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    Home | Recipes | Crock-Pot Recipes

    Crock Pot Pork and Sauerkraut Recipe

    Dated: December 22, 2019 Last Modified: December 15, 2022 by Sarah Mock Leave a Comment. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains affiliate links.

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    Pork and sauerkraut is my family's traditional New Year's meal meant to bring good luck in the New Year. This is my slow cooker pork and sauerkraut recipe that is cooked to perfection with a touch of sweetness with the addition of apples.

    If you don't have a crockpot you can make an oven roasted pork and sauerkraut recipe or even a sous vide pork and sauerkraut. There are benefits to each cooking method but the crockpot recipe is super simple and very much a set-it-and-forget-it type of meal. 

    Be sure to add Hoppin' John recipe aka Carolina beans and rice for an added bit of good luck in the New Year.

    Jump to:
    • 🍖 Ingredients:
    • 🍏 Do I have to use apples and onions in this recipe?
    • ♨️ Crock-pot instructions:
    • 🥗 What to serve with pork and sauerkraut
    • 📝 Frequently asked questions, answers and tips:
    • Should you sear the pork before placing it in the slow cooker?
    • 📄 Related Recipes
    • Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut

    🍖 Ingredients:

    • Pork loin
    • Sauerkraut
    • Granny Smith Apple (optional)
    • Onion (optional)
    • Olive oil
    • Salt & pepper
    Raw pork loin on a cutting board

    🍖 What cut of pork should be used?

    This is the great debate on New Year's Day. What cut of pork was used this year? Was it the pork loin roast or was it the bone in pork loin. Everyone has their favorite. The bone in will give you another layer of flavor but the boneless pork loin will be easier to carve. Pork tenderloin is not recommended because it will not hold up to the extended cook time in the oven. Save your tenderloin for your pork tenderloin lemon piccata. 

    🍏 Do I have to use apples and onions in this recipe?

    Apples and onions are completely optional in this recipe and my aunt is probably clutching her pearls right now for suggesting it but hear me out. By caramelizing onions and adding an apple to this recipe will add an element of sweetness to the sauerkraut, cutting the tartness.

    But if you are a sauerkraut purist, and love the tang of the kraut leave the apple and onion out. But if you are a newbie to pork and sauerkraut I suggest adding them.

    seared pork loin

    ♨️ Crock-pot instructions:

    pork and sauerkraut cooked in a slow cooker, brown and caramelized
    1. Pat the meat dry. 
    2. Place the meat, fat side up, into a screaming hot pan and sear for at least 4 minutes.
    3. Flip the meat to sear on all sides.
    4. Remove the pork and place in the slow cooker.
    5. Saute the onion and the apple in the pan.
    6. Deglaze the pan, scraping up the pork bits. pork and sauerkraut in a slow cooker
    7. Pour the apples, onions and deglaze into the crock pot along with the rest of the sauerkraut. 
    8. Cover and cook on low for 8-12 hours or on high for 5-7 hours. 
    9. Remove from the crock pot and place the pork and krout on a serving platter. Allow the meat to rest for 15 minutes before cutting to allow the juices to redistribute throughout the meat.

    ***If not using apples and onions in this recipe, still sear the pork and deglaze the pan with sauerkraut juice.

    🥗 What to serve with pork and sauerkraut

    Mom will have a few hot dogs and apple juice for the kids and some homemade applesauce made with granny smith apples because she knows the kids are not fans of the tangy sauerkraut. Kids know when all things sauerkraut have touched their food.

    For sure we will have corn from the freezer and Aunt Cindy will make Rhodes rolls, because they are so easy! Beyond a simple dish of wide egg noodles smothered in butter, the following are traditional sides you can serve with pork and sauerkraut. Here is the full list of what to serve with pork and sauerkraut.

    📝 Frequently asked questions, answers and tips:

    Should you sear the pork before placing it in the slow cooker?

    I recommend searing your pork before cooking it in your crockpot. By searing the meat you are caramelizing the outside of the roast giving it color along with flavoring. Be sure your pan is screaming hot before you place my meat face down in the pan.

