Nolechek’s Smoky Slow-Cooker Comfort Food Recipes
There's a lot to love about slow-cooker cooking. If you play your culinary cards right, you can make an entire meal in one simmering pot. That means you can focus on curling up in front of the fire with a good book instead of spending hours in the kitchen. That also means that clean-up is a breeze. Here are three of our favorite simple slow-cooker dinner ideas:
Sauerkraut and Polish Sausage
A Midwestern weeknight classic with a hint of our signature hickory smoke…and it doesn't get much easier than a four-ingredient meal!
The recipe for sauerkraut and our Wisconsin-made Polish Sausage includes:
1 20 oz. can sauerkraut
1/4 C. brown sugar*
1 1/2 lbs. Nolechek's Hickory Smoked Polish Sausage
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
Stir the brown sugar and sauerkraut together in your slow cooker and then place your Nolechek’s Polish Sausage links and onion slices on top of the mixture. Cook on high for two hours, checking for dryness occasionally and added a bit of water, if necessary. Following the first two hours of cooking on high, cook on low for two hours and you’re all set; you have a hearty and delicious dinner ready to serve.
*Feel free to omit the sugar to keep things low-carb or if you prefer a tangier dish!
Warm, Smoky Honey Cured Ham
Speaking of an easy dinner, slow-cooker glazed ham is another time-saving option that also makes for an impressive, cozy meal. Start with Nolechek's Hickory Smoked Semi-Boneless Ham, which is fully cooked and isn’t a water-added ham; just good hickory smoked, honey cured meat, crafted right here in our family’s smokehouse! You don't have to worry about a dry ham, since our hams are already succulent and slow-cooking seals in the moisture.
Set your slow cooker on warm and cook your ham for approximately 5-6 hours until it's thoroughly heated. Pair your ham with a garden salad and dinner rolls and you have a complete meal prepared.
Savory Smoked Pork Chops
The trick to delicious smoked pork chops is choosing a quality cut and ensuring your meat stays tender and moist. Nolechek's Hickory Smoked Pork Chops are center cut and 1 inch thick and, like all of our meat products, known for quality and flavor. They’re also pre-cooked in our smokehouse, so all they need is a gentle warming to bring out their robust, smoky flavor.
Everyone loves pork chops and applesauce, but we’ll take it up a notch with this:
4 Nolechek’s Hickory Smoked Pork Chops
2/3 C. water
3 C. diced apples
2 Tbsp. brown sugar or 3 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. cinnamon
Salt & pepper to taste
Place the Nolechek’s Hickory Smoked Pork Chops in the bottom of the slow cooker and add 2/3 cup of water. In a medium bowl, mix diced apples, brown sugar (or maple syrup), apple cider vinegar, and cinnamon until apples are coated. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker and turn the temperature to low. Cook for 4-5 hours or until apples are tender. Salt and pepper to taste and serve with fresh, steamed green beans and a good loaf of crusty bread with butter.
Taking time to cook a meal can be tough, these days, and we hope that you try some of our tasty and time-saving slow cooker dinner ideas – and that maybe we’ve reminded you of an old Wisconsin favorite (excuse us while we load the slow cooker with kraut and good Polish sausage…).
Happy Winter Dining!
- Nolechek’s Meats
