Pork Stew in Cider

This stew sounded so delicious, with pork, onions, apples, it seems just perfect for fall. The recipe comes from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook. This book will be featured quite frequently this fall; looking through it to compare it to the not-so “deluxe” edition reminded me of all the great recipes inside!

Of course I could not find hard cider in this almost virtually dry county (quite ironic that I live here, I know!) So I opted to use “Apple-Beer,” a non-alcoholic substitute. I can’t find genuine apple cider here (non-alcoholic) either, so I thought Apple-beer would be an adequate substitute.

And, I was right! This stew with Apple-Beer is delicious! I was worried about the carbonation, but should not have been. The stew is savory yet sweet, and very filling. I served it with egg noodles, and one of our guests stated I should open a restaurant. You should make this today! It is a perfect fall stew, excellent. I will definitely make this again.

Pork Stew in Cider

Although the water chestnuts are optional, they add a nice, crunchy texture. The cider is an important ingredient. The alcoholic stuff is best, so look for a good brand, such as Dry Blackthorn.

Serves 6

Cooker: medium round or oval

Settings and cook times: HIGH for 20 minutes (optional), then LOW for 7 to 9 hours.

1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped

1 large tart cooking apple, such as Granny Smith or pippin, peeled, cored and roughly cut into 1-inch cubes

One 8-ounce can whole water chestnuts (optional), drained and cut in half

1 ½ pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into ½-inch cubes

½ teaspoon salt

7 grinds of black pepper

1 ½ tablespoons rubbed sage

2 cups dry hard cider

Long-grain rice or egg noodles for serving

1. Coat the slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Layer the onion, apple, water chestnuts, and pork in the cooker; sprinkle with the salt, pepper and sage. Pour the cider over all. Turn to HIGH for 20 minutes, if you have time, to heat through.

2. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 9 hours.

3. Serve in shallow soup bowls with long-grain white rice or egg noodles.