The BEST pulled pork tacos

The BEST pulled pork tacos

Bonus: They're also crazy easy!  

You'll need:
3 lb pork roast, this is pretty forgiving - I usually get my hands on a shoulder... I'm confident that whatever you have on hand will suffice.
1 16 oz jar Herdez Mild Verde Salsa
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp granulated garlic
dash each salt and pepper

To serve:
corn tortillas, 3-5 per person
diced tomatoes
diced cilantro
crumbled Cotija cheese

Hardware:
Crock pot
1 large or two smaller cookie sheets
Broiler oven

Pour a little of the salsa in the bottom of your crock pot, place the roast on top, then cover with remainder of salsa.  Sprinkle spices over the top and cook.  4-5 hours on high, 6-8 on low.  Use a thermometer to make sure you're at or above 145F in the middle.

Once the roast is cooked, use two forks to shred it.  Return shredded pork to crock pot and stir it around in the sauce.  Use tongs or a large slotted spoon to move shredded pork to cookie sheet in a nice single layer.  You'll leave a good portion of the liquid behind in the crock pot, that's ok. 

Broil shredded pork on high for 5-7 minutes or until dark and crispy on the edges - just shy of burning, so watch closely!  This creates magic, caramelizing the sauce and the meat together into savory "meat candy".  It's practically irresistible.  I like to use two cookie sheets so that I can start building tacos while the second is in the oven. 

This will serve our hungry family of 4 two meals, generally dinner and lunch.  I like to make cilantro lime rice and a green salad to serve on the side. 

Huge thanks to Erin Woodward who taught me the value of broiling this dish and introducing our family to "meat candy". 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This one comes from a freezer cooking recipe book.  They would have you cook the chicken, then chop the chicken, then cook the sauce... too much.  Toss everything into the crock pot and walk away.  You'll have enough for a party plus leftovers for freezing.  Stan really enjoys zapping a 1/2 c serving at a time for a snack.

Buffalo Chicken Dip
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (still frozen)
1-1/2 c (12oz) Frank's Red Hot Sauce
32oz low fat cream cheese
2 c (16oz) low fat ranch dressing

Toss all ingredients in a slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours.  Push the chicken down and mush the cream cheese around if you think of it.  Mostly, just leave it alone.
Once the chicken is cooked (160F), pull it out and shred it.  Use this opportunity to whisk the sauce (or whip out your immersion blender like I did, made super-quick work of it). Stir shredded chicken back into sauce.

Serve hot with tortilla chips, carrot sticks and celery sticks. Makes 12 cups.

Freeze leftovers in 1/2 cup portions, frozen flat in freezer safe zip-top bags.  Thaw in fridge then heat, or microwave from frozen.

Taco Soup

We call this chili in our household.  It's a great addition to a baked potato bar, turns into nachos on day 2, and is super easy to make (you can even freeze it)!

Taco Soup

In a large pot:
Brown 1 lb ground beef with 1 packet Taco Seasoning, drain excess grease

Add following and simmer for 20 minutes or more:
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
2 28oz cans diced fire roasted tomatoes (I love Muir Glenn brand)
1 can chili and lime Rotel
1 can cream corn (and sometimes some extra corn from a bag of frozen)
1 can dark kidney beans, drained
1 can white kidney beans (cannellini), drained
2 cans black beans, drained
2 cans pinto beans, drained

We like to top this like it's a taco... sour cream, shredded cheese, diced tomatoes, chopped cilantro.  It's a lot of fun to serve buffet style, letting everyone top their own bowl.  You can even make it vegetarian, or add TVP to stretch your meat.

Because I can keep the ground beef frozen and the cans always on hand, this is a go-to recipe, especially in the winter.  I keep all the cans for a single batch tied up in a grocery sack in my pantry and I toss the empty cans back in the bag as I make the recipe for easy clean up.