Kapusta Pork Recipe from America's Pork "Crock-Star"
I kid you not. There really is a Pork Crock-Star, and she lives in Mahomet. Linda Cifuentes competed in an event called Crocktoberfest in New York City last month, and her recipe took top honors. Competitors' recipes had to come together in 30 minutes or less and could include a maximum of eight ingredients. And of course, since the event was cosponsored by the company that makes Crock-Pots and the National Pork Board, the entries also had to feature the other white meat and be slow-cooker-friendly.
Linda put her own spin on what looks to be a traditional Polish dish of pork and sauerkraut. Keith and I can attest to the fact that it is 100% delicious. And, as stipulated in the Crock-Star contest, super quick and easy to put together. The finished dish was kind of stew-like; warm, hearty, full of vegetables, and very flavorful. I served it one night with boiled potatoes and another night with potato gnocchi (in keeping with the quick-and-easy theme, I didn't make the gnocchi myself; I used the Cucina Viva brand from the Art Mart).
Linda, her NYC adventure, and her winning recipe were featured on chambanamoms in December, so I'll let you go there for the particulars if you want to try her dish. And I think you should.
Linda Cifuentes' Kapusta Pork Recipe
Linda won $5,000, a new Crock-Pot (duh!), and 500 pounds of pork for the Community Service Center of Northern Champaign County (the pork was distributed to families in need).
Congratulations, Linda, and thanks for your tasty, nutritious, and simple recipe. It's come in the nick of time to fortify us so we can survive another day on this frozen tundra.
P.S. Though the recipe calls for 3 pounds of boneless pork loin, you can use other cuts. I had a pork tenderloin and some pork chops on hand, so that's what went into the Crock-Pot for our version. Also, don't tell Linda, but I used Mexican beer instead of German—eeek!
Linda put her own spin on what looks to be a traditional Polish dish of pork and sauerkraut. Keith and I can attest to the fact that it is 100% delicious. And, as stipulated in the Crock-Star contest, super quick and easy to put together. The finished dish was kind of stew-like; warm, hearty, full of vegetables, and very flavorful. I served it one night with boiled potatoes and another night with potato gnocchi (in keeping with the quick-and-easy theme, I didn't make the gnocchi myself; I used the Cucina Viva brand from the Art Mart).
Linda Cifuentes' Kapusta Pork Recipe
Linda won $5,000, a new Crock-Pot (duh!), and 500 pounds of pork for the Community Service Center of Northern Champaign County (the pork was distributed to families in need).
Congratulations, Linda, and thanks for your tasty, nutritious, and simple recipe. It's come in the nick of time to fortify us so we can survive another day on this frozen tundra.
P.S. Though the recipe calls for 3 pounds of boneless pork loin, you can use other cuts. I had a pork tenderloin and some pork chops on hand, so that's what went into the Crock-Pot for our version. Also, don't tell Linda, but I used Mexican beer instead of German—eeek!
Labels: quick and easy, recipes main dishes pork, slow cooker, special events
posted by Lisa at 5:54 AM
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7 Comments:
I do like using my crock pot, but I think I may switch up that recipe a bit. I know Linda was constrained by rules, but I might brown my pork and cook the bacon (which will also help eliminate some fat.) I think browned meats give much more flavor in the slow cooker. And I know it isn't traditional, but I would love it with bread dumplings! Mmmmm.
Thanks for the links.
Melissa, thanks for the comments. Browning the pork might be nice, but I would not cook the bacon before putting it into the Crock-Pot. The bacon basically melts into the dish, giving a wonderful flavor and body to the whole concoction (and the finished product isn't greasy). I've never had bread dumplings, but they sound like a great idea with this dish, mmm.
thanks for the linky love Lisa!
Ok, Lisa. I'll try it without pre-cooking the bacon, but reserve judgment and the notion of precooking at least some of it. (I like to saute bacon first when preparing kraut, also adding some onion and maybe apple.)
Melissa: Let me know how it turns out. Your bacon-y, onion-y kraut sounds delish.
Made this last night. I was surprised at how light it was. From looking at the recipe I thought it would be heavy. Very tasty!
Tina, I know what you mean. All those lovely vegetables make the dish lighter than it would seem at first blush. I liked that about it. Making it again tonight, in fact.
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