    Do not move it or poke it for at least 4 minutes. You will know the meat is properly seared when you can easily flip it over with tongs without tugging too much on the meat to get it to release. 

    Why is the sauerkraut brown?

    The combination of the sugars from the apples, the caramelized onions and the heat of the crockpot will further caramelize the sauerkraut. I find it is sweeter and has less tang than other sauerkraut. If you like a bite to the sauerkraut, you can omit the apples and onions or you can add in fresh sauerkraut at the end.

    Canned or bagged sauerkraut?

    I suggest silver floss sauerkraut. It comes in a bag and is usually found in the meat department next to the pork or even in the refrigerator produce section. You are welcome to use canned sauerkraut but I wouldn't recommend it.
    You do you but if you are asking, I recommend the bagged sauerkraut. 

    More pork recipes:

    • Bacon Jam Recipe
    • Ham Pot Pie 
    • Crockpot Ham & Potato Soup
    • Copycat chipotle carnitas recipe

    Stay in touch with me through social media @ Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. Don't forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes!

    click to visit my amazon store front as an amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut square image

    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut

    Sarah Mock
    Pork and sauerkraut is my families traditional New Year's meal meant to bring good luck in the New Year. This is my slow cooker pork and sauerkraut recipe that is cooked to perfection with a touch of sweetness with the addition of apples.
    4.43 from 19 votes
    Pin Recipe Print Recipe
    Note From Sarah

    There is more to a recipe than just the recipe card. Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!

    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 10 hrs
    Additional Time 15 mins
    Total Time 10 hrs 30 mins
    Prevent your screen from going dark, toggle to button to the right to turn GREEN
    Course Crock-Pot Recipes
    Cuisine American
    Servings 6
    Calories 71 kcal

    HELPFUL KITCHEN TOOLS

    Crock-Pot 6-Quart

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 3-4 lb Pork loin
    • 2 pounds Sauerkraut
    • 1 Apple (optional)
    • 1 Onion (optional)
    • drizzle Olive oil
    • Salt & pepper (to taste)

    Instructions
     

    • Pat the meat dry and season with salt and fresh cracked pepper. 
    • Heat a heavy bottom pan to high on the stove top. Add a drizzle of olive oil.
    • Place the meat, fat side up, into the pan and sear for at least 4 minutes to get good caramelization on the surface.
    • Flip the meat to sear on all sides.
    • Remove the pork and place in the slow cooker.
    • Saute the onion and the apple in the pan until they start to take on color.
    • Use some of the liquid from the sauerkraut to deglaze the pan, scraping up the pork bits.
    • Pour the apples, onions and deglaze into the crock pot along with the rest of the sauerkraut. 
    • Cover and cook on low for 8-12 hours or on high for 5-7 hours.
    • Remove from the crock pot and place the pork and krout on a serving platter. Allow the meat to rest for 15 minutes before cutting to allow the juices to redistribute throughout the meat.

    Notes

    Use silver floss sauerkraut, found in the meat section of the grocery store.
    Bone in pork loin is another option for the boneless pork loin.
    If not using apples and onions in this recipe, still sear the pork and deglaze the pan with sauerkraut juice.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1Calories: 71kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 1049mgFiber: 5gSugar: 7g

    Nutrition Disclosure

    Nutritional facts are estimates and are provided as a courtesy to the reader. Please utilize your own brand nutritional values to double check against our estimates. Nutritional values are calculated via a third party. Changing ingredients, amounts or cooking technique will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.

    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    Sharing of this recipe to social media is both encouraged and appreciated. Please share the direct link back to the recipe. Copy/Pasting and/or screenshots of the recipe to any social media is strictly prohibited. Content and photographs are copyright protected. SavoringTheGood®

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    About Sarah Mock

    Sarah Mock is a classically trained Chef and graduate of Johnson & Wales University. A culinary blogger for 13 years Sarah helps the home cook prepare her recipes with professional results.

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    Sarah Mock is a classically trained Chef and graduate of Johnson & Wales University. A culinary blogger for 13 years Sarah helps the home cook prepare her recipes with professional results.
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