Slow Cooker/Crock Pot: Recipes and Techniques

[fifi]

This brings me to a point I've been contemplating, can duck confit be made in a crock pot? What do you think? It seems and ideal vessel for it.

Elie

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Excellent question. I can't wait to see the answer. I am up for trying to do some duck confit this fall, in preparation for a cassoulet.

I see that onion confit has been mentioned. I think we have that covered in this thread. Woodburner really started something. Warning... it goes to 10 pages.

I used to really like my crockpot for all manner of beans. However, when I found out about the Russ Parsons method in Dried Bean thread I pretty much abandoned the crock pot. Well, not entirely. If I need to be gone all day and want beans to be ready when I get home, I still revert to the crockpot.

[babyluck]

There is a recipe for duck confit in Lora Brody's slow cooker cookbook. Apparently it can be done. I wouldn't buy the book, though.

For marie-louise--the crockpot I have is a Rival SmartPot that turns off and goes to warm after the programmed time. I am out of the house for the same amount of time and that's why I wanted one like that. However, it sucks.

#1 it's way too hot, the lid doesn't fit properly, the outside gets hot, liquids boil on the low setting and the lid dances & sputters--water vapor does escape from the ill-fitting lid, so at least that takes care of the reduction problem! but it's not really what you want if you're going to leave something unattended.

#2 you are locked into either 4 or 6 hours on High or 8 or 10 hours on Low. When the cycle finishes it goes into Warm mode but you CANNOT turn Warm on otherwise. This presents a huge problem if you see that the food is done and want to end the cycle but hold it for a while, or if you are serving on a buffet. The Low setting is way too hot and will actually burn the food and curdle your creamed soups. Toughens meat, too.

This is the one I have, but I have a slightly older model. They at least put a plastic handle on it so we wouldn't burn our fingers on its blistering exterior.

If anyone has a better solution for those of us who are out of the house for more than 10 hours, or can't plan to be home at a certain time, I'd love to hear it.

[marie-louise]

... but it's not really what you want if you're going to leave something unattended...If anyone has a better solution for those of us who are out of the house for more than 10 hours, or can't plan to be home at a certain time, I'd love to hear it.

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Thanks for your post. That reminds me, my house isn't completely unattended for 10 hours. I have four cats, and as you can see by my avatar, one who keeps insisting that it is okay to go onto the counters.

That could a problem w/ an ill-fitting lid, couldn't it?

[Richard Kilgore]

eGullet member joiei sent me a bag of his favorite grits a couple of months ago. These are from War Eagle Mill in Rogers Arkansas and are "Stone Buhr Ground Yankee Corn Grits". Now these are serious grits, and the recommended "15 - 20 minutes or until tender" usually runs to about 30" or more for me, but they are still not entirely tender. Very good nonetheless, and just as good the next day fried, of course.

Wondering about the use of slow cookers for grits, I talked early this year with the folks at Anson Mills, and they said that a number of restaurants use slow cookers to cook their stone ground grits, which call for about four hours of stove top cooking. So with joiei's War Eagle grits in hand, I decided to try doing them in a slow cooker to see if there was any difference. I did not time it closely, but I think I cooked them about three hours, maybe a little longer. Very good and better than than the stove top half hour version. But the revelation was in the fried version of these. Very, very good the next day, but extraordinary three days later.

Anyone else tried cooking grits in a slow cooker?

[andiesenji]

Yes, and in an electric roaster for really big batches when cooked just for molding in loaf pans to be sliced and fried for a community breakfast. Long and slow with the lid on tight to keep all the liquid inside is the trick.

I did something similar when making masa for tamales when we are going to have a big multi-family dinner. It saves a lot of time standing over a hot stove, stirring and stirring and stirring.

[Susan in FL]

No, but I sure am glad you posted this. I will do! Thanks.

[joiei]

Thanks for the input Richard. I am breaking out the crockpot now. 3 days, did you put any cheese or other seasonings into them?

[fifi]

SSB picky question... How much did you cook in how big a pot? Does this mean that I have to go buy another crock pot to get a smaller size so I don't have to cook a vat of grits? I find that if you don't have enough mass in a crock pot, the cooking rate is unpredictable.

Well... I guess I could cook up whatever it took, cut the leftovers in cubes, throw it over the balconey and watch the mallards and gulls fight over it.

[Richard Kilgore]

joiei -- I may have been ambiguous. That was cooked for three or four hours, then three days in the fridge. I didn't add any chesse, but that will be next time. I do suggest you try them plain before adding anything else, just to see how good they are relatively plain. I tried them with just salt, pepper and butter. Then also with a little maple syrup.

Linda -- I was concerned about that, too, but I did a cup of them in the 5 qt crock pot and it worked fine. I did stir it about once an hour.

[snowangel]

Seemingly stupid question. Crock pot on high or low? (Mine only has two settings; it is a big old Rival one, one of my two takes from my grandmother's hosue when she died some 15 years ago.)

