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I love my crockpot(s)


Darienne

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@onrushpam--could you tell me what the model number is? I looked on both the Canadian and US Hamilton Beach websites, and can't find any slow cookers with interchangeable bowls. It sounds perfect!

eta--oops! found it! I was looking at the "stay or go" page thinking all the slow cookers were there, but there's a separate "slow cooker" page. It's called the 3-in-One Slow Cooker.

Edited by prasantrin (log)
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We're having a fairly large party next Tuesday night. For drinks, I'm serving "Hot Apple Pies" - a mug of steaming mulled cider laced with a generous shot of Tuaca, and a topping of whipped cream.

Out of my crock pot, naturally.

____________________

Edited by Jaymes (log)

I don't understand why rappers have to hunch over while they stomp around the stage hollering.  It hurts my back to watch them. On the other hand, I've been thinking that perhaps I should start a rap group here at the Old Folks' Home.  Most of us already walk like that.

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We're having a fairly large party next Tuesday night. For drinks, I'm serving "Hot Apple Pies" - a mug of steaming mulled cider laced with a generous shot of Tuaca, and a topping of whipped cream.

Out of my crock pot, naturally.

____________________

Naturally.

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

We live in hope. 

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It was the 2nd biggest mess I've ever had to clean up in my kitchen. (You don't want to know about the biggest mess!)

Yes, actually, I'll bet more than one of us would like to know about the biggest mess. Two crockpots full of chicken stew for dogs WAAAAY outclasses my worst mess of "a sack of flour." And that's only #2?

As for crock pots:

onion confit

duck confit

any confit, really

making stock -- nothing is better for making stock than a crock pot

I am also toying with the idea of using a temperature regulator to turn my crock pot into an ersatz immersion bath for sous vide. The thick crock holds temperature very, very well. And I'll bet I could keep a steak within a degree or two of 131f for 24 hours.

Who cares how time advances? I am drinking ale today. -- Edgar Allan Poe

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The crock pot is on the counter every weekend from October through mid-April with soup for all-day eating.

In late August we were at Costco and I saw the triple version. It was a scene reminiscent of the Griswolds seeing their

Family Christmas Tree (shining lights, angels singing). :wub: That same day we used it - hots dogs, kraut and Sabretts onions in sauce each in their own pot.

Confit? :slaps forehead:

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Thinking about the three-in-one crockpot and yearning slightly... Naked greed is so what?...human.

If you don't have the space...then the 3-in-1 is great. However, if you do have the space...and we do..although no crockpot is stored in the kitchen proper...but then lots of kitchen stuff is not stored in the kitchen...then three crockpots (or more) are better for multi-cooking, entertaining large crowds, etc.

So...shoved my buying urge behind me and concentrated on thinking about the things I actually want to get in the States. :raz:

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

We live in hope. 

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I think my crockpot is one of the not-so-hot temperature-wise ones. It took about 3 hours just to get it up to 135F and stayed there for more than 30 minutes, so I just put the baking soda/water mixture in, anyway.

I have the feeling I'll be up very late before it gets to the consistency I want.

I'm going to assume all Rival crockpots with dials have similar temperatures. Do Hamilton Beach ones generally run hotter than Rival?

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I think my Hamilton Beach runs a little hotter than the Rival when it's on low. The first time I used it, the liquid cooked away before I got home and caused a bit of a mess. I've learned to add a little more liquid than I used to. However, I cooked chuck roast for French Dips yesterday. Because I was running short on time, I put it on High. It took forever to get up to a simmer.

The 3-in-1 cooker took a bit of getting used to. The heating elements are only around the sides of the base. With the small (2 qt) bowl, it's pretty much the same as a more typical slow cooker. But, when you scale up to the largest bowl, quite a lot of it is above the heating elements. So, it's more akin to cooking something at a slow simmer on your stove top. The entire bowl is not wrapped with heat.

Still, I like it for it's flexibility. My very small kitchen doesn't really have room for multiple appliances.

Hope that makes sense.

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Here's a "trick" for using one of the big roasters that most people never think of but which was very common at church suppers and large home parties back in my childhood days.

Set three or four deep casserole dishes or heat-proof bowls filled with food into the roaster, pour hot water into the roaster pan, set the temp for 225° F., and plug 'er in.

It works like a giant chafer and keeps the foods at a perfect serving temp.

I have two rectangular slow cookers and the two inner crocks fit perfectly in my old Hamilton Beach roaster. It will also hold two large fish poachers. (I have an eye for seeing these things with alternate uses.)

