Slow Cooker Pork Roast With Apples and Pears Recipe

The winter months are perfect for making anything and everything in your crock pot – and there’s no reason you can’t expand beyond beef stew or good old New England pot roast. Here’s a recipe I created based on one I read in Cook’s Illustrated for Braised Pork Chops. Because the flavor profiles of pork and fruit go so well together, it was a natural to combine them in a slow cooker. An added bonus? This is the perfect recipe for cheap, tough cuts of pork such as the blade or arm roasts.

Slow Cooker Pork Roast With Apples and Pears

(1) 1 pound bone-in pork roast

3 T. kosher salt

Water

1 T. olive oil

1 medium-sized white onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 medium-sized apple (variety of your choice), peeled, cored and sliced into twelfths

1 medium-sized pear (variety of your choice), cored and sliced into twelfths

½ t. whole allspice

½ t. minced fresh ginger

½ cup pomegranate juice

2 T. balsamic vinegar

Freshly ground black pepper

Dissolve kosher salt in about one quart of water. Add the pork roast and allow to brine for at least an hour.

Meanwhile, heat your crock pot to high. Add oil, onion, garlic and bay leaf. Cook until slightly softened. Add apple and pear slices, bay leaf, allspice and ginger.

Remove pork roast from brine and pat dry. Sprinkle with black pepper. Place on top of veggies and fruits. Pour pomegranate juice and balsamic vinegar over all. Cook on high for one hour, turning roast over halfway through. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, covered, for 4 – 6 hours.

Serves 4