Have decided to embrace Autumn and purchase a slow cooker, now tell me your favourite recipes

[Katyathegringa]

I know there are loads of sites out there on the internet but I would appreciate some recommendations on the best slow cooker recipes/tips.

Ohhh... mince and dumplings... manshape would love that!!!

Anyone got a good dumpling recipe?

I also cook the gammon in mine at Christmas,i just smother with honey,mustard and brown sugar and leave it on all day

8oz sr flour,4 oz suet, salt and pepper then just mix with water.adjust measurements to whatever suits you.To add a bit of extra flavouring put some dried stuffing in the mixture.

Yesterday I did a slab of pork belly in the slow cooker, and it was delicious. I gave it a bed of thickly chopped leek and a drizzle of oil massaged in to the top (butcher took the skin off for me) plus salt and pepper. Had to bin the leeks, but they were only there to stop it burning. The meat was delicious - I didn't have any apple sauce but that would have lovely with it. I am low-carbing but by choice I would have sliced it thinly into a brown roll, with rocket. Mmmm.

Am going to try the leg of lamb at the weekend.

I bought the 6.5 litre Cookworks one from Argos and made chicken stew with dumplings which was very tasty but have also now bought the smaller one too for just family dinners.

am dusting mine off after this thread.didnt use it at all last year - but the previous year i used it at least once a week.

Going to do just a plain beef casserole
so
beef
onions
carrots
2xtins of tomatoes
beef stock
salt/pepper
bay leaf

could i stick some romsemary and thyme in too?

will serve with mash and broclli - trying to keep it healthy - no no dumplings :(

also - like the idea of the chicken and chritzo one.

does anyone have a rough recipe?

I'm desperate to use mine, anyone got any recipes for chickn breast?

i always tended to find that chicken breast got quite dried out. it was better on the bone.

Surely if it's got some ingrediants like chopped toms etc where there's lots of juices it should be ok though? Was thinking about making chicken & basil pasata.

should be ok? iused to leave it while i was at work all day on low. Quite possibly it got overcooked, even with all the liquids, and i didnt brown it first.

Maybe if you wrapped them in a slice of bacon each?

I just bought one from Argos this morning. It now has vegetable soup burbling away in it (DS1's favourite).

Question - I thought I remembered years ago that you could bake potatoes in them? Can you?

balloon - i tried this once and i seem to remember they were okish. but i find it quicker/better to cook in microwave till soft and then crisp slightly in oven for 30 mins

I agree, baked pots in slow cooker are really not that nice. In fact Ive not yet found potatoes cooked in the slow cooker in any recipe to be nice(with the exception of in veg soup)but for everything else its fab.

red with the chicken pasta I make they chicken is cut into chunks so I was going to chuck them in with onions, tinned toms, some basil & a little garlic. Do you think it would still dry out?

even more so - esp as its small chunks.

Its annoying. But if i do chicken and i want it to be moist and tender, it needes to be on the bone.

Or - a shorted cooking time maybe.

Its doesnt dry as in no liquid, just the meat is dry and not lovely and suculent and tender.

TBH i don't do a lot of chicken in my slow cooker, unless i'm doing a whole bird.

Marking my place as I'll be coming back to try your recipes. Investing in a slow cooker next week. Flicked through the Sara Lewis book recommended by a couple of people and might buy that too.

Norma I made chicken stew in mine on Monday and the chicken was fine. Lots of gravy though to keep moist.
Would the tinned toms not keep it moist enough?
Maybe just try it and see.

Braised red cabbage with onion, apples and spices - smells great,freezes well and tastes fab!

Ohhh - that sounds really good!

I think I will FMTD, I'm buggered if I can't cook chicken in it as I cook a lot of chicken!

Tell us how it goes Norma.
I made a morroccan lamb thing and have felt that the shine is leaving the slowcooking a bit as it was a bit too watery and somehow not as tasty as cooked in an ordinary pan.
The recipe book says that meat must be covered with liquid to cook thoroughly but that just means it's too runny.
Also I am disapointed if whole chickens have to be covered with liquid.
Is this so? Won't they be a bit bland?

Fly - I cooked a whole chicken, with no added liquid at ALL! it was lovely. Also leg of lamb with enough water to cover the veg, but not the meat - my book says you don't need liquid in with the meat!

chicken on the bone is fine. Whole birds will be fine.
I think its because the meat on the bones - ie thighs and legs has worked harder, is the darker meat and takes longer to cook.

Diced breast does tend go to go dry ( in texture, not dry as in lack of liquids), it cooks quickly anyway, and is less dense than leg meat.
Of course it will still be edible, just not as nice. Plus thighs and legs are cheaper, just use those instead and pull the bone out ( because after cooking for so long, the bone comes out so easily)