Sweet (and Spicy) Pork

I should start off by stating that this recipe wasn't entirely my own idea. I went to this restaurant called Costa Vida in Mesa and I had their sweet pork. It was delicious! I immediately started trying to figure out what was in it. I had the basic outline of it figured out, but I really couldn't figure out what was giving it that sweet, molasses flavor. So, the next day, I'm talking to my friend, Luigi, about it and he was able to find the recipe for me on the Internet!! Lo and behold, our good friend, Dr. Pepper was the secret behind the sweetness. As I began looking over the recipe, I found that I had been mostly right about what was in it, but then I started making notes...I couldn't leave well enough alone! Ha, ha! But you know what? That's okay. I think it's fun and interesting to put your own spin on recipes...that's what makes them your own! Some of these changes, however did come out of necessity because there was NO way that I was turning on my oven in the heat of the Arizona summer for 5 hours! So, instead I used my crock pot! :) Anyway, enough of the chitchat, on to the recipe...

-4 lbs (give or take) of pork shoulder/butt
-1 sweet onion, thinly sliced
-4 roma tomatoes, chopped
-1 jalapeno, finely diced (seeded and ribs removed if desired. You can also use Chipotle in adobo, which is smoked jalapenos in a red chili sauce with spices and vinegar, but don't use the whole can. Just use 1 or 2 jalapenos and about 1 TBS of the sauce.)
-19 oz of red enchilada sauce
-1 can of Dr. Pepper
-1 cup brown sugar
-1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped
-1 TBS of chili powder
-1 TBS coriander
-1/2 TBS of adobo seasoning (or equal parts onion powder and garlic powder with a heavy pinch of salt)

Now, you need to plan this by when you want to eat. I'll write the recipe as I did it and we were eating by 6:30, so that will give you a timetable to work with. Place the onions, tomatoes, jalapeno and the pork (seasoned with the spices) into the crock pot at 9am. Pour about 1/3 cup of water into the bottom to keep the pork moist while the crock pot warms up. Place the crock pot on high for 1 hour, then turn it to low for the remainder of the cooking time. At 4:30pm, I took the pork out to cool for 30 minutes. Scoop out the veggies with a slotted spoon and pour the liquid off. Leaving the crock pot on low, add in the enchilada sauce, Dr. Pepper, brown sugar and cilantro and place the lid back on the crock pot. When the pork has cooled for 30 minutes, shred it using two forks in a criss-cross action. Place the shredded pork and the veggies into the crock pot and stir to combine it with the sauce. Let the sauce and pork simmer on low for at least 30 minutes or up to an hour. Serve with your favorite taco toppings. Leftovers make great enchiladas too! :)

I really liked the Costa Vida version of this sweet pork, but I wanted to try something a little different. I wanted a sweet-heat flavor to it. When you bite into it, you're hit with the sweet flavor first, then a slow burn from the jalapeno at the end. I like when the spicy-ness doesn't overwhelm the food, but it lets you know that its there. That's what I got with this recipe...a perfect balance of sweet and heat. :) Enjoy!

*Based on the comments below, it may be wise to taste the chipotle in adobo before adding it into the crock pot. My brother kindly pointed out that different brands make more spicy chipotles than other brands. So, if you're sensitive to spicy food, just give it a taste before hand to make sure that you know what you can handle.