Step 1

Cook the bacon and place bacon and drippings into the slow cooker.

Step 3

Brown the pork in the pan with the bacon drippings on all sides until brown.

Step 5

Place all remaining ingredients except olive oil and flour into the slow cooker and cook for 7 hours on low heat setting.

Step 7

Remove pork and discard the bay leaf. Shred/cut into bite size pieces.

Step 9

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stir in the flour, and cook until it forms a paste and just begins to turn brown at the edges. Stirring constantly, very slowly strain the liquid from the slow cooker into the saucepan and simmer until it has reduced to a consistency that’s thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.

Step 11

If desired, prepare mashed potatoes and then transfer the pork to serving dishes over the mashed potatoes and pour the sauce over the pork.