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Original poster

Slow cookers

184 replies

MrsCadwallader · 06/01/2010 20:08

My sister has just bought one and is utterly evangelical and attempting to convert me

Do I need one? Are they worth having? Or will it simply spend all but the first month of its life cluttering up my worktop until my husband eventually puts it in the loft with the bread machine?

And if I do need one, does anyone have any tips? Brand recommendations? Recipes?

Thanks!

OP posts:
clapton · 08/01/2010 15:21

I've had mine about a month now and I am so glad I have one. It's nice to come home from work and dinner is already prepared. I have used it three times this week and at the moment there is a chicken curry bubbling away in there.

wheredidmyfeetgo · 08/01/2010 15:21

And I have to fess up I did do the "Anyday Chicken Dinner" (I think that's what it's called) it's one with condensed soup in it but it was quite nice, my DF and both DS's woofed it down

kif · 08/01/2010 15:33

I make pulled pork from that book.

A bit sweet, but not bad at all.

OtterInaSkoda · 08/01/2010 15:45

Thanks, wheredid. The recipe I'm thinking of is for a suet pastry pud that you steam in the slow cooker. So you put the browned steak etc into a suet pastry lined pudding basin and put that into the slow cooker.

How do you make the puddingy bit?

wheredidmyfeetgo · 08/01/2010 15:56

Ah I see, the pudding is made like dumplings.
I do 2 cups (which I think must be 16oz) of Self raising Flour and then 1 cup of soft butter. Do "pinchy finger thing" to combine then add a little water to get it to all stick together in a ball.
Sprinkle some flour on work top and rolling pin and roll out to size of pan. Pop it on to and prick a couple of holes through the centre and leave it for about 20 mins.

gherkinwithapurplemerkin · 08/01/2010 16:09

We had beef cobbler last night

Fry chopped onion, add a litle garlic. In a new/clean pan fry off stewing steak (rolled in seasoned flour 1st). Chop potatoes, carrots, parsnips into cubes. All these go in the slow cooker with a tin of chopped toms and a cup of beef stock. Cook for c5-6hrs.

We had some leftovers so I warmed hem up at lunchtime, added some boiling water - soup!

My slow cooker is especially ace as it is a separate pot and hotplate, so I can cook everything on the hob first then just pop the pot onto the hotplate. Only one pot to wash up.

differentID · 08/01/2010 16:17

I couldn't live without mine now.

Original poster
MrsCadwallader · 08/01/2010 16:27

My God, I'm hungry now

OP posts:
wheredidmyfeetgo · 08/01/2010 16:54

So am I , but that might also be due to the fact that I'm 16 weeks pregnant with DC3!

I have nothing in the slow cooker today

LIZS · 08/01/2010 19:43

4 hours was just right Was going to use the leftover veg and stock for soup. As I also have some extra rice cooked can I add it to the veg after blitzing ?

glasjam · 08/01/2010 21:45

Useful thread! I have a £5 1.4 litre Asda slow cooker and cooked one small beef stew in it that turned out rather nice. Am therefore thinking about investing in a larger one (but not a HUGE one like 6 litres). Was thinking that I would get rid of my piddly Asda one but could I actually use it to cook rice in it??!! That would be amazing if I could.

Do those of you that have one that also sits on the hob think it's worth paying a bit extra to be able to do this? I assume that as it can go on the hob you can do your browning in there first and then put it back in the slow cooker with the veg?

Divster · 09/01/2010 05:22

Does meat need browning though?

mumblecrumble · 09/01/2010 06:31

If you're in a rush you don;t need to brown but down taste better. You can put hot water in browning pan to clean off all the gunk then through in the cooker too.

mmmmmmm. LOVE my slow cooker. I work part time and use it most days I'm at work. I usally make 'staples' then use for differnet stuff the rest of the week.

