Slow Cooker Rootbeer Pulled Pork

December! How did that happen!? I guess I've been a little distracted lately, considering…I started a new job! I was at my old job for 5 years, and leaving felt a bit like a breakup. But I assured them it wasn't them. It was me. And it was an awesome opportunity to put the last 5 years of knowledge and skills to the test, and step out of my comfort zone. Taking a leap is always a bit scary, but I highly recommend it. I can't even tell you how much this change reinvigorated me. I cleaned out my closet and updated my wardrobe. Joined a gym and started working out. My new office, though only a few blocks from the old one, is introducing me to a new part of town, so I'm even seeing my city in a whole new light. I feel ten pounds lighter. If only I really was ten pounds lighter… 

Speaking of losing weight… good thing I joined that gym, because winter cooking and holiday baking are ramping up. And I love winter cooking and holiday baking… like, a lot! Who wants to eat a salad on a cold, stormy day? Not this girl! I want something warm and hearty, the kind of dish you can imagine yourself tucking into while sitting around a fire after a day on the slopes. Ok, so I don't actually do winter sports. But you know what I mean. I'm talkin' soups, stews, saucy slow cooked meats. Slow cooked anything, really! 

This slow cooker pulled pork has become one of my faves. I usually do pork shoulder in the oven, and I make a mean pork shoulder.  But this one, this one in the slow cooker with rootbeer, it's something special. It smells unbelievable while it's cooking, so it's probably best for you to be out of the house for a few hours, so you don't go crazy while it' simmering away all day. I served it with coleslaw (this is my favorite basic slaw recipe), buns, and a tangy hot mustard BBQ sauce, but it's so good you could skip the extras all together (though I would really recommend that mustard sauce…on everything!). Try a spoonful of pork atop a baked sweet potato, mixed with pasta or rice, or even just in a dish on its own. 

Slow Cooker Rootbeer Pulled Pork

3 lbs. pork shoulder, cut into 3-4 large chunks

canola oil

1 onion, diced
1 bottle root beer 
1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon oregano

1 teaspoon chili paste (or more, depending on your spice preference)

1 tablespoon tomato paste 

salt and pepper



Whisk together onion through tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste, set aside. 


Pat the pork chunks dry, and season liberally with salt and pepper. Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, and add enough oil to coat the bottom. Starting with one chunk at a time, brown pork on all sides. Add pork to slow cooker, top with marinade, and cook on high for around six hours. 

The pork should be tender enough to easily shred with a fork. I like to just do it right there in the slow cooker, then stir it up in the sauce, and serve a big, saucy heaping scoop…into my mouth. 

Miami (Sandwich) Vice

Everglades!

A few summers ago I went to Miami, and I now know that Miami Vice doesn't refer to detectives in white linen pants and sportcoats, it refers to the dirty little habit people in Miami just can't break...the Cuban Sandwich: a sinfully delicious and addicting vice. Miami might have their famous Medianoche sandwich—the oh-so-good concoction filled with pork, ham, Swiss, mustard, and pickles, then pressed until thin and melty... but Seattle has the Midnight Cuban Press from Paseo. Nothing like your traditional Cuban sandwich, Paseo's Midnight Cuban Press is a legend in its own right: succulent roast pork, smoky ham, melty Swiss, unbelievable caramelized onions, sweet banana peppers, garlicky aioli, and bright, fresh cilantro.


I had been hearing about Paseo for years before I actually experienced the glory. Most people couldn’t believe I hadn’t been, I mean… I live right between the only two locations—west Ballard and Fremont, and if you hadn’t noticed, I’m a little obsessed with good food. A few months ago, when Seattle had one sunny day (which was sunnier, two months ago, than it was all Memorial weekend) Evan and I finally went to Paseo. The Ballard location is a little pink shack, with a few picnic tables and line that stretches two blocks down the street. Don’t let the insane line intimidate you… the wait is well worth it.

Phone pic of my first Paseo

We both got the Midnight Cuban Press—mine with aioli, his without. It was life changing. The flavor combo was unlike than anything I’ve ever had, and was absolutely amazing. If I could pick one thing to eat the rest of my life, it might be a Paseo sandwich. No joke. The onions were big and sweet, the aioli tangy with a super garlicky bite, and the pork tender and full of juicy goodness. Talk about a vice!

This weekend, Evan was on a boy’s trip, so I was home alone with nothing to do but cook (and watch a Law & Order: SVU marathon). After a few fast food filled weekends away, I was stoked to stay home and get a little kitchen crazy. I made pizza, I made cake, I baked eggs, and… I recreated the ultimate pork sandwich.

My easy home version of the Paseo sandwich includes leftover roast pork (I used this delicious recipe from a Food52 member, Kayb), deli ham, Swiss cheese, honey caramelized onions, garlic-yogurt spread, and cilantro on a French baguette, pressed to messy, delicious perfection. If you have leftover roasted pork, then I highly recommend you make this. If you don’t have leftover roasted pork, then I seriously suggest you get your butt in the oven (your pork butt, or shoulder, that is), grab a huge handful of napkins, make an ice cold, minty mojito, turn up the heat, and pretend that it’s not 48 degrees and raining at the end of May.

Paseo Style Cuban Pork Sandwiches

Makes 2 big, filling, fantastic sandwiches

1/2 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon EVOO
1 small-medium sweet onion- sliced in rings
1 tablespoon honey
1 large garlic clove- pressed
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
pinch of ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1.5 cups pulled pork
4 thin slices of smoked deli ham
4 slices of Swiss cheese
1 French baguette- halved lengthwise and cut in 2 portions
handful of cilantro
salt and pepper

For caramelized onions: in a skillet, heat EVOO and butter over medium heat. Add onions and slowly caramelize until golden. Take off of heat, and add in honey and a pinch of salt.

For garlic-yogurt spread: whisk together pressed garlic, yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, and a pinch of salt.

For sandwiches: On each baguette half, slather on garlic spread, and layer pork, ham, swiss, onions, and cilantro. Top with other baguette half. Heat big skillet over medium. Place sandwiches in skillet, and press (I press w/a heavy cast iron skillet) for a few minutes on each side, until cheese is melty.