Slow Cooker Cajun Pork Steaks and Red Beans

This slow cooker cajun pork steaks and red beans recipe combines tender pork, smoky spices, and creamy red beans for easy, hearty and flavourful comfort food. Perfect for weeknights or meal prep!

Red beans are a traditional dish from Louisiana Creole cuisine that were served on Monday nights, after the beans were set to soak overnight on Sunday, and they could bubble away while chores and laundry were being done during the day.

I decided to use my slow cooker for this one - there's a bit of prep at the start and then just 10 minutes of cooking on the hob, and then you can set your slow cooker for 5 to 6 hours on high, or 6 to 8 hours on low.

The end result is beautifully tender, pull apart pork with beans and vegetables that are full of delicious cajun flavour!   It's a perfect comfort food dish to warm you on a cold evening.

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How to make this Slow Cooker Cajun Pork Steaks and Red Beans

Ingredients

• 700g pork shoulder steaks
• 2 tbsp plus 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
• 1 tsp smoked or regular sea salt flakes
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 onions, thickly sliced
• 155g smoked bacon lardons
• 2 x 400g tins pinto beans, drained and rinsed (see Tips)
• 3 celery stalks, roughly diced
• 2 peppers (any colours), deseeded and roughly diced
• 5 cloves garlic, sliced
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp paprika
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 800ml hot chicken stock (made using 1 stock pot or cube)

To serve (optional):

• 400g long grain or basmati rice, cooked
• cornbread

Instructions

1. The night before, marinate the pork – put the pork into a large bowl or dish, mix the 2 tbsp of Cajun seasoning, sea salt flakes, 2 tbsp of the olive oil and the pepper in a small bowl into a paste, then rub over the pork steaks, cover and chill overnight.
2. The next day, heat your slow cooker on low. Drizzle the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Add the marinated pork steaks to the hot pan (avoid overcrowding the meat – you may want to do this in 2 batches). Cook until deep brown all over (around 1.5 to 2 minutes on each side), then transfer to a plate.
3. Reduce the heat under the frying pan to medium and add the sliced onions and bacon lardons, cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the onions soften, and the bacon lardons are golden.
4. Transfer the onions and bacon to the slow cooker. Stir in the beans, celery, peppers, garlic, bay leaves, dried oregano, 1 tsp of Cajun seasoning, the paprika, season and mix everything together well. Add the hot chicken stock, stir and then nestle the browned pork steaks down amongst the vegetables and beans, so that they're mostly sitting in the stock.
5. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or high for 5 to 6 hours. Transfer the pork steaks to a plate or bowl and shred with 2 forks. Return it to the slow cooker and gently stir it through the vegetables and beans. Transfer to a serving dish and enjoy with rice and/or cornbread.