Pork with Vinegar & Bay Leaves

Sometimes you just want dinner to be as simple as possible. For me, 'simple as possible' means little to no preparation, quick to put together and the use of average pantry ingredients. With a pork roast, you can do some pretty wonderful thing to make a simple dish. I'm still amazed how little preparation is involved with making this Pork with Vinegar & Bay Leaves. Juicy, flavorful and ridiculously easy, your guests will taste the love and labored effort you put into making this meal... even though a slow cooker did all the work for you!


With summer heat making me feel extremely lazy with cooking and baking, I've been resorting to my slow cooker quite a bit. Plugging it in and walking away really feels good. Even better is sitting down to a meal where I didn't slave away in the kitchen. This dish is simple and I'm willing to bet you have a majority, if not all, the ingredients on hand (well, except maybe for the pork.) But even the pork cut - a loin roast or Boston Butt - is fairly inexpensive compared to other pork cuts, making it a meal that's budget friendly too. The pork is browned on all sides before being placed in a slow cooker. Then salt, crushed peppercorns, bay leaves and red wine vinegar get added in. Let the pork cook away while you enjoy doing something else for a few hours. Before you know it, the meal is done and you can serve it with your favorite side dish.  That's it... simple, right?

Pork with Vinegar & Bay Leaves
recipe from Marcella Hazan

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 pounds pork loin roast, boneless, or Boston butt, in one piece
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon whole peppercorns, crushed
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup good red wine vinegar

Choose a heavy-bottomed or enameled cast-iron pot into which the pork can fit snugly. Put in the butter and oil, turn the heat on to medium high, and when the butter foam subsides, put in the meat, the side with the fat, if it has any, facing down. Brown the meat deeply all over, turning it when necessary. Once browned, transfer the pork to a slow cooker.

Add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker and allow to simmer on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.

Transfer the pork to a cutting board. Let it settle for a few minutes, then cut it into slices about 3/8 inch thick or slightly less, and arrange them on a warm serving platter.

Use the juices in the slow cooker by pouring over the pork and serve.