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Slow cooker tips

Mumsnetters feel strongly about slow cookers. Whether it's fervent ardour - "It is a must, really. I love mine" (comeoverveneer) or disdain "A slow cooker routine? You get it for a wedding and leave it in a cupboard for 15 years to ROT" (LordVenger) - we just can't stop talking about it, so here's the (s)lowdown from Mumsnet Talk. 

Common fears about slow cookers

• I've never roasted a whole chicken or piece of meat in a slow cooker. I've been a bit scared to in case it went wrong and would be an expensive mistake. tsarchasm
• I would like to be convinced by it, but can't get past the thought that it would result in death by casserole. ja9
A little tip. Remember to turn it on when you start the timer and leave the house to pick up your child. theresonlyme
• It's difficult if (like me) you like to fiddle and stir your cooking. You must not touch it or lift off the lid. tsarchasm
• I would love one of these but I am soooooooooo scared I'm gonna burn the house down while I am out. anangelwithin
• No chance of a fire, they are on a thermostat. Janbo25
• Somebody told me that it uses as much energy as a lightbulb, so I think it must be very cheap to use. janeite

Slow cooker hints and tips

• It's always better to part cook/fry the food before putting it in the slow cooker and then allowing it to very slowly stew after that. I find it does not really work well if I just put everything in raw. abetadad
• If preparing stuff the night before I would put it in the fridge, then put it on to cook in the morning. girlandboy
• I find the liquid seems to double! So now I use less liquid but check on it every now and again. allthoseeggsaremine
We love it. You get that nice organised/dinner is under control feeling. I know that's a very sad thing to say but I love seeing it bubbling away on the side. TsarChasm
• If you're using a normal recipe you may find the slow cooker produces too much liquid, which will make it a bit bland. I also put in more seasoning (eg garlic, rosemary) than if I were doing it in the oven. elinordashwood
• I do a bolognaise type mixture in mine - leave it on low all day so the mince is really tender - serve the dd's at 5pm-ish, then chuck lots of tabasco / chilli and a tin of kidney beans in and dh and I can eat a couple of hours later. lucycat
• I just bung stuff in and hope for the best. shivermetimbers
• I do lots of casseroles in mine. Just adapt the time, and put a bit less liquid in, because the steam recirculates. girlandboy
• The lamb shanks were amazing - the meat just fell off the bones and it was delicious. The great thing about doing beef in the slow cooker is that you can use a cheaper cut like brisket and it will be very tender, but you won't be able to carve it as you would an oven-roasted joint so it doesn't look as impressive. Chicken tastes great too but you don't get the crispy skin so it looks a bit insipid compared to oven-roasted. ladyglencorapalliser
  

Am I going to save loads of time by using a slow cooker?

• It's not really a time saver, more a time re-distributor (you have to find time in the morning to prepare instead). BUT you do get lovely tender meat in it as a result. rubberduck
• I don't mind making it earlier when one child is in school and the other is happily getting on with something if it means avoiding cooking in the witching hour between coming home from school and eating. ledodgy
• I chop everything in the evening. Brown meat. Stick pot in fridge overnight. Next morning heat up the liquid I am adding, add to the pot and switch on. Leave on all day. Dinner ready. yorkiegirl
  
• I just chuck meat, onions and carrot in the slow cooker at 8am, leave on all day and it's all nicely cooked and piping hot when we come home. If I was going to do different temps I'd have to remember to switch it to low before going out in the morning so it would probably be ruined every day before we got home. flibbertyjibbet
• Always, always cook at least double and freeze some. CountessDracula
  

Which slow cooker to buy?

• I bought our Morphy Richards in Tesco and it's excellent. A really good buy. mrsdoolittle
• It's worth getting the larger one if you have the space to store it. Rubberduck
• I have the Tesco slow cooker, which cost a tenner and it is just the job. anchovies
• I paid a tenner for my slow cooker from Argos and it's fab! lucycat
• Best slow cookers I've found are made by Morphy Richards. I have the 6.5 litre one but they also do a 3.5 litre version if that's too big for you. GeorginaA
• For daily use 3.5 litre is more than big enough - I do batch cooks in it for the freezer! bodiddly

 NB Does it come with instructions on how to get a toddler to eat anything but cheese sandwiches? oliveoil

OK, I've got my slow cooker. Now what?

