• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
DadCooksDinner
  • Home
  • Rotisserie
  • Recipes
  • Tools
  • Books
  • Merch
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Books
  • Tools
  • Merch
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Books
    • Tools
    • Merch
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Weeknight dinner

    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut

    Published: Dec 30, 2010 · Modified: May 8, 2023 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 17 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut
    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut

    Pork and sauerkraut is a New Year's tradition in my wife's family. She remembers the tradition fondly.  Or at least, she does now.  When she was growing up, she wasn't a big fan.  (Sauerkraut?  Eeew!) Her grandma would always hound the kids to eat at least one strand of sauerkraut, "because it brings good luck in the new year". Needless to say, the grandkids weren't convinced.

    I grew up loving sauerkraut; I have fond memories of hot dog carts in downtown Cleveland, dogs loaded with everything, where the highlight was the sauerkraut. My love of these hot dogs was a turn-off to Diane when we were dating; she couldn't believe I loved those "smelly dogs" so much. I was thrilled with her family's New Year's sauerkraut tradition. I had to work on Diane, thought; she ate her sauerkraut out of obligation, not because she wanted to. Eventually I was able to find some sauerkraut recipes that she didn't hate. In fact...she kind of likes this one.
    3And! Now we I get to torture our kids with sauerkraut on New Years Eve. "Come on, kids, you have to eat one strand. Great Grandma Perchinske is watching you!"

    Jackie, Diane's sister, is hosting our New Year's Eve celebration this year. (Thank you, Jackie!)  She asked me for a slow cooker pork and sauerkraut recipe, so I sprang into action in my test kitchen.4My test kitchen is more commonly known as Tuesday night dinner. I loved the result; the key to this meal is the sauerkraut, flavored with bacon, spices, apples, and wine.

    Want to guarantee good luck in the new year? Have some pork and sauerkraut! You can only have one strand if you have to. But I'll bet, once you taste it, that you'll have more than that.

    Recipe: Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut

    Equipment

    • 6 quart or larger slow cooker (Crock Pot brand is fine, but I like my fancy one from All-Clad)
    Print
    clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon

    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut


    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 8 hours 20 minutes
    • Yield: 6-8 1x
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Description

    Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut recipe, perfect for a relaxed New Year's Day.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 8 ounces bacon, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
    • 2 pounds sauerkraut, drained and rinsed (I prefer bagged sauerkraut)
    • 1 pound new potatoes, scrubbed
    • 2 apples, cored and diced
    • 2 tablespoon brown sugar
    • 1 teaspoon thyme
    • ½ teaspoon coriander seed
    • ½ teaspoon whole peppercorns
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 3 pounds pork western ribs or pork country ribs
    • 3 teaspoons kosher salt
    • ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
    • 1 large onion, diced
    • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1 ½ cups Riesling or other dry white wine

    Instructions

    1. Brown the bacon: Put the bacon in a cold fry pan and turn the heat to medium. Cook, rendering the bacon fat and turning occasionally, until the bacon is browned and crispy, about ten minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan with a slotted spoon. Leave 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in the pan and discard the rest.
    2. Prep and layer ingredients in the crock pot: While the bacon is browning: Drain and rinse the sauerkraut, and place in the bottom of the slow cooker crock in an even layer. Scrub the new potatoes and put them in a ring against the outside edge of the crock. Core and dice the apples, and put them in the middle of the potatoes. Sprinkle the brown sugar, thyme, coriander seeds, peppercorns, and bay leaves into the crock. Sprinkle the pork with 3 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon ground pepper, then layer on top of the other ingredients in the pot. Put the browned bacon in the pot whenever it is ready; in my case it wound up on top of the apples.
    3. Saute the aromatics: When the bacon is done, add the diced onion and crushed garlic to the pan, then sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, scraping the browned bacon drippings into the onions, until the onion is starting to brown around the edges, about five minutes. (While the onion is cooking, continue with the layering the ingredients step if it is not done yet.) Add the wine to the pan and bring to a simmer. Scrape any remaining browned bits from the bottom of the pan, then pour the onion/garlic/wine mixture into the crock over the top of the pork.
    4. Slow cook the pork: Cover and cook on low heat for 8 hours or high heat for 4 hours.
    5. Plate and serve: Remove the pork ribs to a plate. Remove the potatoes with a slotted spoon, cut into quarters, and sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Remove the bay leaves and throw them away. Stir the ingredients left in the crock into the sauerkraut, then remove the sauerkraut to a serving platter using a slotted spoon. Ladle a cup or two of the liquid left in the crock over the sauerkraut, ribs and pork. Put the pork and potatoes on top of the platter of sauerkraut, and serve.
    • Prep Time: 20 minutes
    • Cook Time: 8 hours
    • Category: Slow Cooker
    • Cuisine: American

