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Preserve

Crockpot Tex-Mex Pork Stew

A slow‑cooked pork stew with onions, garlic, cornmeal, chili beans, tomatoes, and corn in a crockpot.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 12 ingredients
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Why it works: Cumin and oregano match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 983 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Crockpot Tex-Mex Pork Stew

Time8–10 hours on low

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. In a 5‑6 quart crockpot, mix together onion and garlic.

  2. Cut pork into 1‑1/2" cubes and place on top of onions.

  3. In a small bowl, mix cornmeal, salt, pepper, cumin, and oregano.

  4. Sprinkle the mixture over the pork cubes and mix to coat.

Cook

  1. Add undrained chili beans, undrained tomatoes, and chicken broth to the pork mixture.

  2. Cover the crockpot and cook on low for 8–10 hours or until the pork is thoroughly cooked.

  3. Add corn, cover the crockpot, and cook on high for 15–20 minutes or until the stew is thoroughly heated.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

581Calories
64 gProtein
20 gFat
38 gCarbs

Counts 11 of 14 ingredients. The other 3 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 11 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Pork100g cooked242
Chicken100g cooked165
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Cumin1 tsp ground (2.1g)8
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Seednot in our table0
Beannot in our table0
Saucenot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cumin + oreganotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together983 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Cumin + beanstop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,188 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  3. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  4. Garlic + cumintop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,082 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + oreganotop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Pork top loin
Provides the main protein, which becomes tender as it cooks slowly in liquid.
Cornmeal
Coats the pork and thickens the stew liquid as it cooks.
Chili beans
Add body, starch and savory flavor to the stew.
Diced tomatoes
Add acidity and liquid that builds the stew's flavor base.
Chicken broth
Supplies the cooking liquid that moistens and flavors the stew.
Frozen corn
Adds sweetness and texture, heated through at the end.

The step that matters

Adding the corn and finishing on high. Corn only needs to be heated through, so a short time on high prevents it from turning mushy while keeping the stew's texture intact.

Swap the white pepper

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (onion, clove, garlic, pork, cumin, oregano, beans):

  1. Thymefits better
  2. Turmericfits better
  3. Rosemaryfits better
  4. White pepperthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against onion, clove, garlic, pork, cumin, oregano, beans. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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