Slow-Cooker Cajun Pork and Red Beans
Tender, pull apart pork on a bed of beans and vegetables that are full of delicious cajun flavour!
Ingredients
- 250g dried pinto beans (see Notes)
- 700g pork shoulder steaks
- 2 tbsp plus 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 tsp smoked or regular sea salt flakes
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- salt
- 2 onions thickly sliced
- 155g smoked bacon lardons
- 3 celery stalks roughly diced
- 2 green peppers (or 1 red and 1 green) deseeded and roughly diced
- 5 cloves garlic sliced
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp dried sage (or oregano or thyme)
- 2 tsp paprika
- 800ml hot chicken stock (made using 1 stock pot or cube)
To serve (optional):
- 400g long grain or basmati rice cooked
- cornbread
Instructions
- The night before, soak the beans and marinate the pork - put the beans into a large bowl or 2l jug enough cold water to cover by 6cm. For the pork – put the pork into a large bowl or dish, mix the 2 tbsp of Cajun seasoning, sea salt flakes and 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a small bowl into a paste, season with freshly ground black pepper, then rub over the pork steaks, cover and chill overnight.
- The next day, heat your slow cooker and drain the soaked beans. Drizzle the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil in a wide 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 batches. Cook until deep brown all over (around 1.5 to 2 minutes on each side), then transfer to a plate.
- 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.
- Stir in the drained beans, celery, peppers, garlic, bay leaves, dried herbs, 1 tsp of Cajun seasoning, the paprika, season and mix everything together well, then transfer it to the slow cooker. Add the hot chicken stock, stir and then nestle the marinated pork down amongst the vegetables and beans so that they sit in the stock.
- Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or high for 5 to 6 hours. Serve with rice and/or cornbread.
Notes
- Get ahead – the pork can be marinated up to 48 hours ahead and the beans are to be soaked overnight. For more flavour, completely cooked the pork and beans the day before and just reheat to serve the next day!
- Beans – to use tinned beans instead of dried, swap for 2 x 400g tins of pinto, kidney or borlotti beans (drained and rinsed), and skip the soaking stage.
- This slow-cooker cajun pork and red beans recipe is easily adapted if you’re cooking for less people.