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Andie, my dear, you are one clever lady!!! :wub:

I don't have a big roaster, but I do have the largest crockpot made (I think). Our daughter gave it to me a couple of years ago and mostly it sits there, unused...just TOO big.

There was an old electric roaster in a second hand store in Moab a couple of weeks ago. Could have bought it for a song... I'll keep an eye out.

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

We live in hope. 

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How big is the largest crock pot and who makes it? I have used a roaster for sous vide with a PID controller, a rice cooker is just too small. For smaller items I have used a "manual" crockpot, one that has three settings without any fancy electronics. Based upon my experience with a large ceockpot, I think a very large one would be better than the roaster.

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One company makes a 10-quart. Hard to find, or at least it was.

There are 8-quart models readily available.

I'll check my files and post the links later.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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I found these slow cookers: There are commercial ones that are more costly.

Big slow cookers

Amazon has some fairly large

And the 18 quart Rival "roaster" that works just like a crock pot.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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My family can't survive the winter without me making a queso with pork recipe that I have always made and kept warm in the crockpot.

I think a first post like this requires a recipe! I especially like that "queso" comes before "pork". :smile:

And I think that I would like very much to have this queso with pork recipe. :wub: Please.

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

We live in hope. 

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I finally made something in my crockpot that wasn't merely edible but quite good. It was a recipe for Chicken Fricasee from the book Slow Cooker, One Pot Cooking and Casseroles. I replaced the chicken called for with 3 lbs of thighs and when it was cooked stripped the meat off the bone before serving.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

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All this chat about using the crockpot has got me to use mine today. I made French dip (the meat and broth) in the crockpot for dinner. It's just a roast, beef stock/broth and seasonings (herbs and such) to taste. I did add some sliced onion and crimini mushrooms half way through to add flavor and something extra to put into the sandwiches. It turned out really well, so it'll be added to our regular meal rotation.

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Here's an interesting idea that arrived in my email today:

How to Make Irish Cream Coffee in CrockPot

I don't drink alcohol but I'm sure I can figure out a non-alcoholic version.

I have got so much from subscribing to this blog, I hope it goes on forever.

Edited by andiesenji (log)

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm bumping up this topic because last evening I had dinner with neighbors and she recently got one of these Three-in-One Slow Cookers

and has found it to be much more versatile than the 4-quart she had been using. (Dropped the crock and broke it.)

She told me that she had not been using the old one as much because so many dishes she would have liked to prepare were either too small or too large for the 4-qt, and this way she has the exact size she needs for the size of each dish.

Also the crocks nest when empty so the footprint of the appliance is almost the same as her old one.

A very clever design for those of you who have limited space and who were wondering what size to get!

She adapted an idea from one of her cookbooks and sealed the lid with dough when braising meaty ribs. They were absolutely delicious.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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I'm bumping up this topic because last evening I had dinner with neighbors and she recently got one of these Three-in-One Slow Cookers

and has found it to be much more versatile than the 4-quart she had been using. (Dropped the crock and broke it.)

onrushpam has one of those, and when I asked about it (on page 1 or 2 of this thread), she said:

The 3-in-1 cooker took a bit of getting used to. The heating elements are only around the sides of the base. With the small (2 qt) bowl, it's pretty much the same as a more typical slow cooker. But, when you scale up to the largest bowl, quite a lot of it is above the heating elements. So, it's more akin to cooking something at a slow simmer on your stove top. The entire bowl is not wrapped with heat.

I think I'd still prefer it because of its versatility, but after having so much trouble with the heating of my current crock-pot, I'd be a little more concerned about being able to control the heat with the 3-in-1.

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I wondered about that also and I think that is why the lid was sealed with dough for cooking the ribs - which were left for 9 hours while Leila was at work. She mentioned that a whole chicken was just a bit dry after prolonged cooking and figured the lid wasn't tight enough to keep the moisture from escaping.

I read some of the reviews and the earliest ones from when it was first introduced mentioned "hot spots" in the bottom. I'm not sure if they have changed the heating elements.

She bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond when they were on sale and paid $29.95 as she figured at that price it wouldn't be too much of a wrench if it didn't work as advertised.

I think they are starting a new round of sales now.

She said that she also saw it a Macy's but it was priced higher and they were on closeout so she ended up at B,B&B.

Edited by andiesenji (log)

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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I often start with the crock in the microwave, nuke the liquids up to temp, and then put it all in the heating unit & add whatever. Makes it easier to predict finishing times on new recipes.

Crockpots make the best beerbrats w onions.

"You dont know everything in the world! You just know how to read!" -an ah-hah! moment for 6-yr old Miss O.

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