Crockpot Chinese hamburger/Kong bak pau

Serves 4

3-4 pieces pork belly,  1-1.5 cm thick
4 cloves garlic
2 slices ginger
3 tablespoons dark soy
3 tablespoons light soy
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Splash of tsao tsing wine
1/4 teaspoon Chinese black vinegar
3 cloves
1 star anise
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five spice

1 tablespoon sugar or honey
Enough water to cover pork

To serve:
6-8 white buns
Coriander leaves to garnish

1. Combine all ingredients except the pork and water.

2. Add pork and enough water to cover the meat.

3. Transfer to slow cooker and set it to Auto for 2-3 hours.

4. Steam buns in a steamer or microwave just before serving.

5. Slice pork into square pieces to fit in between the buns.

6. Serve with fresh coriander leaves and extra sauce. 

Crockpot Pulled Pork

Serves 4-6

1 large white onion, sliced thin
1 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
350 - 400g boneless pork butt or shoulder
¼ + ½ of the quarter cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
¾  teaspoons sugar
¼  teaspoons dijon mustard
2-3 crushed garlic cloves
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons soy + 4 tablespoons water

Extra
Sugar
Salt
Vinegar
Cayenne

1. Rinse pork roast under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

2. Place onions in crock-pot. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, paprika, kosher salt and pepper; mix thoroughly. Rub mixture all over roast and place the roast on top of the onions.

3. In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, Worcestershire, red pepper flakes, sugar, mustard, garlic salt and cayenne pepper; whisk to combine. Drizzle about 1/3 of vinegar mixture over roast and soy + water mix. Cover and refrigerate remaining vinegar mixture.

4. Cover crockpot; cook on low for 6-7 hours.

5. Remove meat and onions; drain. Chop or shred meat and onions and mix with extra sugar, salt, vinegar & cayenne.

6. Place the chopped meat back into the pot to keep warm and drizzle about the rest of reserved vinegar mixture over the meat.

7. Serve with coleslaw in a hamburger bun.

* This is adapted from My Baking Addiction. I wasn't over the moon about this recipe but it still tasted good. Will have to experiment more. 

Crockpot Singapore chicken curry

Serves 4

Chicken & marinade:
4 chicken drumsticks and 4 chicken thighs (you can add one more of each for the super hungry ones)
4-5 local potatoes, peeled and halved
1 tablespoon or about 1 inch knob grated fresh old ginger
5 cloves grated garlic
1 tablespoon turmeric
2 tablespoon chili powder
230g can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chicken curry powder
pinch of salt and ground white pepper

2 medium red onion, sliced
1-2 teaspoons peanut oil
1-3 red chili padis, chopped (1 for mild, 2 for medium, 3 for very spicy)
4 green cardamon pods, do not crush
4 cloves
12 curry leaves or about 1 stalk
1 stalk lemongrass, bruised
1 1-inch cinnnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 cups water
200 - 250ml coconut milk
2-3 dessert spoons soy sauce

- 1 french loaf, sliced.

1. Marinade the chicken pieces and potato in the marinade. Let it sit while you prepare the rest.

2. Slice the onions and heat the oil in a wok or pan. Saute the onions till they’re very soft, caramalised and brown, about 15-20 minutes, on medium to high heat. If onions begin to burn, add 1-2 tablespoons of water and continue cooking till they're brown and soft. (You can skip this step and just add the onions raw if you're pressed for time!)

3. Add chili padi, cardamon, cloves, curry leaves, lemongrass, cinnamon, fennel and caramalised onions into the crock pot. Add the chicken pieces with marinade and 2 cups of water. Stir to combine.

4. Set cooker on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

5. In the last hour of cooking, add the coconut milk and soy sauce to taste. Add as much coconut milk as you like. Some people like it more coconutty, some more brothy. Up to you!

6. Serve with sliced french bread.

* I adapted this recipe from Curry and Comfort. I found the cooking time makes for a very very very soft and tender chicken that's falling off the bone. If you want your chicken to still have some firmness to it, cut down the cooking time by 1 hour on high and 2 hours on low. If you do cut down the cooking time, then remember to cut the potatoes slightly smaller.

* To save more time, you can skip step 2 and just add the onions straight into the crockpot and omit the peanut oil.

* If you have some spare chicken bones (thigh, drumstick, whole carcass), or even chicken feet and neck, chuck them in. Bones make the brother sweeter. Before serving, just fish them out.