Sunday Slow Cooker: Kalua Pork with Cabbage

Kalua pork is a traditional dish from Hawaii that upon first taste you would believe must be full of special ingredients due to its intense, smoky flavor. However it’s surprisingly simple when it comes to ingredients. Normally it is a pork shoulder (or a whole pig) seasoned with Hawaiian sea salt, wrapped in it leaves, and then cooked underground until fall apart tender and delicious. So so good but since most of us don’t have the space or time for 16 hours underground, not so easy to make at home. So for the at home version, it’s best to use the slow cooker instead.

For this at home slow cooker version, we will use liquid smoke to mimic the smoky taste from the underground cooking, season a lean pork tenderloin with salt to reduce the calories and fat, and cook it low and slow until it’s fall apart tender. It’s incredibly easy, low carb and low calorie, and can be used in so many ways.