Brazilian Feijoada (crock pot)

The Internet tells me that Feijoada is a delicious stew of pork and black beans traditionally served in Brazil for special occasions, and that it is usually served over rice with fresh orange slices. Tyler makes this for us and everyone loves it. The recipe was originally from Cooking Light (from March 2011) but then Tyler altered it.

  • 2 cups dried black beans (about 1 pound)
  • 4 applewood-smoked bacon slices
  • 1 (1-pound) boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt,- trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 3 bone-in beef short ribs, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
  • 3 cups finely chopped onion (about 2 medium)
  • 1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth (maybe more)
  • 1/2 cup beef broth (maybe more)
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 (9-ounce) smoked ham hock
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 8 orange wedges

Place black beans in a small saucepan; cover with cold water. Bring to a boil; cook beans for 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 1 hour. Drain.

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble. Sprinkle pork evenly with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Increase heat to medium-high. Add pork to drippings in skillet; sauté 8 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. (continued on next page) Transfer pork to a 6-quart electric slow cooker.* Sprinkle ribs evenly with 1/8 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add ribs to skillet; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Place ribs in slow cooker. Add drained beans, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, onion, and next 4 ingredients (through ham hock) to slow cooker, stirring to combine. The note “maybe more” next to the broths means add enough to cover the beans. You might be fine with this amount, or you might need 1/2 to 1 cup more. Cover and cook on LOW 8 hours or until beans and meat are tender.

Remove ribs from slow cooker; let stand 15 minutes. Remove meat from bones; shred meat with 2 forks. Discard bones. Discard ham hock. Return beef to slow cooker. Stir in vinegar and crumbled bacon. Serve with orange wedges.

*As written above is the way Cooking Light instructs making this recipe. The way Tyler actually makes it is to put everything in a Dutch oven pot and cook it at 325 degrees for 3 1/2 hours. You can choose which way to want to do it.

Serves 8.

Book 2 Recipes Without Pictures Soups & Stews Beef Chicken Pork