Favoriet slow cooker / crockpot recipes

[strokes630]

So I just recently bought a crockpot (is a slow cooker the same thing?) and don't know what to do with it. I know that I can put something in it in the morning and have dinner ready when I come home from work. Anyone have any favorite recipes?

 

[strokes630]

um how about FavoriTE recipes for a title.

 

[gsdx]

A crock pot and a slow cooker are the same thing. 'Crock Pot' is a brand name.

I make a lot of chili and spaghetti sauce and various stews in mine, but you probably wouldn't like my chili. I've been told I put strange things in it.

 

[gsdx]

So, in parallel to your question; can someone recommend a decent product brand or line?

Our family has always used Crock Pots with stone liners. On high, it will simmer liquids in a slow boil.

I've cooked roasts and whole chickens in mine.

 

[gsdx]

I think I'll opt for a Crock Pot next time 'round. It's an established brand.

This is similar to mine. It has only 3 settings: Off, Low, & High

The stone bowl keeps things hot for hours even after you turn it off.

Try to avoid the metal bowls. My sister got one and hated it.

 

[roadtripboy]

I have a Hamilton Beach that gets hot enough on high to bring things to a low boil. I got it Kmart. Hamilton Beach and Procter/Silex are the same company. The ones that have a "keep warm" setting along with high & low are a bit more useful.

I've found almost any recipe can be adapted for a Crock Pot. You just need to increase the liquid that's called for.

I've even made Lasagna in mine. Just google crock pot recipes or slow cooker recipes you should get lots of things to try.

 

[gsdx]

Noted. Our unit was all metal.

Ah. Integrated bowl?

 

[The_Bennu_Bird]

My favorite Is deer or beef stew in the crock pot.

depending on the size of your pot use 1-2 pounds of meat about the same for the potatoes and carrots 2-4 celery ribs and half a large onion or whole again, depending on the pot size. everything gets cut into fairly large chunks.
Dredge your meat in flour and fry in a hot skillet with some olive oil till all sides are lightly browned. You can also fry the onion if you like it extra tender.

I like my stew spices simple some crushed garlic and S&P the real flavor comes from the can of beer you add with the beef stock. Put your meat and onions in the very bottom then the root veggies and lastly the celery pour in the beer and the stock till everything is immersed in liquid set to low and cook 8 hours.

If you like a thicker stock when you are done cooking mix a tablespoon of corn starch with equal amounts of cold water then pour into stew and stir sauce will thicken when cooler.

I forgot I sometimes add a cut up green pepper with the celery when I have them on hand.

Enjoy!

 

[gsdx]

Not quite sure what you mean by integrated bowl... said bowl came out of the unit as a serving bowel.

Integrated bowls were sealed into the cooker as a single unit. They're buggers to wash.

By the way, my crock pot (I thought it was a brand name) is a Rival. They're available at Home Hardware.

 

[roadtripboy]

Integrated bowls were sealed into the cooker as a single unit. They're buggers to wash.

By the way, my crock pot (I thought it was a brand name) is a Rival. They're available at Home Hardware.

I have two. I just looked the one I haven't used in a while. It says Rival Crock Pot. I'm guessing Rival is the only company that uses the phrase Crock Pot.

I like the newer one better. The bowl is oval which I like better the round tall one on the older one.

 

[zoltanspawn]

However, we bought a slow cooker that even on high, gets no more than mildly warm and nothing actually cooks. I plan on tossing The Thing as the receipt long ago got thrown out and The Thing has been sitting in the cupboard taking up space since the last failed attempt to do something with it.

Depending on the the temperature, spottiness and fluctuations of The Thing, you may actually have a high-end yogurt maker on your hands. If you like yogurt, try making some before you throw it out.

 

[justndav]

I have the Rival smart crock pot... its great. The stone bowl sits in the unit. It has a 4,6,8, and 10 hour setting. If you cook something in it long enough it will also come to a low boil as well. I just used mine today to make swiss steak. Round steaks lightly floured with pepper and ms dash. Put that in the stone bowl, then I put fresh blanched/cut tomatoes, tomato sauce, onions, green peppers, peas, carrots, and celery. Cooked on medium (six hours) and served over nice homemade mashed potatoes. MMM mmm good... it makes a lot of things. A good crock pot cookbook is helpful with lots of cool recipes. You can also make a lot of after dinner treats in them as well.