• I love my slow cooker but one little tip: if you're given a time of, for example, 5-7 hours, which is the "window" for eating, always go for the longer time. Also, it's really worth frying/grilling/pre-cooking harder veg first - and browning the meat. It's really worth the effort. Tastes nicer too as it seals it all in rather than just boiling onions in the stock/sauce, which removes all decent flavour. LemonTart
• I put the whole raw chicken in the slow cooker, put the lid on and switch it on. I don't add anything at all. I don't add liquid; there's plenty in the bottom when you take it out anyway, and you don't want it wet. You could add any of the usual garlic/lemon/herbs type things, I suppose. But when I do it, it's to strip all the meat off the bones easily to use in curry/enchiladas/etc, not to eat 'as is' - it can be a bit bland on its own. badgermonkey
• Mine is a small one that will fit in my fridge so I can redistribute effort to when I really do have time - in the evening when kids are in bed. Put all the ingredients in (as long as you cover the veg with liquid it doesn't mind being chopped in advance) and then in the morning all I have to do is put the pot into the machine and turn it on. If you're worried about extremes of temperature (which can affect ceramic slow cookers) maybe take it out of fridge first thing, then turn it on when back from school? prufrock

To brown or not to brown?

• I don't bother with browning the meat, but I do cook carrots/onions/hard veg before adding them as the temperature never gets high enough to soften them properly. I put very little liquid in to start with tbh and find my casseroles are thick enough from the vegetable or pulse fibre anyway (sounds ghastly!). I might put a bit of hot water in later to loosen it if it is really over thick, but don't forget, nothing burns or sticks because of the low temperatures. If you want to put cream, creme fraiche or whatever in, then you can do it for your own nefarious purposes, but I don't bother. catinthehat1
• The reason you should pre-brown meat before going in the slow cooker is to get it heated up. Not solely for flavour reasons (although that is an added benefit!). pestomonster
• It works with or without flour, but without flour then of course it doesn't thicken. If NOT using flour, there is no need to seal the meat first, but do give it plenty of time to cook through. clumsymum
• I use a lot more flour than usual so that it thickens well, as slow cookers seem to produce more watery results. CountessDracula
• Definite NO to cooking from frozen. Bigbadmousey

But aren't slow cookers just for casseroles?

• Do go to the library and dig out a couple of slow cooking recipe books. I always used mine just for stews, but then found a book that explained how to cook LOADS of stuff in it, including fish, egg custards, and even your fruit cake (takes HOURS though). clumsymum
• My favourite in the slow cooker has to be puddings. Sponge puddings are the biz! Just follow an ordinary recipe, put the mixture in a separate dish with foil on the top. Sit the dish on a jam jar lid and put boiling water in the crockpot (about a third of the way up the second dish). Cook for 3-4 hours. You don't have to top the water up as you would if you were steaming it on the hob. girlandboy
• I have just resurrected my nearly 30-year-old slow cooker that was mouldering in the back of a cupboard and am now sharing the slow cooker love! I had abandoned it when I became vegetarian but now realise that most veggie recipes can be adapted. I have also just got a vegan slow cooker recipe book as I have the added complication that I can't eat dairy, and the lentil and veggie bacon recipe has already become a firm family favourite. winetimeisfinetime
• Bolognese, chilli, casseroles, spare ribs, curries, pot roasts, gammon to use cold for sandwiches. Oh, and loads of soup and thick broths to dunk crusty bread. rubyrubyruby
• To make stock I put it all in last thing at night - chicken carcass, onion, carrots, tomotoes, garlic - and switched it on this morning. The stock was ready by about 6pm, for the next stage of soup-making. According to Nigel Slater, there's no right amount of time to cook stock for, you should just keep tasting it to see if it tastes right as each chicken will have different flavours. scootergrrrl
Google 'crockpot' for lots of American recipes a(effies that's what they're called over there. thelady
(And if you find a good one, don't forget to add it to Mumsnet recipes! MNHQ)
• Here is the rice pudding recipe from my slow cooker recipe book. It is really lovely: 1.5 litres milk 40g butter 150g pudding rice 150g sugar. Just combine them and put in slow cooker. I put it on low on Sat night and then turn it off in the morning. If it is to go with a Sunday roast I usually tip it into a dish and pop it in the oven once the roast comes out and it browns a bit on top while we're having the main course. This makes enough for us and lunch guests, but leftovers are always good. My daughter adds strawberry jam to hers, and I like cinnamon. Yummy! soundbites
• Overnight porridge - one measure (by volume) of pinhead oats and three to four measures of water (depending on how thick you prefer your porridge) and up to one measure of any kind of dried fruit you care to throw in. Salt to taste. Add to slow cooker before you go to bed and set it to 'low'. EffiePerine
• In mine at the moment, I've got spilt pea and bacon soup with home-made chicken stock - made in the slow cooker - from yesterday's chicken. How Nigella am I?? Scootergrrrl
• My slow cooker really comes into its own during the Mulled Wine Season. Short preparation time, and it never boils! scienceteacher

Eat on the cheap | Children's party food | Seasonal food | Teach your child to cook | Recipes | Food forums | Recipes forums | Cookery book reviews | Family meal planner