The classic Filipino stew, Menudo, is made with ground meat for a flavorful dish made easily in the slow cooker! Loaded with vegetables and simmered in a perfectly seasoned tomato sauce the whole family will enjoy this!

It’s been a while since I posted a Filipino recipe so I thought that I will share one today. This is one of my family’s favorites. It’s a staple in our house because it’s pretty easy to make and always comes out flavorful.
I’ve been making this for many years as this dish has always been in my recipe vault, as it were. It may be, as my husband would say “A classic from the attic or a spin from the bin” but the taste and flavors in this dish are timeless! 🙂

Instead of the usual pork chunks used in the regular Menudo, here I used ground pork – they cook quicker and absorb the flavors in less time. Apart from the meat, pretty much all of the usual Menudo ingredients are present…
Well, I added some boiled eggs but these are not part of the actual recipe so feel free to omit them. They are a good accompaniment though so I often add these when I make the ground pork or beef menudo version.

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Slow Cooker Ground Pork and Beef Menudo
The classic Filipino stew, Menudo, is made with ground meat for a flavorful dish made easily in the slow cooker! Loaded with vegetables and simmered in a perfectly seasoned tomato sauce the whole family will enjoy this!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 lb ground Pork or ground Beef
- 1 tsp Salt
- 8 Garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large Onion chopped
- 4 Plum tomatoes, diced
- 3 tbsp Fish sauce
- 1 cup Beef broth beef broth
- 3 red skin Potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 Carrots, peeled and diced the size same as potatoes
- 1/2 Ketchup or Tomato Sauce, (see notes)
- 1 red Bell Pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 cup Raisins
- A little brown sugar, to taste (optional)
Instructions
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Heat the oil in a deep pan. Brown the minced or ground meat. Season with salt. Once the meat has browned, add garlic and onion and saute for another couple of minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker.
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Add the following ingredients – tomatoes, fish sauce, beef both, potatoes and carrots – to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 3 hours or until the potatoes and carrots are tender.
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Pour in the ketchup or tomato sauce and add in the chopped red bell pepper and raisins. Stir to mix everything well and cook for 30-minutes to 1 hour until the peppers are tender but not mushy. If you find the sauce to be a little tart, sprinkle a little brown sugar to balance the flavors. Adjust the seasoning to taste. Serve with jasmine rice.
Recipe Notes
TIPS & TRICKS
If you don’t fancy fish sauce, you can use soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, or salt instead (just adjust it to your taste). Note though that it’s more flavorful with the Fish sauce or Worcestershire Sauce. If you use Worcestershire Sauce, the taste will be slightly different than when you use fish sauce (my first preference) but it will be flavorful. This is just another option for those who don’t like Fish sauce.
In the Philippines, my mom would use Del Monte Ketchup (slightly sweeter than the American Ketchup). When we use this we don’t need to add brown sugar because the ketchup is already quite sweet.
Is it 1/2 cup of tomato or ketchup? It only says 1/2.
Author
The recipe says 1/2 cup ketchup or tomato sauce so it’s up to you which one you prefer to use. Please see notes below the recipe. You can use either but they both should measure 1/2 cup.
I asked this on FB, too. Saw the same. Glad I know now.
Amazing recipe. A new favorite for us! Thank you!
Author
So glad you enjoyed this and thanks for letting us know.
Made this last night and it was so warm and comforting! Absolutely delicious.
Author
So glad you enjoyed this! Thank you for letting us know!
This Menudo recipe is delicious and easy to make. I didn’t make any changes. I used ground pork, American ketchup and put some brown sugar. My American husband ate it over cornbread, and he said it was really good. My Filipino mom ate hers with rice and she also said it was really good. Everyone who ate it, just raved about it. This is totally a keeper. I ended up buying the Rice Noodle Yum cookbook. I like the that you have a quick guide to ingredients and helpful tools for Asian cooking. Also, the easy-to-follow step-by step instructions. Please make a Filipino cookbook. I’m definitely a fan and I’d buy that cookbook as well. Thank you.
Author
Mama Em! You totally made my day! This is such sweet feedback and thank you so much for kindly getting back to us and letting us know. I truly appreciate it and am so glad you enjoyed this menudo. I am seriously considering writing another cookbook and hopefully a Filipino one this time. Will keep you posted. Thank you so much!
So delicious! I’m always on the lookout for new slow cooker recipes. Definitely saving this one to make again.
This hearty, comforting and flavorful menudo sounds fantastic. I can’t wait to dig into a big bowl of this.
Made this yesterday and everyone devoured it. It’s great to use mince in a different way and it was easy to leave it in the slow cooker until dinner time.
This is delicious. I love the flavors, and it’s so easy in the slow cooker. I never had menudo before, but I’m so glad I tried it!
This stew looks so flavorful and so delicious. Must give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
Great recipe!! So excited to make this for the family to try. I love all the detailed instructions. ♥
This looks a lot like American chili! 🙂 The perfect bowl of hearty comfort food.
This was amazing and such a treat! Thank you! Everyone in my family loved it.
Just started exploring Filipino cuisine and this recipe is solid.