Brazilian Pork Stew

Tender braised pork stewed with tomatoes, black beans, sweet potato and warm spices in a rich gravy.  This dish was inspired by the cuisine of Brazil

Brazilian cooking is about keeping things fairly simple but getting great flavors with good quality ingredients and spices

We are using our Instant Pot as a slow cooker

The Instant Pot allows you to sear or saute food in it before you slow cook, so if you don’t have an Instant Pot just sear in a pan and then add to your slow cooker

We are starting off with around 3 pounds of pork stew meat which we are going to sprinkle with kosher salt and ground black pepper

Put your Instant Pot in saute mode and add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil

Brown the pork in batches to avoid over crowding them

Brown on all sides

Don’t worry if there are brown bits stuck in the pot

When we add liquids they will break up and add to the great flavor of the stew

Remove the pork and set aside

Repeat until all the pork has been browned

Add some more olive oil to the pot

Next we will need 1 large onion peeled and chopped, 2 celery stalks chopped, 3 chopped garlic cloves, 1 chopped serrano pepper (seeds removed) and 3 bay leaves

Add these into the pot and cook 4-6 minutes

Next are the spices

This is where the stew gets its warm comforting flavors from

We will need 1 tablespoon of cocoa, 1 tablespoon of chili powder, 1 tablespoon of dry oregano, 1 tablespoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

Stir the spices into the veggies and allow to cook for 2-4 minutes to toast them and release their aromatics

We’ll need 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of Gravy Master and 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar

Add these to the pot and allow to bubble up

Stir, scraping up any bits off of the bottom

We’ll also need one 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes and the zest of 1 orange

Add the tomatoes and zest to the pot

Stir these in again scraping up any bits from the bottom of the pot

Add the pork back in along with any juices that may have gathered

Stir to incorporate

Set your Instant Pot from saute to slow cook, on high and the timer for 2 hours and 30 minutes

If using the pressure cooker lid ensure you have the knob turned to “Venting” so it acts like a slow cooker

We are using the glass slow cooker lid

Since this is such a rich stew with many warm flavors from the spices, we feel it needs a little brightness to bring it to the next level

For this we are going to make a quick onion pickle

We will need 1 red onion peeled and very thinly sliced, 1/2 cup of orange juice, 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 1 chopped serrano pepper (seeds removed) and the zest from 1 orange

Layer the onions, peppers and zest in a jar

Here is a top view

Why you might ask?

Just because I liked it

Add the vinegar into the jar

Next add in the orange juice

Cover the jar with a lid and give it a good shake every once in awhile

You can also turn it upside down a couple times too, just make sure the lid is good and tight

The onions will actually really settle down into the jar when they are pickled

Okay, enough about pickles

Let’s get back to the stew

Next we will need 1 large sweet potato that has been peeled and chopped into even pieces

You can also use 2 smaller sweet potatoes

After the 2 hour and 30 minute mark, open up the slow cooker

Already looking rich and delicious

Things can only go up hill from here

Add the sweet potatoes to the pot

Mix to incorporate

Cover and set the pot for slow cooker on high for 30 minutes

While that’s cooking, let’s get the next ingredients

We will need one 15.5 ounce can of black beans drained and rinsed and one red bell that has been chopped

After the 30 minute mark add in the beans and peppers

Stir to incorporate

Cover and cook on high for another 20-30 minutes or until the sweet potatoes have softened and the bell peppers are slightly soft

Remove and discard the 3 bay leaves

Though you can certainly serve this over rice we chose to toast some flour tortillas over our stove top and just have them on the side

Ladle a nice amount of this great stew into a bowl and be sure to top it with some of those delicious pickled onions!

Enjoy!!!

Tools used to make this recipe

Architec Carving Board, Gripperwood

Instant Pot IP-DUO60 7-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker, 6qt/1000W, Latest 3rd Generation Technology, Stainless Steel Cooking Pot and Exterior

Mini Prep Glass Bowl

Pyrex Mixing Bowl

Pyrex Prepware 1-Cup Measuring Cup

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