 

[Joshua_me]

http://southernfood.about.com/library/crock/blcpidx.htm


^ Here's a link to one of my favorite collections of slow cooker recipes.

And it's well organized to boot.


If you're buying a Crock Pot (slow cooker, same thing, whatever) it's best to get a digital one that switches itself to a 'stay warm' setting after the cooking is done.

That way, you can set the cooking time in advance and not worry about it....

 

[ozguy]

Here's a simple but tasty beef recipe for the slow cooker. I'm about to make it for dinner tonight, in fact ....

Smoked Paprika Goulash

Vegetable oil
2 large onions, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
quarter cup smoked Spanish paprika (or whatever ground paprika you happen to have in the cupboard)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 kg (about 2 lbs) chuck steak or casserole steak cut into biggish chunks
1 and a half cups of water (I prefer to use the ready-made Campbells beef stock for extra flavour)
185g (7 oz approx) tomato paste
your favourite short pasta
half cup sour cream (optional)
chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat a splash of oil in a large frypan. Cook and stir onions until they soften and begin to brown at the edges (8 - 10 mins). Add garlic and cook a further minute or two. Transfer mixture to slow cooker.

2. Mix together the paprika, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss the meat cubes in the paprika mixture until evenly coated.

3. Add another splash of oil into the frypan over medium-high heat. Put half of the meat mixture into the frypan and cook, stirring occasionally until nicely browned on all sides. Transfer to the slow cooker. Pour a bit of water into the frypan and scrape the crusty browned bits from the pan; pour the liquid into the slow cooker. This prevents the paprika from burning when you brown the next batch of meat. Add another splash of oil to the frypan and cook the next batch the same way.

4. Stir the tomato paste and water (or beef stock) into the slow cooker; cover. Cook on High 4 - 5 hours, or on Low 7 - 9 hours.

5. Serve the goulash over the cooked pasta with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of fresh chopped parsley.

 

[pixie77]

http://southernfood.about.com/library/crock/blcpidx.htm


Here's a link to one of my favorite collections of slow cooker recipes.


Thanks for this site

 

[ozguy]

Heaps of slow cooker recipes here, too ....

Slow Cooker recipes

 

[Yooper]

Just to clarify, and because I sell the things:

A slow cooker, Crock-Pot (a US trademark that is often used generically), or Slo-Cooker (a UK trade mark that is often used generically) is a countertop electrical cooking appliance that maintains a relatively low temperature compared to other cooking methods (such as baking, boiling, and frying), for many hours allowing unattended cooking of pot roast, stew, and other suitable dishes.

History

The Naxon Utilities Corporation of Chicago developed the Naxon Beanery All-Purpose Cooker[1]. The Rival Company bought Naxon in 1970, and reintroduced it under the Crock-Pot name in 1971. In 1974, Rival introduced removable stoneware inserts.[2] The brand now belongs to Sunbeam Products, a subsidiary of Jarden Corporation. Other brands of this appliance include Hamilton Beach, West Bend Housewares, GE, Magic Chef, Bella Cucina, Haier, Cooks, and former American Electric Corporation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crock_pot

 

[ozguy]

Here's our old crock-pot with the goulash bubbling away in it ....

Had it over 30 years and it's still going strong!! Funny thing is, crock-pot cooking went out of fashion not long after we bought the unit so it has sat in the cupboard doing nothing for about the last 25 years. Now it's all the rage again, just the name has changed, is all!

 

[mbamike]

Yes, I have one and use it weekly. It is great for cooking stews, dry beans, soups and such. I put the food on to cook in the morning, then that evening at supper time the food is ready to eat.

 

[CowboyBob]

I use my crock pot all the time.

Put in a beef roast, some chopped up potatoes, carrots, onions and a envelope of dry onion soup mixed into a glass of water and let it cook all day. Great beef roast.

If you want, take the roast out after about 5 hours and cube it, put it back in and add some flour and it makes the best beef stew.

Made homemade beer cheese soup in the crock pot a while ago that was incredible. Made apple butter last week from sliced apples in the crock.