.

Pulled Pork with Root Beer Sauce

 Are you looking for something different to serve up for dinner? When I saw that this recipe used root beer I didn't even have to think about it seeing how much I love root beer. This recipe was so easy and turned out delish! You know its a good sign when you can't get the roast out of the crock pot because it's falling apart it's so moist! My husband said it was the best pork sandwich he's ever eaten. The original recipe calls for 2 whole onions, but after experimenting I decided to omit them all together. If your family really likes onions, add about 1/2 cup sliced onions so the onion flavor won't take away the sauce flavor. Also I really recommend serving with at least the tomatoes to get the full on experience! Here's a money saver tip: I bought a big 5 pound boneless pork loin roast on sale and cut it into 3 roasts: 3 pounds for this recipe and two 1 pound roasts in the freezer for other meals. That saved me big bucks!

Pulled Pork with Root Beer SauceRecipe adapted from Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook


2 1/2-3 pound pork sirloin roast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 Tbsp cooking oil
1 cup root beer *not diet
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3 cups root beer (two 12-ounce cans or bottles) *not diet
1 cup bottled chili sauce
8-10 hamburger, hoagie, french bread buns or rolls
lettuce leaves
tomato slices


Trim fat from the meat. Sprinkle on both sides with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brown on all sides in hot oil. Drain off fat. Transfer meat to cooker and add the 1 cup of root beer. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. 30 minutes before serving, make the sauce: In a medium saucepan combine the 3 cups root beer and the chili sauce. Bring to boiling and reduce heat. Boil gently uncovered, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes or until mixture is thickened and reduced to about 1 1/2-2 cups. Transfer meat to a cutting board or serving platter. Discard juices. Using 2 forks, pull meat apart into shreds. To serve, line buns with lettuce leaves and tomato slices. Add meat and spoon on the sauce.

Egg Rolls with Sweet and Sour Sauce

I haven't made these egg rolls since I was a newly wed trying to impress my husband, mostly because they are a lot more work than I can commit to with 2 kids running around. The other night my husband and I were watching a discovery show that went into the background of how commercial egg rolls were made. You might blame it on the fact that I only have 2 weeks left in my pregnancy, but I have been craving egg rolls ever since! I vowed to make them this week and pulled out my trusty recipe I got from a cooking class in college. They were absolutely wonderful! The sweet and sour sauce I made to pair with the egg rolls is super easy and I think its really "light" compared to a lot of sweet and sour sauces, which doesn't take away from the flavors of the egg rolls. Yum! I can garentee I won't go as long this time before making them again (even if I will have 3 kids by then!)

Egg Rolls

Recipe from Shawna Shirley

1 pound very lean ground pork
1/2 tsp salt, divided
2 tsp ginger
4 cups chopped cabbage
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
2 tsp Hoisin sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
garlic powder
Lumpia or egg roll wrappers (found in the refrigerated produce aisle)
oil for frying

Mix pork with the ginger and 1/4 tsp of the salt. Brown and drain. Stirfry cabbage, onion and celery in about 1 Tbsp veggie oil. Add hoisin sauce, soy sauce and the rest of the salt. Add the pork and shake garlic powder over entire mixture; stir. Lay out a wrapper diagonal in front of you and fill about 1/3 cup of filling (depending on how big your wrappers are) into the middle (a bit closer to the bottom than the top though). Fold up the bottom triangle and tuck under the filling then proceed to roll up the egg roll, folding in the sides and tucking them in. Moisten the top triangle with either water or egg yolks and roll and seal it up. Fry until golden brown.




Quick Light Sweet and Sour Sauce


3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup white vinegar
2/3 cup water
1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

Cook until thick and bubbly. Add a few squirts of ketchup for color.

Spicy Pork Chops

I got this recipe in one of my food classes in college from my favorite professor and mentor Shauna Shirley. Although it's called "Spicy" pork chops, I've always called it "Saucy" pork chops because it's not spicy, but it is really tender and saucy. This has become one of my favorite quick meals because I love anything I can throw into a crockpot and forget about, and the ingredients are ones I usually have on hand. It calls for pork chops, but really you can use any kind of pork or even chicken. I usually use boneless skinless pork ribs because they are super cheap at my grocery store. Also I always serve this over rice, but you can also serve over mashed potatoes for a really hearty meal.

Spicy Pork Chops

Recipe from Shauna Shirley

5-6 center-cut loin pork chops (or any boneless pork)
1-2 green peppers, cut in strips

1 onion (optional)

8 ounce can tomato sauce

4 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp vinegar

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Put pork chops into crock pot. Add remeaining ingredients to cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Serve over rice.