E.g. last night did about 2 lbs of shin with a red pepper, onions and herbs. What i usually do in put a few spuds in and have the first meal (three of us) as Beef with spuds and veg, then I spilt into 2 for the freezer - 1 batch I add sme spices and chilly powder and this does with rice, the other I add garlic and tomato paste and this goes with pasta.

Do a similar thing with diced shoulder of pork. I add tin of toms, grated ginger from the frezer, garlic and a spoon of honey.... Have with rice, then noodles.

Slow cookers are great cos you can use cheaper meats and beans, can chuck any old left overs in and it'll taste lush and you simply cannot beat that feeling of being on your way home and knowing there's something hot and yumlingcious ready to eat....

Picante · 09/01/2010 07:27

FWIW don't try porridge.

Tastes of wallpaper paste.

kif · 09/01/2010 09:11

I disagree totally! We have slow cooker porridge for breakfast every day.

The night before I put in oats and water but not turn it on. I turn it on when i wake up (about 5 or 6 - i work before the kdis get up). Porridge ready for 7.30 breakfast.

To do overnight porridge you need to use 'pin head' oats (or a cooker with a timer), otherwise it over cooks.

Rice is great in the slcoker. Squirt some spray oil first to avoid sticking. One cup rice one cup water. And not all day! Just a couple of hours.

BettyButterknife · 09/01/2010 09:30

I've been thinking about getting a slow cooker, but we're vegetarian.

Would it be too limited for us? Are there enough recipes we could do without meat?

dreamingofsun · 09/01/2010 10:14

betty we aren't vegetarian but i can't see why you couldn't still use one - i guess you eat lots of stew/curry/sweet and sour type things? i do use mine for other things too - but these involve meat - so guess your options would be slightly more restricted - but then they are anyway

dreamingofsun · 09/01/2010 10:14

forgot to say - porridge is disgusting - agree with wallpaper comment and it takes ages to clean pot so doesn't save time

OtterInaSkoda · 09/01/2010 12:00

Betty - you'd be able to make various casserole or curry dishes with vegetables and pulses so I think you'd get good use out of a slocker. There's a Thai vegetable curry that I keep meaning to try in one of my slow cooker cook books for example. Mixed bean chilli would be good, or how about winter vegetable stew with herby dumplings (made with vegetarian suet)?

OtterInaSkoda · 09/01/2010 12:04

Thanks wheredidmyfeetgo, btw. Will give the pudding thing a go

TheBuggerofSuburbia · 09/01/2010 12:35

Can we have the rice pudding recipe pleeeeeease? And whoever steamed the Christmas pud in theirs - how did that work?

I've got duck legs in mine right now - they were half price in Sainsbos this week. Chucked in with a quartered tangerine, a roughly chunked apple, star anise, bay leaf, a slug of port, red wine and chicken stock. I don't really use recipes for stews and casseroles, just bung in what I think will work together - never had a bad one yet.

spokette · 09/01/2010 14:13

I have used my slow cooker for 2 months and the main problem I have is getting the veg like potatoes and carrots to be really soft even after 9 hours! The only way to do it is to cut them thinly and that takes longer than just chopping them and throwing them into the pot which was the whole point of having a slow cooker. I make sure I put the veg at the bottom and meat on top.

Any advice would be much appreciated. I do like my slow cooker but I need to perfect the vegetables!

LIZS · 09/01/2010 14:25

Root veg yesterday were in cubes, about 1.5cm thick, and were done in 4 hours. I think the key is to keep them even sized and make sure the liquid covers them.

I assume it is cheaper to cook by slow cooker over an extended period than in an oven ?

spokette · 09/01/2010 14:35

Thanks. Silly question but how easy it to do even cubes?

kif · 09/01/2010 15:10

pot not hard to clean after porridge! After breakfast, i soak it with water. Then after school run, work, most of the residue just comes off and it just needs a wipe really! it's only hard to clean if you overcook the porridge (which would be consistent with the wallpaper paste comment).