Slow Cooking Memories (and Slow Cooker Pork Loin)

I grew up in a family that loves to cook and eat. Both my parents loved to get busy in the kitchen - my Mama at one time ran a small canteen/kitchenette out of our house and my Papa would make his specialties whenever he would be home. They also both insisted in cooking dishes the traditional way (or how they were also taught by our grandparents, I guess). And this meant tedious preparation of ingredients, long hours of cooking and the need for additional hands in the kitchen.
Hence, I became a "sous chef" at the tender age of five.

My chores ran the gamut from grinding toasted rice and peanuts for the kare-kare (oxtail stew), shelling shrimps, flaking the smoked fish and pounding chicharon to fine bits for the pancit palabok sauce, peeling garlic cloves, to fanning the charcoal flames for the barbecue. As I got older, I was given "heavier" tasks - kneading the dough for the empanadas, sauteing, slicing...and the dreadful dishwashing post-cooking (a chore I often argued over with my other sisters!). Through it all, I watched and learned - and most importantly had fun.

There were no recipe cards to follow, no nifty gadgets like microwave ovens, stove top grillers or food processors to work with, no bouillon cubes or ready-made mixes for cooking shortcuts. But there was a lot of laughter, stories passed around, silly food fights and the occasional real fights (where my Mama would step in, handing us knives and calmly telling us to finish the fight and to call her so she'd know whom to bury - at which point we will look at each other, burst into tears and hug each other! Worked everytime, believe me).
And there's the wealth of wisdom and experience unconsciously, all but naturally being passed from one generation to another.

To me these are what wonderful and lasting memories are made of.

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Slow Cooker Pork Loin
I wanted to make my own version of Pork Asado and this was the closest I got to it. The ingredients are all pantry staples and best of all, you can put this baby in the crock pot in the morning and forget about it for the next 4-6 hours!

Ingredients:
1 boneless pork loin roast
1 cup plus 1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 piece star anise
1/2 tsp cinnamon
salt and pepper
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp butter

Prepare pork loin. Mix 1 cup brown sugar, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper and rub all over the pork loin. Pour water in the crock pot and lay down the pork loin. Drop the star anise in. Cover and cook (on LOW about 6 hours, on HIGH about 4 hours).
Mix together the remaining brown sugar, cinnamon and butter. Spread this on top of the pork loin for a nice, finishing glaze.
Serve with rice or roasted vegetables.

(Leftover tip: This is really good for pulled pork subs or tacos).