I have recently become an owner of a crock pot. I know! Hard to believe it’s taken me so long. Since I don’t have a lot of time in the mornings, I love really easy recipes and kalua pork is as simple as they come. I learned this recipe back in my MGM Grand days (Thanks Nyree Jones!) and it takes less than five minutes to throw together. Having family over for the holidays and you need to feed them for more than one meal? Kalua pork is the way to go.
Kalua Pork
Ingredients:
- One pork shoulder or butt. Size it to whatever fits in your cooker or roasting pan.
- Water
- Salt
- 1/4 cup Liquid Smoke- Feel free to adjust to your taste once you’ve made this recipe a few times.
Yep, that’s it. Four whole ingredients.
Dry off your shoulder then stab it repeatedly with a fork or small knife tip. Rub the meat with salt all over. Give him a nice little massage. Pour a little bit of water into your cooker then add the meat. Pour the liquid smoke over the top. Put on the lid and turn the cooker to low.
Ta-da! I told you. This is an easy recipe. Do not fret if you don’t have a slow cooker. An oven at 200-220 degrees works just as well. The idea here is low and slow. Depending on your size of pork, this could take eight to ten hours. Once done the meat will shred so prettily, and it’s so smoky and juicy, I dare you to keep from snatching pieces before the rest of the family knows it’s done.
The only difficult part of this meal is choosing the sides, and in my opinion, the best one is white rice. I try to eat healthy and stick to black rice, but truthfully, a good white rice is the best accompaniment to kalua pork. Add a nice macaroni salad or coleslaw, it’s like having a little Hawaiian luau on a plate.
Enjoy and Happy Holidays!