Jump to content
  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

Slow Cooker/Crock Pot: Recipes and Techniques


Wilfrid

Recommended Posts

I have a sweet potato chili recipe that loves the crockpot.

You have a "sweet potato chili recipe"? Man, does that sound interesting. Care to share?

Be warned. I have won hearts with this chili.

4 sweet potatoes (one male, one female), peeled, parboiled and cut up

2-14 oz. cans diced tomatoes (juice and all). I prefer the Muir Glen fire roasted ones, with chiles in them

3 tbsp tomato paste

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 onion, diced

1-14 oz. can chickpeas (drained)

1-14 oz. can black beans (not fully drained)

2 tsp curry powder or to taste

couple dashes hot pepper sauce

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp dried oregano

¼ cup raisins

1 bay leaf

1 cup vegetable broth or water

toasted slivered almonds and plain yogurt to garnish

Mix everything but the garnishes into a slow cooker. Heat on low for 4-6 hours. Remove bay leaf.

Serve with a dollop of yogurt swirled in, and a tablespoon or so of toasted almonds.

Can also be made on the stove: low heat for 30 minutes or until hot and thickened.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What I'm wondering is when you cook meat in a crockpot, do you take skin off chicken, etc, or trim fat? I always get a bunch of fat pooled in the pot. Or do you just cool it and skim?

In the many many books I've been looking through, trying to get ideas, all generally agree to ditch the skin before cooking.

I sometimes cook chicken in the crockpot WITH the skin. I cover the bottom of the crockpot with loosely packed balls of foil. Then, I season the chicken and place it on top. The fat drains down to the bottom, underneath the foil balls. It's a neat trick. I especially like using chicken made this way for chicken salad, but it's good hot too. :smile:

Danielle Altshuler Wiley

a.k.a. Foodmomiac

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Be warned. I have won hearts with this chili.

4 sweet potatoes (one male, one female), peeled, parboiled and cut up

2-14 oz. cans diced tomatoes (juice and all). I prefer the Muir Glen fire roasted ones, with chiles in them

3 tbsp tomato paste

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 onion, diced

1-14 oz. can chickpeas (drained)

1-14 oz. can black beans (not fully drained)

2 tsp curry powder or to taste

couple dashes hot pepper sauce

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp dried oregano

¼ cup raisins

1 bay leaf

1 cup vegetable broth or water

toasted slivered almonds and plain yogurt to garnish

Mix everything but the garnishes into a slow cooker.  Heat on low for 4-6 hours.  Remove bay leaf.

Serve with a dollop of yogurt swirled in, and a tablespoon or so of toasted almonds.

Can also be made on the stove: low heat for 30 minutes or until hot and thickened.

Wow. I have never heard of anything like this. I can hardly wait to try it out. Where did you get this recipe?

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.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ever heard of Chicken Country Captain? Well, I took out the chicken (was dating a vegetarian), added yams, and increased the heat and made it more chili-like. I've tweaked it a LOT over the years. It's truly my own, now. Take, and do with it what you will!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

We have just purchased a slow cooker here in the UK and my wife prepared a brisket of beef with onions, mushrooms, potatoes and carrots - boiled beef and carrots as the old music hall song goes! She didn't sear the meat or sweat off the veg, the only liquid was water and seasonings were limited to a bay leaf or two, salt and pepper.

The result was very good indeed. The "liquor", once reduced, was very flavourful, the veg beautifully cooked and not mushy as often happens in the oven cooked equivilent (I usually have to cook a second batch of veg seperately and throw out what was cooked with the meat). The only problem was that the meat had dried out slightly, but that was down to over cooking which we put down to inexperience with the kit. I'll be interested to try cooking chicken, pork and lamb as the idea that everything tastes the same from a slow cooker is a very intriguing one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A couple times a month in the winter I make a sublime, simple pot roast in my bright red Rival slow cooker.

