¡HAPPY CINCO DE PORKO, mis amigos!

WOWZA, is our dinner going to be delish! All we did was season a pork shoulder liberally with salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, and granulated garlic, then browned it all over in a large skillet with a little olive oil. Then we threw it in the crock pot with two jars of Herdez salsa verde, and cooked it on high for about four hours (6-8 hours on low would work fine, too). It's not quite done yet...just turned it down to low and snuck a taste. SO YUMMY! When the meat is tender, I will shred it by hand and add it back to the liquid in the pot.

And in yet another crock pot, I'm cooking some small but sturdy Rancho Gordo Santa Maria Pinquito Beans in the traditional (but quicker) method: clean the beans, cover with about three inches of water, bring to a boil, turn off the heat and let soak for an hour. In the meantime, sauté some aromatics like an onion, a few stalks of celery, several cloves of garlic, and--in this case--a couple/few jalapenos in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Add the sautéed veggies to the crock pot, then the (drained) beans, and enough chicken or vegetable stock to cover by a couple of inches. Throw in a tablespoon of dried Mexican oregano, a teaspoon of black pepper, and a couple of bay leaves. Cover and cook for 3-4 hours on high, or 6-8 hours on low.

The beans should be ready about the same time as the chili verde pork.
Then serve the beans and pork in warm tortillas with your favorite taco/burrito toppings. ¡OLÉ!