Pork Cassoulet

If you need more than 4 servings, a 4-quart slow cooker is large enough to hold all of the ingredients if you double the recipe.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless pork shoulder
• 2 slices bacon
• 1 large onion, peeled and diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (15-ounce) can cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (1-pound) bag baby carrots
• 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Optional: 1 ½ teaspoons Mrs. Dash Onion and Herb Blend

1. Trim the pork of any fat, and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces. Add the bacon to a nonstick skillet; cook over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until it begins to render its fat. Add the pork and sauté for 5 minutes or until the pork is browned on all sides. Transfer the meat to the slow cooker.
2. Add the onion to the skillet; sauté for 3 minutes or until the onion is transparent. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. Transfer the onion and garlic to the slow cooker.
3. Add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the pork is tender.

Skip the Browning

If you have Brown Stock (Chapter 9) on hand, you can substitute ¼ cup of the chicken broth for an equal amount of the Brown Stock. This will impart the browned meat flavor to the Cassoulet. Likewise, if you have pork broth made from pork that had been browned prior to slow cooking it, you can substitute ¼ cup of that instead.