RECIPE: Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin in Barbecue Sauce

After a long simmer in a slow cooker, lean pork tenderloin shreds when sliced. Scoop up the pork with its hot-sweet sauce and serve plain, over baked potatoes or in a bun with coleslaw.

Ingredients:

¾ cup sweet and smoky barbecue sauce
¾ cup unsweetened apple juice
1 ½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
¼ teaspoon smoked hot paprika
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 (1 ½-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed of visible fat
1 garlic clove, smashed

Directions:

In a bowl, stir together barbecue sauce, apple juice, vinegar, sugar and paprika. Stir in onion. Rub pork tenderloin with garlic clove; discard leftover garlic.

Pour half the sauce into a 5-quart slow cooker. Top with pork tenderloin. Pour remaining sauce over pork.

Cover. Cook at low setting for 5 to 6 hours. (Meat thermometer inserted into pork should read at least 145 degrees.) Remove pork from slow cooker, but don’t turn off slow cooker. Let pork rest for 3 minutes. Slice pork into ¼-inch thick slices. Meat will break into thick chunks. Return to slow cooker and let soak in the sauce for 3 to 5 minutes.

Serve pork with sauce.

Makes 6 servings

Nutritional Information:

PER SERVING (with sauce): 230 calories | 4 grams total fat | 26 grams protein | 19 grams carbohydrates | 72 milligrams cholesterol | 270 milligrams sodium

Aim for a barbecue sauce with less than 130 milligrams sodium per tablespoon.