When I do my grocery shopping, I always try to pick up a large piece of meat to roast or cook all day in my crock-pot. A 4-5lb roast can cover many lunches & dinners during the week. Many times it is the only meat we have that week.
This week Tag picked up a 4lb boneless pork butt for me. It was really nice and lean with no “fat back” so I decided it might be best to slow cook it in my crockpot.
I used a recipe from this Dinner then Dessert blog as a base & tweaked it to my liking. I found the spice rub to be a bit heavy handed so I reduced the amount of spice quantities by almost half. Use your discretion.
The first 2 tips from the recipe were key; 1.) let the pork sit in its rub in the fridge overnight.
2.) The next day, sear the pork in a heavy duty Dutch oven on all sides for about 2-3min each side.
Then place the pork on a layer of foil in your slow-Cooker for 6-7hrs on low.
Turn off your crockpot and let the meat rest a bit. Take the meat out and place in a casserole dish and start shredding.
I dare you not to dig in and try a bite while shredding. Be forewarned, once you start nibbling, it will be very hard to stop!
I dipped some bites into the juices and found it to be rather spicy, so when I was prepping the tacos I skipped the juice.
For taco night, in addition to the pork, I served Warm corn tortillas, rice (brown in this case) and refried black beans. Shredded cheddar, mashed avocado and salsa were served on the side. I also served some cilantro pesto I had made the previous day.
The pesto was simple to make:
- 1 Large handful of cilantro
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese
- Squeeze of lemon & salt to taste
- Olive oil
- Put all ingredients in a food processor. Drizzle in olive oil while the ingredients are whirring in the processor. Only add enough oil to make a runny consistency.
- The pesto was delicious drizzled onto the taco (in place of salsa for me) before eating.
- The tortillas were extra special as they are handmade thick white corn tortillas that Tag picks up in Central Falls on his way home from work. Heat the tortillas in a pan coated with a little bit of olive oil till warm and soft.
- I love Taco Tuesday, it can be a lot of work prepping & preparing all of the ingredients but using your slow cooker for the main dish cuts down on your prep time considerably.
- Give these tacos a try. Your family will thank you.