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Quick Notes: This is my slow cooker sweet pork recipe which is a copycat of Cafe Rio/Costa Vida. You can find some great copycats out there, but I genuinely believe I’ve perfected it. You have to be willing to put in the time, and you cannot rush it. This is a base for both my Sweet Pork Burrito, as well as my Sweet Pork Chili (to be added in the future).
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin
- 3 cups root beer, divided
- 1 cup water
- 3 1/4 cup brown sugar, divided
- 1 15 oz can red enchilada sauce (if you prefer to make it from scratch, I have an amazing recipe here: http://www.justthefuckingrecipe.net/restaurant-style-cheese-enchiladas/)
- 2 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Salt
Instructions
- In a large Tupperware or a gallon freezer bag, add your raw pork, a cup of root beer, and 1/4 cup brown sugar. Seal it up and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. If you absolutely don't have the time for that, you can make do with four hours.Â
- Add your sweet pork to your slow cooker. Discard your marinade, but you don't need to worry about any of the sugar or anything that comes with it because we're about to add a fuck ton more.Â
- Pour in another cup of root beer, a cup of brown sugar, a cup of water, and all your seasonings. Cover and let it slow cook on low for about 6 hours (3 on high).
- Remove your pork and shred it. Do it with a mixer if you have one and save some time and headache. Plop it back in with all the juices. Add your enchilada sauce and another cup of brown sugar. Cook another 2 hours on low, or an additional one hour on high.Â
- When you serve this on whatever you plan to serve it on, do yourself a favor and use tongs to get the excess juices out. Don't discard the juices if you plan to refrigerate it. It keeps really well and won't dry out if you store it with the juices.Â
