Surviving with no cooker

[hippoherostandinghere]

Unfortunately our cooker died last week. The whole thing, so we have no oven, grill or hob. I have ordered a new one but it's not arriving for 10 days. I have a microwave, a slow cooker and a small halogen oven. Any survival tips?

Have some mince that I'd like to cook, anyone ever cooked mince in a slow cooker without browning it 1st?

Could you buy or borrow an Instant Pot from a friend? That would help you enormously.

If you can borrow a teppanake grill they are good as you can stir fry on them otherwise stick to salads, precooked chicken and fish or microwaveable things

I never bother browning off meat before sticking it in the slow cooker. Stick the mince in, it will be fine

You can make many things in a slow cooker. I’ve tipped mince in without browning but I do tend to prefer the turkey mince for things like bolognese and chilli if using the slow cooker as it’s less fat and also cheaper.
Beef brisket
Chicken curry
Slow cooked lamb biryani
Sausage casserole
Halogen great for browning and roasting things like chicken

I always chuck the mince straight into the slow cooker. In fact pretty much the only thing I brown first is sausages.

Yes, you can cook mince in a slow cooker without browning it first. This blog is amazing for slow cooker dishes.

I survived several weeks with an electric kettle and a microwave oven instead of a proper cooker. We ate pretty well. Couscous, pasta, vegetables - all good. If you have (or buy) a tiered electric steamer you can cook all your veg at once.

Can you borrow a camping stove from someone or buy a cheap one? We managed with microwave, slow cooker and camping stove for three week when we had our kitchen gutted. If you use a steamer, you can cook potatoes/pasta/rice in the bottom and fish/veg in the top, all on one ring.

You can cook complete joints in the slow cooker like "roast" chicken. Stick some tinfoil balls or carrot or onions cut in half so it doesnt stick to the bottom about 3/4hours on low. Doesnt brown the skin but super succulent. Eat with couscous and microwave veg.
Eat well for less slow cooker lamb tagine.
Eat well for less butternut squash Rissotto

Quinoa instead of rice or pasta

Have you got or could you borrow a BBQ?

You can cook both rice and pasta in a microwave.

You can cook bacon and loads of vegetables in the microwave. In fact due to not having a cooker in the past I learnt that you use less water cooking veg in the microwave so it's healthier.

As you have a slow cooker you can cook meat and stews. Obviously you can't brown the meat first but there is no need.

You can cook puddings in either the slow cooker or microwave.

There are plenty of recipes online.

Thanks all. I will put the mince in tomorrow. I cooked thin cut steaks today and they came out great in the slow cooker and cooked really quickly so that's great. Don't know anyone with a camping stove, instant pot either.
It's the hob I'm missing most for cooking pasta, rice and potatoes.

No bbq either.

As pp said, rice, pasta and potatoes can all be cooked in he microwave. Google it. This is really a non issue with the equipment you have for 10 days only. Good luck!

Buy frozen rice. It cooks perfectly in the microwave. Ditto mash.

Pasta can also be cooked in the microwave. Big jug or bowl, pasta in and cover with water. Nuke for 5mins and check. If it needs more time 5mins more. It's easier if you use something with a handle.

I didn't know that about pasta, thanks.

Ikea sell a freestanding worktop hob, get one of those and you could sell it on again afterwards

www.tablespoon.com/posts/how-to-make-pasta-in-the-microwave

I don't bother using a pan for it now because this works just as well.