Saute 1/2 c each of onions, carrots, turnips/potatoes, and celery till soft. Dump that into the cooker. In the same pan, brown a 3-pound chuck roast that you have presalted -- a la Judy Rodgers -- by at least one day. Place that on top of the sauteed veggies. Deglaze the pan with 1/2 c red wine, reduce till slightly thickened. Pour that into the cooker, along with a cup of boiling water. Turn on low. Cook for 8-9 hours.

Strain sauce, and refrigerate overnight *separate* from the roast. Next day remove the layer of congealed fat from the sauce and any fatty bits from the roast. Pour a bit of sauce into a large saucepan and place roast on top. Cook, covered, over low till heated through. Meanwhile, heat sauce, thicken if necessary with a bit of potato starch slurry (I don't find it necessary). Steam some root vegetables to serve with the roast. Soul-satisfying!

A chuck roast is essential for a flavorful, meltingly tender result. A flat, steak-shaped one with plenty of marbling is best and easiest (only two sides to brown). Avoid anything from the round -- its lack of marbling makes for a dry flavorless pot roast in the slow cooker. Brisket is too chewy for the kind of meltingly tender texture I want.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are several excellent cookbooks on the subject

What are these cookbooks, in your opinion? I bought one at the book fair at my work because it was for a good cause, and well... it is a cause in itself!

"Many people believe the names of In 'n Out and Steak 'n Shake perfectly describe the contrast in bedroom techniques between the coast and the heartland." ~Roger Ebert

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll be interested to try cooking chicken, pork and lamb as the idea that everything tastes the same from a slow cooker is a very intriguing one.

I've been experimenting recently with my new slow-cooker and have cooked chicken, lamb and beef. I didn't think that anything tasted like the others, but the other flavourings in the recipes were radically different. I'm in favour of browning the meats (and some veg) before placing in the crock - and I find that the recipes take a little more seasoning than they would using a different cooking method.

So far I like it - for fall and winter it makes very 'homey' meals. Must try a brisket in it.

Edited by Pam R (log)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I use my slow cooker for many dishes a few times per month

This weekend I put together homemade beans on low for about ten hours and the result was very good.

I have used it for whole chicken with a traditional mirepouix, no liquid added. The result is a tender offering with a good amount of liquid broth to be defatted and used for a gravy or a multitude of other recipes.

Sourkraut, onions and pork ribs seasoned with wine, chicken base and pepper comes out succulent.

The slow cooker is convenient basically forget about cooking for those of us working and is really great for those comfort food dishes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One of the problems we had was that the liquid came to a fairly fast simmer after around 6 hours (when the meat was not yet tender) and as we cooked the dish for a total of 8, this was almost certainly the cause of the dried out meat. I did think of putting the lid ajar on the cooker, but as the idea is to leave the dish to cook by itself overnight or when we are out of the house, I wanted to see what the result would be if we just left it. The cooker has just four settings - off/low/high (for reducing sauces) and warm for warming through already cooked dishes. Any ideas how to rectify this? The liquid came up around 7/8 of the way up the meat which I think may have been too much. Would there be any benefit in reducing the amount?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just wondering which slow cookers you are using. We've tried some that have been awful. One Rival pot gets so hot it is dangerous to touch and it spews hot water out of the lid while it cooks.

The other cooks unevenly. Another one was recalled by Rival -- not sure why but maybe because the construction of its handles was unsafe.

Thanks,

Kris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a Rival stoneware crockpot. I've only used it twice so far. Both dishes were very good. I haven't gotten around to posting the lamb recipe yet. I don't really see how either dish would be improved using the stovetop or oven.

We used lamb ribs and chicken legs, both obviously fattier pieces of meat which might explain the success of the dishes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 11 months later...

My folks have just taken off overseas for 6 weeks leaving me to fend all for myself. Being the busy type (work study etc) i was thinking that the crock pot looked like it may be a good friend for the next month and a half. So if anyone has any good crockpot recipes I would love to hear them, especially anything hot/very spicy!

Lay it on me.

