Pork Curry

A simple Thai style Pork Curry made in the slow cooker. This recipe features pork loin, green beans, red pepper and mango.

What is pork curry?

Curry is actually a word popularized by colonizers to simplify what they saw as “foreign” cuisine. So the word curry can mean a lot of different things. Southeast Asian food relies on a curry paste with ingredients like red chili peppers, garlic and lemongrass for flavor. Indian cuisine uses a curry powder with lots of spices like turmeric, coriander leaves and cumin seeds.

My pork curry is not authentic but it is delicious! I simply combine Thai flavors that I enjoy along with fresh ingredients, both sweet and savory, to make a flavorful meal. Pork is not as often consumed in India because their most practiced religions have dietary laws and traditions that don’t allow for eating pork. But pork, beef and chicken are all good choices for a Thai style curry. And so because of this, and because I have more often eaten Thai style food than Indian, I chose to develop a recipe for Pork Curry with Thai flavorings.

Why this recipe works

This Slow Cooker Pork Curry is a complete meal. The sauce thickens as it cooks thanks to my unique method of using a microwave roux to create the foundation for the sauce. This curry is very flavorful but it is mild in taste. If you prefer a spicier curry, consider adding a quarter teaspoon (or more if you can handle the heat) of cayenne pepper (or similar ground chillies) to the sauce.

The pork becomes fall apart tender as it cooks. The sauce is a lovely mix of flavors with the curry paste, peanut butter and fish sauce. The frozen mango provides delicate sweetness for balance. And the green beans and red pepper provide color and nutrients.

Ingredients for pork thai curry

• Pork Loin – Cut the pork into about 1 inch pieces.
• Frozen Green Beans – use cut green beans so they are bite-sized.
• Frozen Mango – use frozen mango cut into chunks.
• Red Pepper – cut the red pepper into about the same size pieces as the mango.
• Flour – helps to thicken the sauce as it cooks.
• Butter – adds flavor and microwaved together with the flour it makes a roux to help thicken the curry sauce. You could use vegetable oil for the butter instead.
• Vegetable Broth – provides a neutral base for adding the strong flavors of the rest of the sauce ingredients. You could use half white wine and half vegetable broth if you prefer. If you’d like a creamier sauce, use half vegetable broth and half coconut milk.
• Shallot – finely chopped. You can use onions instead of shallot if you prefer.
• Garlic – two or three cloves pressed through a garlic press.
• Ginger – here’s a guide for how to prepare fresh ginger.
• Red Curry Paste – I use this brand because it is the easiest for me to find.
• Fish Sauce – it provides a nice depth of umami flavor to the sauce but you can omit it or substitute one tablespoon of Worcestershire or soy sauce instead.
• Peanut Butter – I love the addition of peanut butter to a Thai style sauce for the flavor and texture that it adds.
• Salt – a little salt helps to round out all of the other flavors.
• Lime, Yogurt, Cilantro – for garnish and extra flavor before serving. You could also garnish this dish with some chopped tomato.

Instructions for making pork curry

1. Cut the pork into chunks. Dump it along with the green beans, mango and red pepper mixture into the slow cooker insert.
2. Prepare the shallot, garlic and ginger.
3. Make the microwave roux. Whisk in the rest of the sauce ingredients – vegetable broth through salt.
4. Pour the curry sauce over the pork, vegetables and mango.
5. Cook on LOW power for about 8 hours, or until the pork is fall apart tender and the sauce has thickened.
6. Serve the pork curry with a side of rice and garnished with lime, plain yogurt and cilantro.

What is the best cut of pork for stews and curries?

I use a pork loin for this recipe. It has a little fat. But there’s fat from the butter and peanut butter in the sauce. So I prefer to use a cut of pork that is a little bit leaner. You could use pork tenderloins as well. But for this recipe, I would not use a pork shoulder roast or other fatty cut like pork belly. The low, slow heat of a Crock-Pot will make the pork loin or tenderloins very tender by the time it is finished cooking.

Serving suggestions

• I like using these Ready Rice packages for convenience. Here’s my recipe for How to Cook Rice to make your own instead.
• If you are following a low-carb diet, serve the pork curry with a side of cauliflower rice.
• Thai Roti Bread
• Thai Cucumber Salad
• Grilled Pineapple

Storage directions

Store the pork curry (without any rice mixed into it) in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat it in the microwave to serve. I have not tried freezing this recipe yet, but I think it would freeze well. Don’t freeze any freshly cooked food for longer than one month. And always keep it sealed in an airtight container. When ready to eat, put the frozen food in the refrigerator to thaw overnight before proceeding with reheating instructions.

Kitchen tools

• I use a 6-quart Crock-Pot to test all of my slow cooker recipes here at Foodtastic Mom
• Always use an instant read digital meat thermometer to check the temperature of your meat. Pork needs to be a minimum of 145 degrees F for safe consumption.
• This is my favorite garlic press.
• These are my favorite colorful serving bowls.

More pork recipes

• Pork Stroganoff
• Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut
• BBQ Mac and Cheese
• Pulled Pork Tacos
• Pork Stew

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