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @DadCooksDinner on Instagram and hashtag it #DadCooksDinner

    Brown the bacon
    Brown the bacon
    Layer the ingredients in the pot
    Layer the ingredients in the pot...
    ...and top with the pork.
    ...and top with the pork.
    Saute the onions, add the wine
    Saute the onions, add the wine
    Slow cooking
    Slow cooking
    Plate and serve
    Plate and serve

    Variations:

    • Pork Roast: Instead of the pork ribs, use a pork shoulder roast. Increase the cooking time to 10 hours on low or 5 hours on high.
    • Add smoked sausage: If you have a pound of kielbasa or smoked sausage, slice it and add it on top of the apples. You'll have bacon, smoked sausage, pork ribs, and sauerkraut. What could be better?
    • Use red wine instead of white wine: Red wine is common in German sauerkraut, so if that's all you have, go ahead and use it.

    Notes:

    • Riesling: Riesling comes in a variety of sweetness levels, from dry (no sweetness) to syrupy sweet (dessert wines). A dry to semi-sweet Riesling is my preference for this recipe. German Rieslings have their sweetness level as part of the name; look for halbtrocken (off-dry), or trocken (dry). Really, any inexpensive white wine that isn't too oaky will work. (The only wine I would avoid is cheap chardonnay, which tends to be heavy on the oak.)
    • Why a cheap white wine? Because about half a bottle goes into the slow cooker. I want to *drink* the good stuff, not cook it. If you're serving a crowd, get a cheap bottle for the pot, then some better wine for everyone to drink with the meal.

    What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.

    Related Posts:
    Slow Cooker Pork Pot Roast
    Instant Pot Pork and Sauerkraut

    *Enjoyed this post?  Want to help out DadCooksDinner?  Subscribe using your RSS reader or by Email, recommend DadCooksDinner to your friends, or buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site.  Thank you!

    More Weeknight dinner

    • Instant Pot meatball soup with carrots and farfalle pasta
      Instant Pot Meatball Soup (With Homemade or Frozen Meatballs)
    • A plate of cooked chicken thighs, with an Instant Pot and a jar of paprika
      Instant Pot Quick Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
    • A plate of fettuccine alfredo, sprinkled with red pepper flakes
      Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo
    • A bowl of chili mac topped with green onions and pickled jalapenos
      Instant Pot Chili Mac

    Sharing is caring!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      January 12, 2013 at 7:35 pm

      Good tips - thank you!

      Reply
    2. Werner Oderwer says

      January 12, 2013 at 6:20 pm

      One more from Montreal: I always use for meat smoked sausage, polish sausage, smoked pork chops (Kassler) and smoked pork ribs as meat

      Reply
    « Older Comments

    Questions? Made the Recipe? Leave a Comment Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome to Dad Cooks Dinner! I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Three bowls of cooked Pinto Beans on a wood table
      Instant Pot Pinto Beans (No Soaking)
    • Pressure Cooker Beef Shank (Osso Bucco)
    • Pressure Cooker 7 Hour Leg of Lamb (in 90 minutes)
      Pressure Cooker 7 Hour Leg of Lamb (in 90 minutes)
    • Pressure Cooker Brown Jasmine Rice

    Recent

    • Cast iron skillet with a spiral of potatoes
      Cast Iron Spiral Skillet Potatoes
    • Instant pot pulled pork sandwich with barbecue sauce
      Instant Pot Pulled Pork
    • A plate of sauerkraut and pork ribs with mustard
      Instant Pot Pork and Sauerkraut
    • A bowl of Instant Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta
      Instant Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta (Creamy Alfredo style)

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    Copyright © 2022 Dad Cooks Dinner

    227 shares
    • 16