Slooooooow Cooker Recipes

[Dan_1981]

Picked up a slow cooker that was on offer at the supermarket the other day - it doesn't come with any recipes so before I rush out and buy a slow cooker recipe book - any suggestions from the PH lot?

[road_rager]

Dan_1981 said:

Picked up a slow cooker that was on offer at the supermarket the other day - it doesn't come with any recipes so before I rush out and buy a slow cooker recipe book - any suggestions from the PH lot?

No real need for a recipe book, most curry's etc work more or less the same as normal recipes except use less liquid. Root Veg can come out a little more crisp than normal so may have to whack it on high for last hour or so. Some meats benefit from a little browning before hand. Experimentation is the key.

I love my slow cooker!

[shakotan]

Dan_1981 said:

Picked up a slow cooker that was on offer at the supermarket the other day - it doesn't come with any recipes so before I rush out and buy a slow cooker recipe book - any suggestions from the PH lot?

Beef/Lamb Tagine

http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/chefs/jamie-o...

Brown the meat in a frypan before transferring to the slow cooker. I normally cook it for 6 hours on low, then pop the squash in and turn it to high for 2 hours.

I normally use butternut squash, or sweet potatoes instead.

Edited by shakotan on Wednesday 6th October 17:12

[Shaw Tarse]

Once the search function is fixed then .....
Meanwile, any stew/casserole/ chilli/ curry etc

[Mobile Chicane]

You can do any casseroley type thing you'd otherwise do in the oven in a slow cooker.

However you will need to brown the meat first, likewise sweat off any vegetables you're intending on using as a flavour base.

Slow-cooking comes into its own for tenderising tough and/or gristly joints. Gammon or salt beef will be out of this world.

I use mine a lot and have thus far made (that I can think of):

Bolognese sauce
Chilli (various)
Rabbit stew
Beef stew
Squid in garlicky tomato sauce
Snails in garlicky tomato sauce with chickpeas and chorizo
Toulouse sausages braised with Puy lentils
Rillettes of pork / duck
Slipper gammon
Salt beef
Ox tongue
Various soups
Curry sauce base
BBQ sauce

[Dan_1981]

Sounds good to me.

Hoping to avoid having to cook things / bronw things first as we're out of the house for between 6 & 8 am and don't really have time to be browning things off at half five in the morning!

[Mobile Chicane]

Dan_1981 said:

Sounds good to me.

Hoping to avoid having to cook things / bronw things first as we're out of the house for between 6 & 8 am and don't really have time to be browning things off at half five in the morning!

Do it the night before and bung the ceramic inner pot in the fridge overnight.

[princeperch]

I never bother to brown off any meat before I slow cook it...

[Mobile Chicane]

princeperch said:

I never bother to brown off any meat before I slow cook it...

Up to you, however in my view, browning meat gives a deeper 'savouriness' to the finished dish.

[LordGrover]

Important notice: Don't discard the box and packaging.
In two weeks you'll be bored with it and it's handy to have the packaging for when it goes into the loft or when you pop it on eBay.

[Dogwatch]

No recipes but sis-in-law uses hers overnight to make marmalade. Good stuff too!

[princeperch]

Mobile Chicane said:

princeperch said:

I never bother to brown off any meat before I slow cook it...

Up to you, however in my view, browning meat gives a deeper 'savouriness' to the finished dish.

If I had the ability to get up earlier than I do then I would probably do it.

As it is, I spend 5 mins chopping a load of crap up whilst making my breakfast in the morning, put some wine/chopped toms in the slow cooker, and get off to work...

[Don]

LordGrover said:

Important notice: Don't discard the box and packaging.
In two weeks you'll be bored with it and it's handy to have the packaging for when it goes into the loft or when you pop it on eBay.

Had mine for a few months now and it is used every single week.

Here's a different use for the Slow Cooker: Slow Roasting.

Try poppling a half-shoulder of lamb into the slow cooker, dust with garlic salt and pour in half a mug of water. Slow cook for ten to twelve hours. Now pre-heat the proper oven to absolutely bd hot. Hot as it will go. Use tongs/roast-forks/forks to lift the shoulder out of the slow cooker and onto a roasting dish. Bung in the super-hot oven for ten minutes whilst you steam veg or whatever. Make gravy with the liquid in the bottom of the slow cooker.

Serve.

The outside of the lamb will be a thin crust of well-browned deliciousness. The inside will be melt-in-the-mouth soft. The gravy should need nothing else to be savoury lamby loveliness.

I like boiled new potatoes and steamed carrots and broccoli with it.

It's particularly good of a Sunday as you can do the final hot-roasting any time from nine hours on and deliver dinner in twenty minutes. So you can go out in the day whilst the slow-cooker takes care of business and then have a full roast dinner in the same time it takes to make beans on toast...(almost).

[Shaw Tarse]

Mobile Chicane said:

Dan_1981 said:

Sounds good to me.

Hoping to avoid having to cook things / bronw things first as we're out of the house for between 6 & 8 am and don't really have time to be browning things off at half five in the morning!

Do it the night before and bung the ceramic inner pot in the fridge overnight.

I do this.
While good on the first night & nice to come home to the smell, most stew/chili/curries still improve from maturing over night.

[dirty boy]

We use our slow cooker all the time.

Yesterday morning, having sod all in to cook (forgot to do online shop) I rummaged around, found some carrots, spuds, frozen peas, runner beans, tin of sweetcorn and a pack of bacon.

Throw in some stock, few herbs, chop it all up, lob it in, back home, jobs a goodun.

Even ste can taste nice when cooked all day.

[thewilly]

The cheapest lump of beef you can find, and a bottle of decent burgundy. Half a stload of garlic, dried chilli, mustard and pepper and leave it for 24 hours. Insanely delicious.

[Shaw Tarse]

dirty boy said:

We use our slow cooker all the time.

Ignore Lord Grover I use mine all year round.

dirty boy said:

Yesterday morning, having sod all in to cook (forgot to do online shop) I rummaged around, found some carrots, spuds, frozen peas, runner beans, tin of sweetcorn and a pack of bacon.

Throw in some stock, few herbs, chop it all up, lob it in, back home, jobs a goodun.

Even ste can taste nice when cooked all day.

This ^^^^ is true.
Sadly lamb shanks are getting popular/expensive as they used to be a good slow cooker ingredient

[Bob the Planner]

Stew
fry shin beef cut into 3-4oz bits in a little lard or beef dripping with quartered onion until brown. Place into slow cooker with chopped parsnip, swede, carrot & turnip (1" dice) and 1/2 bottle cheap red wine. Add rosemary and thyme and cover with boiling water. Go to work and leave for 8-9 hours. Boil broccoli and potatoes to serve with the stew - Nom Nom Nom.

[Bob the Planner]

Don said:

...

Had mine for a few months now and it is used every single week.

Here's a different use for the Slow Cooker: Slow Roasting.
...

Can't believe you did not have one years ago. Best way to do a beef and veg stew IMO.

The pot roast is also good - Mmmmmm

Give me a bell - would be good to catch up - email or skype.

Edited by Bob the Planner on Friday 8th October 13:27

[OllieWinchester]

Further to all the soups/curries/stews etc, (I love sausage casserole) I bought a reduced piece of beef brisket at the supermarket the other day. Seemed a bit weird cooking something in it with next to no liquid but I seasoned it and then put a splash of water over the top. Left it on low for 10hrs or so, and it was astonishingly good, made a really nice gravy with the residual liquid as well.