Why haven’t I been slow cooking all my life!?

[icebearforpresident]

After gathering dust for years i’ve actually started to use my slow cooker, 3 times in the last 4 weeks and I genuinely don’t understand why I haven’t been using it! Everything tastes amazing and I love not having to rush to get stuff ready by 6 o clock. This weekend I made chicken tikka and it was better than any supermarket ready meal or jar of sauce. The beef stew last weekend was also a roaring success, even the kids ate it.

Any recipes you can share, I plan on using it as much as possible from now on.

I don't use mine,as much as I should. I must try the macaroni cheese and rice pudding!

I do this in slow cooker

Why didn't I think of the two bag thing? So obvious when you think about it.

Our fave is fajitas!

Chicken strips, 3 sliced peppers, 2 sliced onions, packet of fajita seasoning and tin of chopped tomatoes. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Serve in wraps with sour cream/salsa/guacamole/cheese!

Beef in tomato and red wine is my family's favourite. It's not the cheapest with the wine in it so its a treat

Add ingredients to slow cooker in following order. No browning required.

400g diced stewing/braising steak.
Chopped onion. Frozen is fine.
2 teaspoons mixed herbs.
Salt and pepper.
Garlic if required. I use a teaspoon of dried.
2 level tablespoons of plain flour.
MIX WELL to coat all ingredients.
1 tin chopped tomatoes.
1 tablespoon of tomato puree.
Half a bottle of red wine. Shriaz works well.
MIX AGAIN thoroughly.

Don't worry about how gross it looks at this stage! Chuck the lid on and walk away. I usually have it on high power for two hours, stir, then turn to low for at least 6 hours. However, it's fine left on low all day for at least 10 hours.

Lovely with mash (frozen!) or rice.

I have a massive slow cooker so usually double up the quantities above. I've found that it tastes even better after a couple of days in the fridge.

I make steamed cakes and rice pudding in mine as well as the usual stews/curries.

Placemarking as we got one for Christmas and I need ideas!

Has anybody got any nice Dahl recipes?

So for pulled pork is there a specific type of joint needed? (I rarely venture past chicken, so a bit clueless )

I did a pulled pork in the slow cooker a couple of years ago for a party, it was delicious! It was a Tom Kerridge recipe and I think the meat was a pork shoulder.

Following for the recipes but also slow cooker homemade fudge is amazing. I make it and give it out at Christmas.

I've just bought a slow cooker and tried to do beef rendang Friday but it didn't taste very nice. Think the recipe wasn't great so I need a fail safe option!! Any tried and tested spag bol recipes or chilli or something?? Really need to make something nice next time before I put my family off the idea of slow cooker lol.

I do one with half a tin of chicken soup, then a layer of chicken breasts, a layer of sliced cheese, a layer of ham and the rest of the chicken soup on top - then breadcrumbs spread over the whole thing - it is really yummy!

Following for the recipes but also slow cooker homemade fudge is amazing. I make it and give it out at Christmas.

You can't say that and not give us the recipe

Yes, pork shoulder for pulled pork is best.

How does a slow cooker actually work? Doesn’t the food get burnt or overcooked if you leave it unattended for so long? I’ve been thinking getting one because my colleagues always rave about it. And also which is better, a slow cooker or a pressure cooker?

I don’t use mine nearly enough,and when I do I always find myself wondering why I don’t use it more.

I always brown the onions/meat e.g.before putting in the slow cooker,and for stew I flour the meat first and that thickens the sauce....

I don’t work but I have health problems and the morning is usually my best time of day, so if I do the browning etc and then chuck all in the slow cooker I don’t need to worry about dinner by the time I’m feeling too crap to stand over the oven because the dinner is just ready to go iyswim.

I'm totally trying the macaroni cheese! Sounds lush

My slocook recipe is Moroccan lamb. It’s actually a mish-mash of various recipes I have seen online; all the celeb chefs have a version. Mine sometimes varies a bit, but essentially it’s diced leg of lamb which I get from Morrisons, lamb stock, red wine if you wish, carrots, onions, garlic, celery, courgettes if we have them, turmeric, cinnamon, ground coriander and then about 30 minutes before you want to eat, dried apricots. The smell throughout the house all day is tantalising and as it cooks the sauce gradually thickens.

I start by frying the onion in a little olive oil. I remove the excess fat and any skanky bits from the diced lamb and then toss it in plain flour before frying it in the onion flavoured oil. Once the frying is done, I delaminate the fry pan with a little red wine and tip that on the onion and lamb. Then I add all the vegetables and spices and a pint of Knorr lamb stock and leave it to cook. In the past I have added lemon zest, tomato purée and cherry tomatoes. We eat it with couscous and it’s delicious. Jamie tops it with natural yoghurt in his version, but that didn’t add much for us.

Xwalltowall great tip re roasting bags

I use a great pot roast recipe in the slow cooker, it comes out like pulled pork in a tomato/bbq sauce. Just used a pork loin

Try cooking mincemeat in it - add a dash of Worcestershire sauce and an oxo cube. Amazing!

The non-stick slow cooker is brilliant. Makes life even easier!

Thank you for this thread. I am dusting off my slow cooker and I am going to give it another go

My fave is a beef stew. Braising steak or similar, onions, carrots, potatoes, butternut squash (optional), beef stock and a cheap can of tomato soup. Brown meat then put it in with the rest of the ingredients plus some worcester sauce. Cook for 6 hours or longer, if it suits. I add a good splosh of red wine and and a can of chick peas about half an hour before serving. If you want it thicker add cornflour mixed to a paste with the wine. Lush.