Using a slow cooker for the first time, help me please!

[LittleChristmasPud]

Our cooker has been condemned and we're waiting to get one next week so instead of a traditional roast I've brought a slow cooker and a shoulder of lamb to put in it. I've never used a slow cooker before so I'm thinking of putting the lamb, veg and stock in at about 8am and cooking on a low heat until around 4.30pm, does this sound reasonable for a piece of lamb which would have a cooking time of an hour in the oven? Do I need to cover the lamb and veg completely in stock? Any help is really appreciated

No don't cover it in stock you don't need to much liquid in a slow cooker,in fact I will do our ham dry just with sugar. Generally the longer the better in the slow cooker so that should be fine. What veg are you putting in?

Yes maybe a glass of wine in the bottom unless you are doing spuds which you might want almost covered.

I would do slices of onion and carrot a glad of wine garlic and rosemary season and leave and serve with mash

It's a tough one! I'd be very nervous of using the slow cooker dry but I've overdone the liquid and ruined things more than I can remember so use a lot less than you think you need.

Google a recipe ....? Find one with reviews attached.

Thanks everybody, I'm doing carrots, parnip and onion, hadn't even thought about garlic so I'll add that to my last minute shopping list

Think there is a slow cook lamb one in the MN cook book,will just check.

No it's pork but says 100ml of liquid for 1 boneless pork shoulder joint,12 hours on low.

Looked for lamb in my slow cooker book.

1 shoulder of lamb(boned,tied about 1.5 kg) has 250 ml lamb stock on med for 8 hours.

Oil the dish first, put in the veg, put meat on top, put in half pint of stock and cook on low for 8 hours. For casseroles I put in gravy granules to thicken it up. MN has slow cooker recipes.

You could wrap the veg in tin foil and put them in that way. That would stop them absorbing the fat drips from the lamb.