How long can you all leave your slow-cookers on for?

[Tinkjon]

I think my slow-cooker is too quick Even if left on low, a dish will be cooked in about 6 hours and will start to stick around the edges soon after that. So I'm worried to leave it all day in case it burns. Surely the point of them is that you can go out at 8am and come home at 7pm and have dinner waiting for you. Are they not designed to be left on for that long or is it just mine?!

do you have enough liquid in?

I put mine on high at about 9am then switch to low at 12pm and we eat at about 6pm.

I put mine on low at 9.15am, took the meat out at 5.00pm to rest.

I think I have enough liquid in - could always try more, I guess.

Yer, you should be able to leave it all day. What were you trying to cook?

If I am going out 9-5 I just leave it on low all that time. Does need a bit of liquid in as usually for a 5ish hour cook I just put the meat and veg in and no water.
What were you cooking and what setting did you have it on?

I left a shoulder of lamb in it from 11pm new years eve till 3pm the following afternoon. It was devine.

I've cooked lots of different things in there - usually some kind of casserole - I always put it on the low setting. I will try it next time with more liquid. Thanks!

Flibbertyjibbet - What else did you put in with the shoulder of lamb? I bought a slow cooker this week in an attempt to save cash and time and need more ideas!

Nothing. Nothing at all. I had it on low setting all the time so all that was in it was a delicious shoulder and all the juices. I find if I put water in then i get a lot of liquid left. BUT that shoulder of lamb was for new years dinner so there were umpteen people to do veg etc.

Today we have braising steak with half a veg stock cube, handfull of brown lentils (cos they don't need soaking overnight), one very large onion and some carrots. I put the meat in first, then a bit of water with stock cube mixed in, then pile the veg on top. The carrots make it lovely and sweet.

I make up the pot the night before, i never brown the meat as you don't need to with a slow cooker (some do but I think it defeats the time and effort savign aspect of a slow cooker!) and peel the spuds at the same time, put them in a bowl in water and leave slow cooker inner pot and the spuds in the fridge over night.

My friend has a big slow cooker she just throws a chicken in there on a sunday morning, goes off hiking for the day, comes home and theres a chicken ready. But then I think she lets it down by microwaving a baked spud to go with it.

Thanks flibbertyjibbet - will try that next week!

Another question though if you don't mind! When do you put the spuds in - at the same time as the meat and veg - or later on - and do they fall apart to mush!!

No don't put spuds in they go to mush, or the flavour soaks into them too much - they just seem to spoil a slow cooked dish somehow. So we do the slow cooked meal with onions, lentils, carrots in with the meat and then potatoes rice or pasta done just before serving.

We had the braising steak for tea but the children weren't really hungry, so whats left I will put in the fridge tonight then tomorrow just heat it in a pan with a can of veg soup, more veg and lentils and serve it as a broth with cheese on toast.

Oh yes we eat like kings here at chez flibb.

Thanks for the tips Flibberty - sorry for the hijack!