To buy a slow cooker?

[Connorsmummyx]

Are they any good? I've seen ones on the Argos website for £15 and am quite tempted by them. What sort of things can you cook in them (has anyone used them for making stocks?).

Please convince me that I need another kitchen appliance and that ianbu to let a slow cooker take up precious kitchen space....

little princess brisket is awesome in slow cooker. You need to seal the meat before you put it in though ime.... But then cook it with whatever you like. The only disadvantage is if you freeze leftovers the meat is too tender and falls apart. Never roasted a chicken in it but often use it for pheasants etc.

Do it - but in autumn. Get it now, you'll barely use it and will have forgotten about it by the time stews and slow roasts seem appealing again.

You can also do porridge in it, if you like porridge. I find that extremely satisfying and always feel very clever.

Yes get one! Mine is a £15 tesco one and it's great. I love making beef stew, the meat is so tender. Just brown it first.

I'd like to find more recipes actually.

Get one. They are great. Lamb shanks are amazing in the sc and the whole chicken is delicious.

Sorry to hijack, but does anyone have the re recipe for the chorizo and chicken stew? I want to try that today.

I love mine. I got a bigger one then we needed so when I make casseroles I can either freeze half or use it the next day. Makes life so much easier if you have a busy day. I throw everything in and let it go. (I'm super lazy and don't pre cook the meat and it turns out fine!) I've even made a lasagne successfully. It really is versatile. Although as others have said not sure how much it will be used over the summer months. YANBU.

I have this one
Its the best one i have had, not cheap but worth the money. You can brown the food in it first, either by using the browning setting or putting the pan on the hob. It also very easy to wash up as well.

Co-incidentally I'm trying a chicken and chorizo stew today in the slow cooker for the first time (but it's not a whole chicken). I found a recipe here:

abbescookingantics.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/slow-cooker-chicken-with-chorizo.html

Lamb joint is my favourite in the slow cooker. Leave it in all day and then pop it in the oven for about 20 minutes with the roast veg to crisp it up. Use the stock for the gravy..... Mmm

Thanks for the recipe mycat. I will give it a go today.

Hang on a minute. So you can prepare the veg the night before and just put everything in the slow cooker cold and then turn it on? I thought that it all had to be brought to a simmer before it went in, as the slow cooker wouldn't bring it up to a high enough temperature to kill all the bacteria. Also, if you're going out for the day surely you'd put it on low rather than high (mine only has these settings) so would it really get hot enough?

I don't use my slow cooker much because I can't be doing with heating pans of meat at 7am before I go to work, so if I can put it all in cold that would be fab.

No, just bung it all in.

I need to use mine more. But it is great for goulash, roasts, soup.

I heard rice pudding is lovely cooked in it.

I have two!

A giant one for stew/casseroles/joints and a teeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeny tiny baby one that I mainly use for rice pudding and porridge

There's a couple of slowcooker fb pages that are great for inspiration and the odd bitchfest

Definitely buy bigger one and freezer bags and boxes....and you'll always have stuff in the freezer!

I shall be using mine today. I have a meaty turkey carcass and plans for some sort of soupy casseroley beany affair.

Slow Cooked Wonders is the fb page

I do tend to sweat the veg and brown the meat for casseroles before putting it in, but not everyone does.

Use less liquid and more seasoning, as the stock won't reduce and concentrate as much as it will in the oven or hob.

I love my slow cooker. I work full time so being able to toss everything in before I go to work, then come home to the lovely smell of dinner cooked for us is fantastic, especially in winter when a hot meal is wanted. It's all in one pot as well, so clean up doesn't take very long. I do a lot of casseroles or stews in mine, and put my breadmaker on as well so we have nice fresh bread ready. I make large batches and freeze the leftovers for lunches or other dinners. I couldn't live without it.

Thank you for the tips Occamsraiser and brettgirl2. I shall try those!

Mine is also a rice cooker. I love it, it's used at least twice a week.

I had a slow cooker given me as a wedding gift from church. It certainly is a great thing to have

Monkey, I bung everything in, cold, then switch it on to high. When I leave the house I turn it down to low. You can prime it and heat everything up first, but it's not really necessary, unless you want to do a short slow-cook - say 3-4h instead of 6-8h.

Yes, I wanted one for ages and finally got one when we had the new kitchen done.

I've done roast chicken, Sri Lankan chicken soup (with leftovers), apple cinnamon swirls, tomato sauce for pasta/pizza with hidden veg, masala curry sauce, gammon cooked in juice to name a few!

The Facebook group is great for ideas (self saucing chocolate pudding is on my list to try). I also use Pinterest for ideas and have a slow cooker board. You can adapt so many things to go in it.

It's a very economical way to cook.

YANBU - they're cheap to buy (mine's a big one from ALDI about £17), cheap to run, you put cheap cuts of meat in it and they turn out amazing, you can cook all sorts of things in them, not just stews...
I use mine 3-4 times a week. Shove stuff in first thing in the morning, come home to dinner ready, what's not to love about that.