"Alternatively, marry a good man or woman, have plenty of children, and train them to do it while you drink a glass of wine and grow a moustache." -Moby Pomerance

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is my favorite thing to make in a Crock Pot. Get yourself a big old cheap chuck roast. Stuff it in the pot. Add 1 cup of beef broth, 1 packet of Italian dressing mix, half a jar of pepperoncinis and half of the brine. Add whatever else you want - oregano, a little soy sauce, onion, garlic, whatever. Cook on low 8 - 10 hours. Shred meat. Toss back into the sauce. Taste for seasoning. Put on buttered toasted buns; put on provolone and run under broiler. Dip the sandwiches in the juice. Good with fries on the side.

I love cooking with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Anyone know a recipe for BarBQ pork (i.e for pulled pork sandwhiches) for a crock pot...one that maybe even. possibly, has the sause included right in the crock pot dish? As you can see I am trying to find a recipe that is as simple as possible. My fiance loves BarBQ pork and I want to make him a nice batch...but with ease! Thanks!

"One Hundred Years From Now It Will Not Matter What My Bank Account Was, What Kind of House I lived in, or What Kind of Car I Drove, But the World May Be A Better Place Because I Was Important in the Life of A Child."

LIFES PHILOSOPHY: Love, Live, Laugh

hmmm - as it appears if you are eating good food with the ones you love you will be living life to its fullest, surely laughing and smiling throughout!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well...as the bbq fiends will no doubt tell you, the crock pot can't do bbq. However, if you like the NC vinegar style, this isn't a bad approximation. Originally it used a 5 lb turkey breast, but I think a pork roast would work just fine:

1 pint cider vinegar

1 stick margarine (old recipe; no reason you can't use butter afaik)

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon of salt

1 tablespoon of black pepper

1 tablespoon of garlic powder

3 tablespoons of ketchup

2 medium, onions, diced

1/3 bottle of barbeque sauce

Boil together in a pot, pour over the meat in the crockpot, cook till done (standard 8 hours on low). Shred & put on rolls, possibly with coleslaw. Not real bbq, but tasty & easy, esp for a crowd.

Joanna G. Hurley

"Civilization means food and literature all round." -Aldous Huxley

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another not-quite-BBQ, but this is a fantastic recipe. It doesn't sound like much, but everyone I've fed it to asks for it and actually makes it...

Crock Pot Carnitas

2-2 1/2 lb. pork loin roast

Juice and Zest of 1 lime

Juice and Zest of 1 orange

2 T. ground cumin

3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped (I used 4

salt

pepper

Turn crockpot to *high* and spray with cooking spray, add juices and

seasonings. Put roast into crockpot. You may need to slice it in half to

get it to fit. You can cut the temp to low after 3 hours or just leave on high; it works fine either way. It should take 4 to 5 hours for it to be done.

Shred the meat and serve with rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, cilantro, salsas or any other Latin-inspired sides!

ENJOY...

"I'm not eating it...my tongue is just looking at it!" --My then-3.5 year-old niece, who was NOT eating a piece of gum

"Wow--this is a fancy restaurant! They keep bringing us more water and we didn't even ask for it!" --My 5.75 year-old niece, about Bread Bar

"He's jumped the flounder, as you might say."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

Whoa. For that price, I think I'll stick with browning the meat on the stove and transferring to the slow cooker.

As chance would have it, I've been using my slow cookers more often receltly. Turned a pork butt into ragu, cooked many kinds of dry beans, and have used it to make tinga (chicken thighs cooked with chipotle, tomato and onion, then shredded).

--

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whoa.  For that price, I think I'll stick with browning the meat on the stove and transferring to the slow cooker.

Yea, that's why I am coveting and not gloating. Maybe Santa will be kind this year :)

I run a couple of Cuisinart slow cookers now. I am starting to appreciate wanting to skip the brown and transfer step in the process. I can't find a manual for the All Clad to know what kind of temp settings it has. The West Bend Versatility units look very practical and adjustable, but that All clad machine is just so sexy.... :wub:

My soup looked like an above ground pool in a bad neighborhood.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...