Slow Cooker Lechon made easy in the crockpot! Moist and juicy on the inside and golden and crunchy on the outside, it’s easy and convenient weeknight dinner or party dish everyone will love!
Lechon kawali is my favorite comfort food ever, just the sight of these crunchy morsels is enough to make my Filipina heart go pitter patter!
But as much as I love this Pinoy delicacy with all my foodie heart, I don’t make it at home as often as I’d like. The simmering, the cooling, the deep-frying, who has time for that? And don’t get me started about all that hot oil splattering all over the kitchen!
Now, I have found lechon sa hurno as a better alternative but even that comes with an inconvenience. Who wants to tie up the oven for five long hours? The last thing I want especially in the horrendous heat of hot summer months is to have my oven humming all day long to roast one lonely slab of meat.
So how to satisfy cravings for crispy pork without a whole lot of work? Slow cooker lechon is your newfound answer!
What inspired this recipe technique? One of G’s favorite foods is Mexican carnitas, a deep-fried slab of pork butt much like our lechon kawali. Instead of deep-frying the meat in a vat of sizzling lard, I like to cook it in the crockpot until tender and then finish it off in the oven on high heat until beautifully golden and crisp.
I was prepping one the other day when it got me thinking this might work on lechon as well and work it did! Just look at that gorgeous crackled skin below!
Trust me, my peeps, it can’t get easier than making lechon kawali in the slow cooker. All you do is generously season the meat, place it in the crockpot with NO liquids added, and allow it to cook while you go about your daily chores. When tender, arrange the pork on a roasting pan (in my case, a cookie rack set over a foil-lined pan) to finish off on high heat in the oven until golden and crunchy.
Tips on How to Make Slow Cooker Lechon:
- You can use boneless belly or with ribs. Just have the butcher cut through the bones of the belly to make it easier to chop to serving pieces.
- DO NOT add liquids! Don’t panic, have faith. The pork is not going to burn or dry out, it will release its own juices as it slow cooks in the crockpot.
- A major battle in lechon making is keeping the meat tender and succulent. Make sure to cook in the slow cooker until tender but not falling apart.
- Roast the tender pork on a wire rack so it’s elevated by a few inches to allow the heat to circulate around the pork and crisp it all over.
- Let the roast pork stand for about 10 minutes before cutting to pieces so the juices will redistribute and keep the meat moist and flavorful.
Enjoy crispy lechon this Christmas season! Golden and crunchy on the outside yet moist and juicy on the inside, it’s the perfect weeknight dinner or holiday dish family and guests are sure to love. For a recipe this super easy, albeit taking a few hours, you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
Slow Cooker Lechon made easy in the crockpot! Moist and juicy on the inside and golden and crunchy on the outside, it's easy and convenient weeknight dinner the whole family will love.
- 3 pounds pork belly with ribs
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
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Season pork with salt, pepper and garlic powder, massaging all over the meat.
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Place meat in the slow cooker (NO LIQUIDS) and cook on low for about 7 to 8 hours or until tender but not falling apart.
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Remove pork from the slow cooker and arrange on a roasting pan or rack. Bake in a 430 F oven for about 30 to 40 minutes or until skin is golden and blistered.
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Remove from heat. Skin will crisp as it cools. Let stand for about 5 to 10 minutes before cutting.
Tried this recipe with 2 slabs of fresh pork belly on top of each other, following the recipe to the letter with one slab (finishing to crisp in the oven while still hot), and it turned out perfect. I saved the 2nd slab to cool in the fridge and crisp in the hot oven tomorrow and see if there’s a difference.
Thanks so much, Lalaine for making out lives easier. 🙂 I’ve been making your Lechon sa Hurno with great success, but I think this is my new favorite method. Frees up the oven too for baking deserts and sides. Thanks so much again!
Thank you so much, Minda, for the feedback. I’ve never tried doing more than one slab at a time and good to know they’ll cook ok. Please let me know how the cooled one turns out! Happy holidays 🙂
Hi Lalaine. I was wondering if you tried the new air fryer for the lechon. It does well with frozen eggrolls.
