Slow Cooker Sweet & Sour Pork/Chicken

I LOVE CHINESE FOOD! Yummy! I am a huge fan of chinese food and I am always on the hunt for good healthy alternatives to having chinese takeout. I have been wanting to try out a healthier option of sweet and sour chicken or pork for a while but wasn't satisfied with many of the recipes I have found. This one seemed to be a good one so thought I would try it out. I do have to mention though, I did add red food colouring (just a few drops) to the mixture as my kids LOVE sweet and sour as well and mine just didn't have the "I was made in a chinese restaurant red colour" so I am trying to trick my kids a little bit here! This was a tip from my amazing BBQ man! Love you hunny!

I also must mention I did double this recipe as we have company coming over tonight so I hope that doesn't mess it up too much! Blessings and I will update later on how delicious (or lack of delicious) it was!

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds chicken (I used pork roast)

1 (16 ounce) can of pineapple chunks in syrup, drained and liquid reserved

1 (14 ounce) can low-sodium low fat chicken broth

1/4 cup vinegar

3 tablespoons brown sugar (or 1 and a 1/2 tablespoons Splenda brown sugar blend)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons reduced sodium soy sauce

1 large red bell pepper - cut into 1 inch chunks

1 medium onion - cut into 1 inch chunks

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup cold water

DIRECTIONS

1. Spray inside of crock pot with cooking spray (I personally am a huge fan of Reynolds slow cooker liners, so easy for clean up. http://www.reynoldspkg.com/reynoldskitchens/en/product.asp?prod_id=3200)

2. Place chicken or pork into slow cooker.

3. Combine pineapple juice, broth, vinegar, brown sugar, garlic and soy sauce in small saucepan.

4. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until sugar dissolves.

5. Pour mixture over meat.

6. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour.

7. Add pineapple chunks, onion and peppers. Cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low heat.

8. Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl and mix until smooth.

9. Add mixture to crock pot and stir to mix. Cover and cook on LOW for 30 minutes.

10. ENJOY!