Can you leave a slow cooker on all day?

[ItsAllFun]

This is probably a dumb question, but say a recipe requires 6 hours, but you're going to be gone all day 6am - 6pm for example, do you just set the slow cooker at 6am and then let it cook for six hours and leave it sitting in slow cooker until you get back or would the food acquire bacteria while being kept warm effectively may be overthinking this

Thinking of buying a slow cooker, but with work, obviously I won't be there to supervise it lol this is possibly exactly what slow cookers are for but I'm going to be dumb and ask the question anyway

@ferrier overcooked meat and despair!

I leave mine on low from 7am till 6pm.

It's fine for meat. Veg tends to end up very squishy but that's good as kids can't pick it out .

I've had some minor disasters with stuff like lentils & pearl barley turning to complete mush - better to cook those recipes when you can add halfway through or reduce cooking time.

My go to is: lots of halved tomatoes, onions (better if fried first), any other veg. Roll chicken (thighs better than breast) or beef in flour & sear in pan before adding. With mince also fry off but you dont need the flour!

Carton of tomato puree, cup of veg/chicken stock (I make it & freeze in small pots than add to SC from freezer). Add any herbs & spices.

Switch on, go to work, come home to lovely casserole/curry/chilli etc.

I use a timer plug too and get it to start cooking at 10am or 12 ready for tea.

It keeps it really hot, it just takes a long time to get up to heat. I must do a pot roast sometime.

overcooked meat and despair!
😅

All. If leaving for 8-12 hours do you switch the slow cooker on and put the ingredients in cold? Or do you boil it up first so it starts off from hot?

Cold - sometimes even from the freezer (e.g. frozen Veg, stock, things like half a tin of coconut milk in a curry).

It all comes out the same!

I tend to give it a little longer if it's from the fridge, and longer from the freezer, and a little less time if the food is going in hot.

Basically everything in my slow cooker goes on low for about 12 hours 😂 doesn’t matter what it is, that’s what it gets.

The slow cooker goes on at 8am as I leave for work and then we eat around 7.30pm in the evening. The slow cooker is turned off after this.

The meat is always tender and lovely, so I don’t really see an issue lol