Slow Cooker Pork Luau
Speed - 95%
Simplicity - 98%
Tastiness - 99%
97%
Perfect!
This slow cooker adaptation came out really close if not identical to the original Hawaiian Luau. Fall-apart tender, succulent, sweet, smoky - just perfect!
Ingredients
- 1 Slab(2.5Kg) Pork Roast
- 1.5 Tablespoons Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Liquid Smoke
- Banana Leaves
Instructions
- Trim your meat of excess fat.
- Make small incisions on the surface of the pork roast.
- Rub salt and liquid smoke all over pork.
- Wrap in banana leaves.
- Leave for 8 hours on low in the slow cooker.
This slow cooker version of the classic Hawaiian Luau is definitely among the top pork recipes I've had and is every bit worth sharing. It's really amazing how close to the original this came out without all of the mess and hassles that come in its traditional preparation.
While everyone might recommend using a cut from the pork shoulder, I went for a section from the ribs, close to the belly. I know that the wonderful alternating layers of meat and fat would make my take on this luau extra succulent, sinful as it may be. As much as I'd love to keep every rib bone in place, I had the butcher remove them so this slab would fit easily in my slow cooker. I also had the skin removed to make sure all that seasoning and smoky flavor gets deep into the meat. I won't be able to get it to a crackling anyway, so I really didn't mind losing it at all. A thin layer of fat on top would do wonders in keeping this roast perfectly moist. You might want to trim some away, though, if there's too much.
Get a small paring knife and stab it all over the meat surface to make little incisions. This will help all those flavors penetrate the meat better.
Here's one of the many things I love about this recipe. It really only needs 3 ingredients. Pork, salt, and liquid smoke. This dish is a perfect case to prove that delicious food need not be complicated to prepare. Just rub some coarse-grained salt all over and slather on a generous splash of liquid smoke. No need to set a pit on fire.
From here you could actually get your pork straight to the pot. Just for that distinct smoky and slightly sweet luau flavor, I wrapped mine in a roll of banana leaf. No need to secure the loose end – just keep it tucked on the underside as you lay the whole thing down in the pot so it'll stay neatly closed.
Just to make sure nothing sticks to the walls of my crockpot, I went for a quick coating of non-stick cooking spray. I really don't think this step would be necessary but doing so won't hurt either. Lay the wrapped pork in. No need to add any cooking liquid. Believe me, not a single drop went in with mine. Cover the pot, set it on low, and you're done.
Look at how perfect this came out after eight hours of totally unsupervised cooking. Unbelievably fall-apart tender and succulent. And the smell of banana leaves in the kitchen, just so
No need for knives to carve this. Just go ahead and dig in with a fork.
Ingredients
- 1 Slab(2.5Kg) Pork Roast
- 1.5 Tablespoons Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Liquid Smoke
- Banana Leaves
Instructions
- Trim your meat of excess fat.
- Make small incisions on the surface of the pork roast.
- Rub salt and liquid smoke all over pork.
- Wrap in banana leaves.
- Leave for 8 hours on low in the slow cooker.
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