**The posts I write might contain affiliate links or be written in collaboration with businesses or brands. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.**
Maybe you’re like me.
One day, you’re cleaning the cupboard and you come across this contraption…this thing that makes you go “Oohhhhh yyeaaahhhh…I remember this thing.”
Slow cookers, or “crockpots,” are a wonderful way to have food “cook itself.” If you’re not used to using one, knowing some tips and tricks ahead of time can help reduce the learning curve. Even if you do use your slow cooker frequently, it’s nice to expand your recipe repertoire and learn something new about this standby of busy kitchens.
People may think I am nuts because I “sit all day,” but once the end of my workday is done (around 3:30) my grey matter is DONE. Like, stick-a-fork-in-it DONE. And when I tried to muster up a few more brain cells to come up with an idea for supper, that’s the night we eat not-so-heathy things that come out of a box or involve a microwave. #EpicMomFail.
That is yet another reason my crockpot is my BFF. Around noon when I am still somewhat functioning at a normal level, I can quickly pull together a recipe I scoped out the night before, throw it in the slow cooker, set, and forget. #EpicMomWin. Time to start your own Crockpot Revisited Project.
The Crockpot 411.
Or maybe you know it’s there, but you just haven’t used much. OR maybe you would like to get one but aren’t sure what you can cook in it. And if you do have a slow cooker, you might have just a few favorite dishes you cook in it and that’s it. Well, get it out or go buy one, because we’re going to change that! Here are some tips and suggestions for choosing recipes for your slow cooker.
1. All-Day Cooking
As you choose recipes for your slow cooker, it’s a good idea to consider how long you have to cook your food. Some foods just don’t hold up well for many hours of cooking. For example, if you’re going to be assembling everything in the slow cooker in the morning and coming home to a cooked dinner, then consider recipes that involve roasts like beef or mutton. Other foods that do well over 8-12 hours of cooking include:
* Beef and chicken stock: pile bones, meat scraps, and vegetables (for flavor) like carrot, celery, and onion into your slow cooker. Add water to cover, salt to taste, and let it cook for hours. This one’s hard to cook too long, and you can even add water and keep cooking if you aren’t ready to take the broth out and strain it yet.
* Beef roast
* Lamb or mutton
* Pork roast
* Brisket
* Dried bean dishes (using dried beans that you’ve soaked overnight)
* Round steak or other tough cuts of beef
Foods like these are pretty forgiving when it comes to long cooking times, and are pretty hard to overcook. And tougher cuts of meat will tenderize quite nicely during the long cooking time.
2. Just a Few Hours
Certainly, slow cookers are not known for their speed – they’re called slow cookers after all – but sometimes you don’t need something to be in the slow cooker for 8 to 12 hours. Sometimes, you can simply adjust the temperature; on High, foods are going to cook faster. Here are some suggestions for recipes that don’t take a full day:
* Baked potatoes: Simply rub scrubbed, pierced potatoes with butter or oil and place in the slow cooker on High for 3 to 4 hours. Other potato dishes, like scalloped potatoes, can be cooked on High for about 4 hours.
* Fish fillets can cook completely on High for 1 hour.
* Canned bean dishes
* Vegetable soups, chilis, and stews (generally, chopped vegetables cook pretty fast) (go here for a slamming good chili recipe I created for 2Tired 2Cook 2Night)
* Poultry
* Pasta, like macaroni and cheese, where you assemble the dish using pre-cooked pasta: mix 4 ounces cooked macaroni elbows with 2 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 cup milk, 1 egg, and half a teaspoon each of dry mustard, salt, and pepper. Cook on Low for 3 hours.
* Beverages like mulled wine or cider
3. Budget
Another way to determine what recipes to use in your slow cooker is your budget. You can make some very low-cost meals in a slow cooker because you can use ingredients like dried beans and cheap cuts of meat.
Is your mouth watering? Yeah, mine too. Now go dig out your crock pot and put it to work for supper TONIGHT.
Be sure and check out the other posts in this series!
Crockpot Revisited-Choosing Recipes for Your Slow Cooker
CrockPot Cooking: Cooking Times for Your Slow Cooker
Crockpot Revisited: Tips and Tricks for Successful Slow Cookery
Crockpot Revisited: Adapting Your Favorite Recipes for the Slow Cooker