My daughter just got me an air fryer for Christmas, I haven’t opened the box yet but I am excited to try it with lechon definitely the first on the list 🙂
HI Lalaine, was wondering if this would work as well if I use whole chicken instead for pork
Hi Lalaine, you think this will work as well if I use chicken instead of pork?
I’ve never tried making a “lechon-style” chicken but I often cook a whole chicken in the slow cooker. It comes super tender but the skin is not crisp. Maybe broiling the chicken after slow cooking might help to brown and crisp the skin.
Will it be OK to layer two pork belly on top of each other while cooking it in the crockpot? Thanks much!
Hello Kae,
I usually just cook one large enough to fit in the slow cooker but two at the same time might work.
We made it and it’s good. Thanks for posting the recipe.
Thanks for the feedback, Maan. Glad you enjoyed the lechon.
Is it ok to use frozen meat in the slow cooker?
I’ve never really tried using frozen meat for this lechon and I wouldn’t recommend it. For one thing, it will take forever to cook especially in a slow cooker.
Hi Lalaine,
Do you place the meat in the slow cooker fat side up or fat side down?
Hello Jay,
I put it the skin side up. The fat cap helps keep the meat moist as it “melt” in the slow cooker.
Hi Lalaine, just wanted to let you know I tried your recipe and it came out delicious!
I put the pork belly in the slow cooker before I left for work set it for 7 hrs. Come back from work 10 hrs later with lots of pork juices.
Baked it in the oven while I get the veggies ready … Viola … Dinner is ready within 10 minutes!
Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Yay for easy weeknight dinners 🙂
Hi, Lalaine! Instead of oven, may I use an air fryer instead?
I’ve never tried it in an air fryer but I’m pretty sure it would work. I’ve done this in a turbo before and had great results.
Do you think that I can do this recipe in a pressure cooker? I’m going to try.
Hello Cal,
Yes, it would work. 🙂
Any idea how long it will take to cook in the pressure cooker? Just got an instant pot, and would love to try it!
I haven’t really tried cooking this in a pressure cooker but I think 20 to 30 minutes would be a good bet as you want the meat tender but not falling apart. Here is an instant pot time chart you might find helpful http://instantpot.com/cooking-time/meat-poultry-beef-pork-and-lamb/
can you use the pork belly without the ribs as I have never seen pork belly with ribs in our area.
Hello Ken,
Yes, without ribs will be fine. 🙂
Followed this recipe to impress my Filipina wife. Worked like a charm-she said it was the best she’d ever had!
Thanks for posting.
I am glad she like it. Cooking lechon in the slow cooker is a lot easier and more convenient than the traditional boiling and frying 🙂
Thank you for this recipe Ms Lalaine! Can i put it at low then high if i want to cut time with th slow cooker? Thank You Lowwen
hello Lowwen
You can set the slow cooker on high or low depending on how much time you have. I usually do mine on low because I have on overnight or when I am at out the whole day. If you want to cut on time, set it on high for about 4 to 5 hours. 🙂
I just cooked this tonight, oh boy, it was so yummy, earned some brownie points from my two boys (one f them is hubby).
Hello Chat
I am glad the hubby and kids enjoyed it. Super yummy talaga ang crispy skin!
Wow I’m drooling right now, I wanted to dry this so I could incorporate flavors that exactly right on my taste, I love the taste of garlic so I’m gonna pouring a lot of it. Thanks Ms. Lalaine, your pix looks so delicious, so crunchy balat hehehe
You’re welcome, Bernadette. I hope you enjoy it, very addicting talaga yung balat 🙂
I don’t have an oven but can I use turbo broiler to crisp up the skin instead? thanks! 🙂
Yes, I think the turbo will be fine. Just adjust the cook time as it’s more powerful than a conventional oven. 🙂
Somehow, I’m afraid to leave the pork in the slow cooker w/o liquid while I go to bed overnight. At the back of my mind, it might burn or I might burn the house, hehe…
Hello Ela
Trust me, this would work, just set it on low. 🙂 I placed mine at midnight and went to bed. It was ready by the time I got up. You’ll actually end up with a pool of liquid once the pork is done, a lot of fat extracted from the pork belly.