slow cooker vs casserole dish in oven on low heat???

[peegeeweegeewoo]

Hi

I am new to this board, so please be gentle with the newbie...

What is the difference between cooking with a slow cooker as opposed to bunging all the ingredients in a casserole dish and putting it in the oven on a low heat for a long time??

I love some of the slow cooker recipes posted on here but don't have a slow cooker....(and no means to buy one as yet, am saving up for a breadmaker...)

I do have a sturdy creuset pan so can I use that in the oven on a low heat instead of the slow cooker???
Or would that not work, does the slow cooker do something an oven would not do??

Thanks for your help!!

Welcome to mn peegee!

as far as I know your le crueset (ious of the le creuset btw) should do everything that a slow cooker does. Slow cookers are really cheap to run, which is why a lot of people use them.

Keep an eye out for the Argos one which is currently £17 as they tend to reduce them to half price fairly frequently, a bargain.

I've often wondered the same. As far as I can tell, a slow cooker cooks even slower and takes a day to cook. Also aren't they cheaper to run?

I once heard that slow cookers take the equivelent power of having a lightbulb on all day so are cheap to run. I love mine but should use it more often... now where are those recipes?

brill, thanks for that!!
will start of using my creuset (lucy, it is ancient and battered, but I love it, best birthday pressie by far!! ) and if the recipes go down well then will invest in slow cooker...

mind you, if they are reduced at mo in argos i may put breadmaker on hold and get slow cooker first...

I don't think it will make any difference whether you cook it in the oven or slow cooker. Oven on low heat may not take quite as long as slow cooker and the only thing to watch is that the liquid might evaporate in oven so may need topping up whereas slow cooker doesn't tend to need doing.
Slow cookers are really cheap now and I love mine and the real bonus is its much easier to wash as no burnt on bits like you get with casserole dish.

Welcome to mumsnet by the way

Yep, the slow cooker is simply cheaper to run. You can do slow cooking in a conventional oven, but to make it economical you would need to fill the oven up (i.e. bulk cooking for the freezer). I've got a great cookbook by Sheila Atterbury about slow cooking which suggests doing just that!

So long as your casserole dish is a good one burnt bits just rinse off no problem, although liquid evaporation can be an issue not as much with a lid.