New Year's Day Pork & Sauerkraut!

You know what they say....pork & kraut on New Year's Day will bring you good luck all year long. This year I made a pork tenderloin and sauerkraut in the slow cooker, and threw in some kielbasa for good measure. I decided to go the easy route on this one....simple ingredients.


What I learned: The 3-pound tenderloin I bought was actually two tenderloins! I did not realize this (I'm a tenderloin newbie, apparently) until it was cooked and started to split down the middle. I think one would have been plenty....now I know!

Slow Cooker Pork, Sauerkraut, and Kielbasa


Ingredients:

• 3-lb pork tenderloin
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• McCormick's cracked peppercorn roasting rub (See? Easy!)
  
  
• 1 large can sauerkraut
• 8 oz beer (I used Sam Adams Winter Lager -- 6 oz for the slow cooker and 2 oz for frying up the kielbasa)
• 1 pound low-fat pork kielbasa

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large skillet.
   
2. Coat tenderloin with seasoning rub.
3. Sear tenderloin, until browned on all sides.
   
   
4. Pour sauerkraut into slow cooker, add 6 oz beer.
   
   
5. Place tenderloin on bed of kraut (add more seasoning if some was lost in the skillet).
   
   
6. Cook on high for 3-4 hours (or low for 6-8 hours....cook until internal temperature of meat is at least 160 degrees F - I love my digital meat thermometer!).
7. At some point while pork is cooking, slice kielbasa into 1-inch chunks and cook in skillet with approx 2 oz beer (more if you'd like).
   
   
8. Once heated through and browned, add kielbasa to slow cooker for remainder of cook time.