If you live in Utah or around Utah, then you know what Cafe Rio is. When I lived there for a year I fell in LOVE with their sweet pork salad, it’s amazing! Well I don’t live near Cafe Rio anymore, so I thought it was time to make my own version of the sweet pork salad and let me tell you, IT IS AWESOME!! Seriously one of the best meals that I have ever made. I made it for some friends on Saturday and then had it again for left overs on Mother’s Day and it was amazing both times. I made my own cilantro ranch dressing, pico de galo and cilantro lime rice. Everything put together was so great and all of them are really easy to make. The sweet pork recipe is a crock pot recipe and it only takes 3 INGREDIENTS! Are you hungry yet?? Well if you’re not yet, then hopefully you will be after reading this post :).
For the sweet pork, you will need:
2-3 pounds pork tenderloin or loin.
1 cup salsa (I used medium)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
Salt and pepper to taste (I put in a dash of onion and garlic powder too)
Cook in the crockpot on high for 4-6 hours. It depends on how much meat you use. I made a really big batch (about 6 pounds) and cooked it for 6 hours. And that’s it for the pork!
For the cilantro ranch dressing, this is what you’ll need:
1 ranch seasoning package (not buttermilk)
1 cup mayo
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 batch cilantro, stems removed
2-3 tomatillos, diced and unhusked
1 jalapeño, diced
1 clove garlic
Juice from 1 lime
Throw it all into a blender and blend it up. This stuff is awesome, I use it for regular salads too and it’s so yummy. And I figured that it’s about 55 calories per TBSP (just in case you’re counting calories like me).
For you the pico de galo, you will need:
6 roma tomatoes
1 red onion
1 batch of cilantro, stems removed
Juice from 2 limes
Salt to taste
Diced all the vegetables and then mix together into a bowl.
For the cilantro lime rice, you will need:
Rice, whatever amount you want to cook. I cooked 4 cups.
1 bay leaf
Cilantro, stems removed (the amount varies depending on how much rice you use, I used 1/2 a batch)
Juice from 1 lime
Kosher salt to the taste
When you boil your water, place the bay leaf into it and then remove it when you add the rice. Then add the rest of the ingredients once the rice is cooked.
Other toppings on that I put onto it:
Guacamole
Sour Cream
Tortilla strips
Black beans (refried beans are good too)
Cheese
Mixed Greens
I put the rice and beans onto a plate and then put the mixed greens onto them. Then I put on the pork and all the other toppings. And lastly I put on the dressing. It was amazing and I enjoyed every single bit of it (of course I ate the whole thing!).
Your mouth watering now??? Mine is!
Don’t want a salad? You could use these recipes and make an awesome sweet pork burrito (that’s what my husband did). It tastes amazing too!!
Joe and Cassie
Looks delicious!! I can't wait to try make it!! (I'm also looking forward to the next family reunion��