A Whole30 Green Chili Pork Roast

On this Whole30 plan, I've been eating a lot more meat than I normally would.  Typically I don't make a whole roast when there's only me to eat it, but for the next few weeks, I'll have to make an exception. For whatever reason, I've been craving pork, so Sunday I did the traditional roast in the crock pot (well, maybe not that traditional).  This particular roast came from Niman Ranch, the same place that Chipotle sources much of their pork.

  

What you'll need:

• A pork roast (this one is boneless shoulder, but a pork butt or loin would work too) about 2 lbs.
• 1 cup green chilies.  I bought these in the freezer section; here in the southwest, frozen hatch chilies are pretty readily available.  If you can only get canned, use those, but maybe supplement with some fresh jalapeño if you want more heat.
• 2 cups stock, divided (I used my homemade stock, if you're buying it, make sure there's not added sugar/starches/etc.)
• 1 onion, chopped into about thumbnail-sized pieces 
• 1 can of diced tomatoes (again, check the label for added sugar)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. oregano
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp white pepper
• salt and pepper for the roast
• (not pictured) 1 T. of ghee to brown the roast.

 

Dry your roast with paper towels and then salt and pepper it generously before browning. Pre-heat your skillet on the stove to medium-high and add your ghee (ghee has a really high smoke point and is great for things like this).

Brown your roast on all sides.  I even stand mine up on the ends to brown those.  Once the browning is complete, put your roast in the crock pot on top of your diced onion. 

 De-glaze your skillet with 1 cup of stock, leaving all that good brown stuff behind would be a crime!

 

Add your other spices and ingredients to the crock pot, including the second cup of stock. 

 

Set your crock pot for six hours on low and try to stay away while it make your house smell amazing. 

 

 When it's done, it will look a little something like this.  Pull the meat out of the crock pot, cut off the strings if your roast has them.

Shred your meat with a couple of forks (or in my case a knife).  Make sure you use your most embarrassing hot pink plastic plates, if possible.

Add the meat back to the juices (though taste it plain first, it's amazing how the flavors really penetrate the meat.  You can eat the meat in lettuce wraps, which was my choice on night 1.  Then on night 2, I served it like a stew and topped it off with avocado and fresh cilantro. 

Both ways?  Completely delicious!