Pork and Onion Soup (4 Ingredients). This is a secret that was offered by my mother-in-law to ensure that meat does not dry out. And it was just 4 ingredients wrapped up in heavy duty foil all afternoon.
This onion soup pork roast in slow cooker is one of those simple yet home cooked dishes that my Midwestern family orders when they are stressed, whether in very busy weeks or on Sundays. The clue was my mother-in-law: wrap the pork up in hefty foil with a few pantry housewife items to ensure that it bastes in its own juices and does not dry up. By cooking slowly and low, the onion soup mix and a small amount of cream of mushroom soup becomes an extra thick and savory gravy that can be spooned directly over the pliant slices.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- Roast pork shoulder or pork butt without any extra fat → 1 (3-4 pound)
- Dry onion soup mix → 1 (1-ounce) packet
- Cream of mushroom soup (thick kind) → 1 small can (10.5 ounces)
- Water → 1/2 cup
Pork and Onion Soup: Directions
- Preparing the slow cooker: Make sure you have lined the bottom of your slow cooker with a large sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil (or two sheets, overlapped) and press it into the bottom to get a good lining of the inside of the cooker. You desire a large foil pocket into which you are going to stuff the meat.
- Season the roast: Lay the pork roast in the foil in the middle with the fat side up should the roast have a fat cap. Sprinkle the roast with the dry onion soup mix all around the top and sides and press it a little, so that it adheres.
- Prepare the gravy base: Add the condensed cream of mushroom soup together with the water in a small bowl and mix until the mixture is largely smooth. Pour this mixture over the top of the roast so that it falls down the sides coating the meat well.
- Close foil packet: Hold the long sides of the foil and wrap them over the roast and close it by folding them a couple of times. Then roll and pinch up the ends in order to make no liquid run away. A tight foil packet containing the roast should be fully placed in the slow cooker.
- Slow cook: Set the lid on top of the slow cooker. Bake on LOW 8-10 hours or on HIGH 4-5 hours or until the pork is extremely tender and falls to pieces with a fork. Avoid opening the slow cooker during cooking to ensure that the heat and moisture remain in the cooker.
- Serve and finish: Open the foil packet carefully (be careful of the hot steam). It should be browned on the top of the pork and it should be covered with a rich onion gravy. Take the roast out and put it on a board. Cut it into small pieces or pull it apart with a fork. Pour the gravy and juices into the foil. Then use a spoon to put the onion gravy on top of the pork. Ready to eat and serve with your favorite sides, pouring the additional gravy in the foil packet over it.
Variations & Tips
Picky eaters may want to use cream of chicken soup in the place of cream of mushroom in order to have a lighter flavor and a smooth gravy. Increase the amount of water to 3/4 cup in place of 1/2 cup in case your family prefers an abundance of sauce, or pour in a spoonful of sour cream after cooking to make the gravy have more of a creamy substance. Instead of using a pork shoulder, you can use a leaner pork loin roast, only make sure that it is cooked beforehand a little sooner and then wrapt tightly in foil to keep it moist. To add some sweetness, pour 1-2 tablespoons of brown sugar on the roast then place the soup mixture. Add a sliced onion on top of the roast in a thin slice towards the end of the cooking – before you seal the foil (this will not alter the basic 4-ingredient version; consider it an add-on). The trick to cutting down on salt is to use a low sodium onion soup mix and a low sodium condensed soup and then taste the prepared gravy before adding any additional seasoning. Reheating Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop; simply keep the pork in its gravy to keep it juicy.