Friday night dinner - pulled pork

I never used to be a fan of pork, I always found it a bit dry and bland. That is, until I discovered the wonder that is pulled pork - juicy, tender, shredded meat that is ridiculously moreish. I should know, there was a lot less meat in the slow cooker when the time came to serve up, because I kept going back for 'one more taste' after it was ready!
It's also incredibly easy to make - literally chuck your piece of meat in the crock pot, pour over some boiling water, put on the lid and set the cooker to low. That's it for pretty much the whole day!
Then you simply shred the cooked meat, add your chosen sauce (or if you're not the saucy type, no sauce at all works just as well), and heat through. Delicious, saucy shredded pork for less effort than making a pot noodle. Doooo itttttt!!!!

BBQ Pulled Pork

1 joint pork (any boneless cut)

BBQ sauce

Place your joint of pork in the slow cooker and pour over boiling water (or stock if you prefer) to about halfway up the meat. Put on the lid and set cooker to low - leave for 6-8 hours.

When pork is cooked, remove from cooker, and pour away the cooking liquid. If you're very clever and frugal, you'll save this liquid to use next time you need pork stock, it would be lovely in a soup. I was lazy and just chucked it down the sink, oops!

Shred the meat using two forks, and put the shredded meat back into the crock pot. Pour over a bottle of BBQ sauce* and mix well,leave in crock pot to warm through while you assemble the rest of your dinner. I like this with chips and coleslaw, but it would also be lovely with cheesy mash, or served in baps at a party or BBQ.

* I have done this dish with a couple of different sauces, but my favourite is Levi Roots' Reggae Reggae sauce. Another nice idea would be to use a chinese style sauce, such as plum sauce, and serve either with chinese pancakes or egg fried rice. Why not try it with mexican style sauces and tortilla wraps, guacamole and salsa? The possibilities are endless....enjoy!

Something's gotta give

You know that moment where you realise you're doing too much? Somewhere between juggling the very different needs of three kids, keeping seven pets alive and happy, ferrying the kids to their various engagements - scouts, dance class, cheerleading, baby groups, school runs, etc, and making sure the house doesn't fall apart, you suddenly realise that in all your efforts to keep everything together, the only thing that's really falling to bits is your sanity!

I reached a point a few weeks back where I realised that I was starting to run on empty, it's just not possible to be everything to everyone all of the time, and something has to give.

So, I dropped a couple of groups, asked for help with night feeds, and learned that you know what? If the house doesn't resemble a magazine shoot, the world doesn't actually end! Who'da thunk it??

The one thing I'm not really willing to drop, though, is home cooking. I love cooking, and it's important to me that my kids eat fresh, home cooked meals. Nothing against convenience foods, don't get me wrong. Cooking is just my "thing".

So, what do you do when you're constantly busy, tired and stressed out? How do you make life easier for yourself while still cooking from scratch most days?

You get yourself a slow cooker! It's honestly been the best thing I've ever done, and this blog is for chronicling my cooking adventures - mostly slow cooked recipes, with the occasional quick and easy dinner solution chucked in there as well!

Pull up a chair, grab a fork and join me while I discover how to cook from scratch when you're chronically busy...

Jodes x