Slow cooking is a special type of food preparation that involves placing foods in a slow cooker such as a Crock-Pot® and allowing them to cook on low heat for six hours or more. This method makes even the toughest cuts of meat tender and juicy, and many different foods can be cooked this way. One popular meal, Crock-Pot® pork chops, is made by placing chops in a slow cooker and covering them with water and seasonings, then letting them cook all day. Recipes may vary, sometimes including potatoes or other vegetables as well as different spices and sauces.
When cooking Crock-Pot® pork chops some people choose to sear the chops first, so that the outsides are brown. If this step isn’t taken the chops usually end up looking pale and faded. Searing can also add to the flavor of the meal, especially if pan scrapings are added to the slow cooker before the chops are cooked.
The technique of slow cooking is ideal for busy cooks who are away from home all day. The food and seasonings can all be placed in the cooker in the morning, then left to cook slowly all day long. Crock-Pot® pork chops typically are very simple to get ready to cook and require little or no attention once they are in the Crock-Pot®. By evening even the toughest cuts of meat are tender and have absorbed the flavor of the juices that surround them. Dinner can then be served with very little effort.
The nature of slow cooking requires that food cannot be placed in a slow cooker without plenty of liquid along with it. One way to adhere to this requirement and to enhance the meal as well is to use different kinds of sauces. A meal of Crock-Pot® pork chops lends itself to the use of many different flavors. Barbecue, sweet and sour, and spicy Italian all make good choices along with pork. Pork chops become almost irresistible when cooked all day in the family’s favorite sauce and served with side dishes that complement the chops.
When making Crock-Pot® pork chops, it is fine to use either boneless chops or those that have the bone in. It is best not to use meat with tiny or splintered bones, since they can easily get mixed in with the sauce, but almost anything else will do. Since the food has plenty of time to cook, it also doesn’t matter if the chops are thick or thin, so long as they will fit into the Crock-Pot®.
