Slow Cooker Pork Loin

Still hot here in Florida. Surprised? :) I love making pork tenderloins because they are cheap, easy, and flavorful, but I don't love turning on the oven for an hour when it's 89 outside and 100% humidity. So that got me thinking...pork loin in the Crock Pot! This recipe is super simple to make and cooks a lot faster than you would think. In fact, I overcooked my pork and it was still fabulous. Outstanding! Amazing! Sooo dang good!! I'll tell you how long to cook it properly, but you really can't hurt the pork in this recipe.

You will need:

pork tenderloin without seasoning
1/4 cup grape juice
1/4 cup sugar
1T garlic salt
1T Montreal steak seasoning
2 large or 4 small pears



If you are not a fan of grape juice you can use cranberry instead. Or fancy it up and use pomegranate juice!


Rinse the tenderloin and cover it with the garlic salt and steak seasoning. Place it in the slow cooker.



Add the juice and sugar to a small saucepan and heat on low until the sugar dissolves. Don't let it get hot, though! Pour the juice over the pork loin and put on the slow cooker top.




Turn the slow cooker on high for one hour and then turn down to low for 3 hours. OR Just cook on low for 5 hours. Add the peeled and chopped pears when you turn it to low.



I thought it would take much longer and my pork was ready three hours before dinner. Yikes! I turned the slow cooker to warm and just left it alone. It was perfect! It cooked down almost like pulled pork. It was out of this world! So, don't panic if it cooks longer than you want. Pork is supposed to be done at 145 degrees, but I usually cook mine until 160 and it's still juicy with no trace of pink. Sometimes at 145 it still looks a bit pink to me.


Drizzle the syrup over the pork and pears. Full of flavor and absolutely delicious! I don't think I'll go back to cooking it in the oven even when it isn't hot as blazes. You could add any flavoring or just cook it with the steak seasoning. So versatile! My Blackberry Pork or Honey Mustard Pork would also be awesome.




Seriously delicious! I just can't say it enough!!




Enjoy!!

Honey Mustard Pork and Pears

This recipe is simple, delicious, and easy on the budget.



I took about a 1/3 cup of honey mustard and added 1T of oil. (Any spicy mustard with 1T of honey can substitute.)



I spread the mustard mixture over a pork loin (less than $10) and baked at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.



While it was baking I chopped up two pears. I left the skin on, but made sure to wash them with soap and hot water. So important to wash your fruit! Even bananas and cantaloupe. After 25 minutes I removed the pork from the oven, added the pears, and continued cooking for 20 minutes. (The pork should reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees.)



I sliced the pork and drizzled it with the drippings from the pan. Since I am going the way of the diet, I chopped up my pork and pears and put them over a bed of lettuce. I used a lowfat honey mustard vinaigrette on top.