Slow Cooker Italian Beef Sandwiches

I use my slow cooker A LOT. You might have noticed.

Honestly, there are just some days when I need an easy, little-to-no prep option for dinner. I know I can't be the only one. There's just something so nice about having a tool that does so much work FOR you.

Side note on that, I can't WAIT to try out the Instant Pot I got for Christmas.

Anyway, this is another meal that my daughter helps me prepare. I brown the beef, but I let her measure and add all of the "flavor" components to the dish; this means that she gets to stir, which is basically her favorite thing to do in the kitchen (at least so far).

As usual, the original recipe comes from Cooking Light, though I've made some adjustments of my own. A link to the original is included below.

Slow Cooker Italian Beef Sandwiches

Original Recipe by Deb Wise, Cooking Light Dec 2013 (see it here)

1/2 cup white vinegar

1 tbs onion powder

1 tbs garlic powder

2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 cup sliced pepperoncini peppers (jarred)

2 lbs chuck roast

Ciabatta rolls (or your favorite sandwich rolls)

Place first 7 ingredients in slow cooker, stirring to combine.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and coat with cooking spray. Cook beef in skillet for 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Add beef to slow cooker.

Cook on LOW setting for 8 hours. Shred beef with two forks and stir well. Serve on ciabatta rolls.

Until next time...

Cheers!

Slow Cooker Italian Pork and Peppers

Alright, I know...ANOTHER slow cooker recipe. Honestly, though, can you ever actually have too many? Not in my book you can't, and since I'm the one writing this blog...well, slow cooker meals it is!

My husband doesn't love pork, but he REALLY liked this dish. It's one of the best dishes I've had in awhile, actually, and that's saying a lot since I cook almost every night. I love it because it's SUPER easy to put together, the slow cooker does practically all of the work, and the flavors are SO yummy when you actually sit down to eat it. The pork is so tender it almost melts in your mouth! Mmm.

I got the initial recipe for this from Cooking Light as is noted below; their suggestion was to pair the pork with polenta. You can do that, or you can do like I did and pair it with mashed potatoes.

Slow Cooker Italian Pork and Peppers

Adapted from Cooking Light, January 2015

 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 (1 1/2-pound) boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

3/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided

2 cups vertically sliced onion

1 cup sliced yellow bell pepper

10 garlic cloves, minced

2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

 

 Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat. Sprinkle pork with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add pork to pan and cook 10 minutes, turning to brown all sides. Transfer pork to your slow cooker.

 

Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, tomatoes, rosemary, and thyme to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 1/2 hours.

 

Add vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes and turn off heat. Shred pork. Serve over polenta or mashed potatoes.

 

Until next time...

 

Cheers!