Sweet Pork

My neighbor is from the west coast and raves about a restaurant called Cafe Rio.  She told me they have the most amazing sweet pork and I was desperate to try it, but there isn’t a Cafe Rio anywhere close to Wisconsin.   I did a quick search and found tons of knock-off recipes, all of which contained the same ingredients: pork, Coke, green chilies, enchilada sauce and brown sugar.  I have no idea what the Cafe Rio sweet pork tastes like, but I was pretty sure if I used all of these ingredients I would come up with a pretty awesome dish  So, I made it a couple times, tweaking the amounts each time, until I found just the right flavor combination.  I have no idea if this is what the Cafe Rio Sweet Pork tastes like, but all I know is this recipe is delicious!

Sweet Pork

2 pound pork shoulder
Salt and pepper for seasoning
1 can regular Coke
1/4 c. water
1 can diced green chilies
3/4 (10oz) can red enchilada sauce (I use medium, but add whatever your preference is!)
3/4 cup brown sugar

Season the pork shoulder with salt and pepper and place in your slow cooker. Add ½ can of coke and water and cook on low for about 8 hours. Remove pork from crock pot and shred the meat. Dump any drippings left in the crock pot and wipe it clean.

In a blender, blend the other 1/2 can of Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and ¾ cup of brown sugar. Place your sauce in the crock pot with your shredded pork.  Add some extra Coke if your sauce is too thick.  Cook on low for another 2 hours to allow the meat to soak up the sauce.

You can eat this on a bun with coleslaw for a tasty sandwich, over greens to give your salad an extra kick, or, my favorite, grilled up in a quesadilla with cheese and corn salsa.

This recipe also makes quite a bit of meat.  I like to portion it out and freeze it in large ziplock bags.  It reheats wonderfully!