Are slow cookers a waste of money

[Moominfan]

Do you use one. How often? If you don't use it why not? On a super tight budget at the minute but also trying to make my life easier

I can't stand recipes that call for a whole tin of tinned tomatoes! So sour and awful. I just use less than 1/2 a tin and the rest I substitute with stock a bit of cornflour.

Slow cooking can take 6-7 hours anyway whether you use a slow cooker or a bog standard crockpot, so yes I think it’s a huge waste of money

I use jars of tomatoes. They keep in the fridge for a few days.

Took me a while to fall in love with mine. To start with I was paranoid about things drying out, and used way too much liquid. Everything came out as stew, whether I wanted it to or not.

Now as a rule of thumb I consider how much liquid I think it needs, then halve it. Bingo. Perfect every time.

Is there a thread anywhere with recommended recipes? I have a good slow cooker book but I need some new ideas.

I don't eat meat so maybe they are lost on me. But everything I've had tastes really sloppy and bland. My mum has one and does meet in it. My partner hates it (he eats meat) he says its chewy and over done. But people seem to rave about them. The cynic in me thinks none of you know what good food is. But surely the number of people who love them can't all have bad taste?! could you get one really cheap or borrow one to see if you use it?

Everyone who is saying they get bad results either have bad cookers, bad recipes or are just bad cooks

(hides)

@LordProfFekkoThePenguinPhD slow cooker dhal recipe please??!!

since having a smart meter installed, we've found running a slow cooker is much cheaper than an oven!
we use for any 'long' cooks - jacket potatoes, stews, chili, bolognese, currys etc

Think are are about £9 in asda at the moment. I bought mine a few years ago, well worth it.

I have three: a basic small one (low / high), a medium sized digital Crockpot with optional divided inner and a large digital 5-in-1 Crockpot. Slow cook at least once a week - usually chorizo chicken, sticky chinese chicken, beef, ale, gravy & mushrooms for steak pie, gammon, roast beef. Saves so much time - prep the evening before and leave in fridge, chuck in sc in the morning, just do some extra veg in the evening if necessary. Loads of great recipes on FB Slowcooked Wonders group page, or google - Allrecipes website is fab too.
You get great results from using cheaper cuts of meat.
The following might give you some starting points:
greatist.com/health/crock-pot-cooking-budget#7

I’m just off to make some soup in my electric pressure/slow cooker... lovely, chunky veggie soup in 12 minutes!

If you eat meat, try shin of beef, lots of sliced onions. Delicious and fabulous beef stock for onion soup the next day. Enjoy.

Everyone who is saying they get bad results either have bad cookers, bad recipes or are just bad cooks or maybe we have more refined palates! 😂

You really just need to adapt recipes because it cooks differently!

I use mine a lot. It seems to be fast for a slow cooker though. If i put it on before work there would just be mush left when i got home. Goes on lunchtime or early afternnon. Perfect at weekends.

Instant pot is far superior. It is a pressure cooker with a slow cooker function. When I got mine I chucked away my slow cooker and my rice cooker and use it pretty much every day, and have done for the last 3 years. I love it.

Yup - I have managed to ‘convert’ family and friends to electric one-pot cooking!

Everyone who is saying they get bad results either have bad cookers, bad recipes or are just bad cooks

That must be it then 🤮. Or perhaps I just don’t like the texture of meat compared to proper slow cooking.

I don’t cook meat in mine - but supposedly tough cuts that need a long, slow cook are rather good.

Could you cook a Christmas pudding in one? Instead of 8 hrs steaming on the hob?

I don’t like the texture of meat cooked in it Lord. Things like skirt of beef tastes 100 times better properly slow cooked in the oven or on the hob imo. I only use mine for a Greek lamb recipe a few times a year.

We don’t eat much meat really - once a week maybe if that.

I am just not a fan, prefer my pressure cooker for pulses etc.

Makes a bloody good Dahl!

Xmas pudding - yep easy.

If it's shopbought in one of those plastic tubs fold up a tea towel and make a 'nest' so there is some tea towel under the base so the bottom of the dish isn't in direct contact with the sc bottom, pour boiling water in up to about 1/2 way up the pudding, put the lid on and leave.

thanks sashh

would be home made (not in uk, can't buy 'em) in a ceramic pudding basin so would do the same - i usually steam it with a saucer underneath

Hmmm I saw some emergency Christmas puds in the back of my cupboard. Would it be too early to... ?