Slow cookers and risotto

[HappyGirlNow]

I'm having a housewarming do on Saturday and we're having about 20 people round. I don't plan on doing anything elaborate as I want to chill and enjoy my evening after the hectic moving house!

For food I plan to do 3 main dishes which I'll leave in slow cookers for people to help themselves to throughout the night - I'll pre-cook these the day before. I've decided on two of the dishes - a beef curry and stovies but not decided on third. I would like to do either veggie or chicken as other dishes are red meat. I've been thinking about a risotto. Do you think this would be ok to pre-cook, then re-heat and keep warm in the slow cooker for a couple of hours?

You have to really careful reheating rice. It's one of the biggest causes of food poisoning. Keeping it at a warm temperature encourages the growth of toxin causing bacteria. Even if you reheat to a high temperature it doesn't destroy the toxin.

Best way to reheat rice is to cook it, cool it very quickly, refrigerate and reheat to a high temperature.

Lots of people do reheat rice without coming to harm but thought it fair to warn you.

www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/can-reheating-rice-cause-food-poisoning.aspx?CategoryID=51

Thanks Zapotek - I don't worry too much when reheating rice for myself, I make sure it's hot through and through but don't want any chance of poisoning my fiends..

Maybe it's be better to make risotto just before people arrive and pop it straight into slow cooker to keep warm? D you think that would be better?

I don't think risotto would work to be kept warm - it will go really cloggy and horrible. What about something like chilli, stew, or something like lasagne or pasta bake that you could keep on a very low heat in the oven or even over a hot plate/ burner thing if you have one? Or you could go for burritos, again, warm in a v low oven. Or soup - slow cooker to keep warm, would be lovely and warming with crusty bread.

I'm not an expert.If it's going to be eaten within an hour or so will probably be fine. I mean chinese buffet restaurants do keep rice hot on the counters in those rice cookers. I would have though fresh risotto would taste nicer anyway while curries often improve the next day.

Thanks all I need something that will keep warm in a slow cooker rather than anything oven baked. Also I'd like a chicken or veg dish preferably not spicy. And if chicken, it needs to be chunks of chicken for ease of eating..any ideas?

I did think about a mildly spiced chicken Thai type curry but think coconut milk would split I'm slow cooker..

I would think risotto would turn to mush if left to cook like that (not tried it though just guessing)

split in* slow cooker..

I would do a chill in the SC and serve with crust bread and a green salad.

I do thai curry in slow cooker. It shouldn't split with the full fat coconut milk. I also do a nice creamy curry with raisins and pineapple. I have used half fat coconut milk with that, and it doesn't split. Just use curry powder to taste and a spoonful of ginger, some onions, bit of flour for thickening. Comes out lovely.