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Original poster

To tslwo cookers area terrible way to cook stew?

32 replies

RessicaJabbit · 19/10/2025 20:23

Maybe it's just me, but all casseroles I've had are just bleh when done in a slow cooker. Just a bit tasteless and ... Squishy/mushy

Pressure cookers are far better, I've made slow cooker ones before, and it's just not the same. Pressure cooking is definitely tastiest.

OP posts:
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SomewhereInTheMIdlands · 22/10/2025 13:31

Slow cooked on stove top is best. Slow cooker creates 💩. Pressure cooker somewhere in between. I say after 40 years of practice. I would say in the oven even better but oven now costs £££ to run.

Original poster
RessicaJabbit · 21/10/2025 09:05

Julimia · 21/10/2025 08:59

Still doing it wrong then! Best gadget ever!

Well everyone is doing it wrong in my experience.

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Sahara123 · 21/10/2025 09:05

I love my slow cooker! I did a whole pot of bolognaise yesterday , some to eat and several meals into the freezer. I make it in a saucepan and brown everything first.
A trick I learned years ago is to put a tea towel over the pot, then put the lid on, it absorbs a lot of the steam so things are less watery.

Julimia · 21/10/2025 08:59

Still doing it wrong then! Best gadget ever!

reversegear · 20/10/2025 20:23

I used my ninja one 5 times and every time watery tasteless.. I sold it. Just did an amazing beef stew on the stove and then staying warm in the oven and it was so tasty.

Original poster
RessicaJabbit · 20/10/2025 20:14

Julimia · 20/10/2025 19:02

Obviously doing it wrong! All slow cooked meals are the tastiest ever ,make fab gravy, . and can generally use cheaper cuts of meat etc.

Nope.. sorry I've had dozens and dozens of slow cooked stews. They have never ever once been amazing. At most , they've been fine.

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Julimia · 20/10/2025 19:02

Obviously doing it wrong! All slow cooked meals are the tastiest ever ,make fab gravy, . and can generally use cheaper cuts of meat etc.

Starconundrum · 19/10/2025 23:14

I think it depends on what you cook.

I like lamb or chicken thighs in the slow cooker. I cook my ham in there too before glazing it.
I generally cook beef on the hob.
I have a teeny tiny oven, so nothing but one tray fits in it. Its the slow cooker or the hob for stews.

Baked apples come out really well in the slow cooker too.

I'm going to try pulled chicken tomorrow. A filling for chimichangas. Im a bit dubious so I've bought a tin of black beans just in case it's awful.

FeatheryFlorence · 19/10/2025 23:03

You need to brown the meat and fry the veg first and use a lot less liquid. My stews in the slow cooker are great, although I find that curries lose flavour and all taste the same.

mamagogo1 · 19/10/2025 22:57

Mine is also a pressure cooker and has a sauté function though I still use the hob

mamagogo1 · 19/10/2025 22:55

I get the best flavour on the hob, the trick is to brown meat and veg which many people skip with slow cooking

Lincslady53 · 19/10/2025 22:47

With a slow cooker, the liquid doesn't evaporate, which strengthens all the flavours. We use less liquid than the recipe says, brown the meat, and use plenty of spices and herbs. We like it for chili, curries and stronger flavoured stuff. Having said that, we did pork steaks in a creamy sauce today, only ate a third, we freeze a third and have the other third tomorrow, but turned into a curry.

kittenkipping · 19/10/2025 22:37

Ime a slow cooker slow cooker isn’t as good as a multi cooker slow cooker. So perhaps the pps it’s all in the lid theory has some weight. I have an instant pot and use both the pressure and slow function- both result in great food.

Cantseetreesforthewood · 19/10/2025 21:19

Slow cooker stews aren't my favorite.
Never tried a pressure cooker one.

Personally, they need to be stewed or casseroled on the stove /in the oven. They need the higher heat. I guess a pressure cooker gets hotter , so might be ok.

Tintackedsea · 19/10/2025 21:14

Agree. Don’t understand why people bother with slow cookers when pressure cookers are so much better and faster.

BitterSweetBirthday · 19/10/2025 21:06

I have a slow cooker and pressure cooker and I use both for stews.
I don't agree that the slow cooker makes poor stew!
My slow cooker has a metal pot which I find much better than ceramic.

VerbenaGirl · 19/10/2025 21:04

Browning is important (caramelisation = flavour) - when my slow cooker broke I replaced it with an Instant Pot and I haven’t regretted it for a moment as it sautés to brown and I often do pressure cook for a bit then slow cook. Keep the liquid to the bare minimum and go hard on flavourings (seasoning, stock cubes, herbs, spices, wine).

Iwantmyoldnameback · 19/10/2025 21:02

I know I use too much liquid but I also think it leeches out the goodness. Probably wrong.

Anonomoso · 19/10/2025 21:02

I always brown the meat/veg first.
Practically no extra liquid added.

Love pork shoulder steaks with onion, mushrooms and a creamy sauce done in the slow cooker.

Matildahoney · 19/10/2025 21:01

Ours was lovely tonight, but meat was browned, and it contained herbs, stout, stock, red wine stock, English mustard, a little bisto to thicken as we like it beefy and a bit of Worcestershire sauce.

Original poster
RessicaJabbit · 19/10/2025 20:58

Allseeingallknowing · 19/10/2025 20:24

Have you had one too many?

Perhaps 😂

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GargoylesofBeelzebub · 19/10/2025 20:58

I’ve always been very disappointed with the stews I cook in the slow cooker. It’s great for pulled pork and other things but stews are better done in the oven in my opinion.

NoisyMonster678 · 19/10/2025 20:58

I agree, my pressure cooker stews are absalutely delicious.

Original poster
RessicaJabbit · 19/10/2025 20:58

Dolamroth · 19/10/2025 20:56

Mine turn out very nice. Are you using slow cooker recipes? How much liquid do you put in? You need less than for other methods.

I've had dozens over the years cooked by various people.

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Hufflemuff · 19/10/2025 20:57

Everything tastes the same! Its all got that air of tomato paste to it - no matter what you're cooking

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