Tonight's Dinner: Sweet & spicy Asian pork

A slow cooker can turn any piece of meat into a delicious dinner. But add some Asian spices and you've got a wonderful dinner people will think you ordered in for.

Slow cooker pork Asian-style

The slow cooker has to be one of the best kitchen inventions ever created. You can throw all your ingredients in the pot, turn it on and walk away -- for hours. You could even leave for work. Then when you get home, not only does your kitchen smell amazing, all you have to do to get dinner on the table is grab a spoon and ladle it onto serving plates. You couldn't ask for an easier dinner.

What's especially wonderful about the slow cooker is that you can use the same meat each night of the week, but the spices, stocks and juices that you use will create a completely different dinner each of those nights. Adding beef stocks and barbecue sauce will make a delicious barbecued pulled beef while adding soy sauce and brown sugar will turn the same piece of meat into a delectable Asian meal. That's what Real Simple has done here and the result is pure joy. Add some rice and you have a spectacular meal that you could find in any Asian restaurant.

Sweet & spicy Asian pork

Serves 4

ingredients:

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon chili-garlic sauce
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 leeks, chopped
• 1 (8 ounce) can bamboo shoots
• 2 scallions, chopped

Directions:

1. Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, chili-garlic sauce, ginger, five-spice powder and garlic in a large five to six quart slow cooker. Add the pork and toss to coat. Cover and cook on high for four to five hours or until the pork is tender.
2. Once the pork is tender, skim the fat off the top. Gently fold in the leeks and bamboo shoots and cook, covered until heated through, about five minutes. Ladle the pork mixture over rice. Sprinkle the scallions over the pork and serve.

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Other pork recipes

Chinese barbecued pork
Marinated pork BBQ sandwich
Pork bulgogi