[fifi]

Linda -- I was concerned about that, too, but I did a cup of them in the 5 qt crock pot and it worked fine.  I did stir it about once an hour.

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Richard... Richard... Richard... You were supposed to tell me that it absolutely would not work in the larger pot and that I would have to go get another toy.

I saw a 3 or 4 quart in the grocery the other day. It sure was cute.

[Richard Kilgore]

No doubt about it, Linda, the 3 qt. model would work muuuuch better.

[formerly grueldelux]

Anyone else tried cooking grits in a slow cooker?

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John Thorne did a bit about grits in a slow cooker recently in Simple Cooking ( I don't remember the issue number but it was within the last year or so and focused on grits and fried eggs.)

From my memory (not to be trusted) it was 5 water to 1 grits, butter,salt, overnight on low. I like the idea of waking up to them.

[Richard Kilgore]

Interesting, formerly. I can see how that would appeal to John Thorne. I need to subscribe to Simple Cooking. I got John's book of essays on his house a couple of months ago., and I have given a gift subscription to a cooking buddy.

I used the standard 3 to 1 ratio if I recall correctly, but overnight may be better than three or four hours and more water sounds like a good idea in that case.

[AlexP]

I cooked a batch a chili on top of the stove yesterday night (brown the meat in fat, some veggies, some stock, some tomatoes…). Once everything was in the heavy pot ready to be simmering for a while, I transferred the contents to a crock-pot to be cook over night. And here lays my error, I had the setting of the crock-pot in “Keep Warm” instead of “Low”. The chili cooked there for about 8 hours. This morning I noticed my error and tooked the temperature. The stew was about 184 Degrees F. I tasted the chili and it was done, I was actually satisfied with the taste as well.

My question is, should I worry about health safety? When I transferred the contents from the heavy pot to the crock-pot last night, the contents were hot since I have been cooking it on top of the stove. I remember using a spoon to taste the stew and having to wait a couple seconds for it to cool in order to not burnt myself.

If this was a batch just for me, I would not worry too much, but there will probably be 25+ people tasting it . I will have some for dinner tonight, so I guess if I get sick I will know before my wife serves it at her work on Friday, but I was hopping for some input before hand from the forum.

Any thoughts from e-Gullet members would be highly appreciated.

Thanks

Alex

[NulloModo]

I personally wouldn't worry at all, I have eaten tons of stuff that has spent multiple hours hanging out at 'keep warm' in the crockpot. I am not a food scientist by any means, but I believe 184 degrees is enough to kill any of the germs that would cause issues anyway.

[bleudauvergne]

It should be alright. How are you feeling?

[irodguy]

If you would be closer to Dallas I would tell you to throw it out immediately. I would be right over to take it and dispose of it properly.

Seriously there should not be a problem.

[Dave the Cook]

Most of the things that can kill you die themselves at 160 F. Enjoy.

[AlexP]

Thanks for the replies. I am glad everybody agrees that the chili should be fine regarding the safety issue.

I guess I could have being concern if everything were thrown to the crock-pot raw, since it could have taking a while for it to reach any high temperature. However, that end product would have not been any good, taste wise, without browning the meat and all.

There are going to be about 20 different chiles (chilis? sp) so hopefully people like my mix of spices.

Let me tell you, I am glad that it is my wife's office and not mine... Can you think what is going to happen there after all those people ate so much chili?

Alex

[hollis]

the future father in law sprung for a slow cooker for festivus this year. i'm eager to get started with it. any good cookbooks i should seek out.

thanks.

[NulloModo]

Cookbooks for a slow cooker? Just play around, have fun with it. Make onion confit, toss in a pork butt, a couple cans of kraut, some sausage and spices and let it go, do roasts, do stews and chili, cook comfort food 24/7 !

[ladyyoung98]

check out ebay....you can generally find cookbooks on almost anything there...just type in either cookbooks in the search area or you can be more specific by typing in crockpot cookbooks..or you can leae it generalized...but in truth there ar e many recipes you can adapt to a slow cooker...have fun and enjoy

[MelissaH]

However, one thing to be aware of is that many of the slow cooker cookbooks seem to wind up on the bland side of bland. Many of the authors seem to be real wusses about spicy food, and soy sauce seems to be considered an exotic ingredient. Mable Hoffman seems to be particularly guilty in these respects, and she's got many cookbooks out.

That said, one that gets more adventuresome (and more to our taste) is The Slow Cooker Ready & Waiting Cookbook by Rick Rodgers. (Here's an Amazon link.)

Once you've played with your cooker a little, you'll also be able to figure out how to use it for some of your existing recipes. Have fun!

MelissaH

[Suzanne F]

Anything you can braise on the stovetop or in the oven, you can do in a slow cooker. Sometimes better! Besides the aforementioned onion confit, I've used mine to make duck confit, chili, congee, braised lamb shanks, beef stew, pozole, etc. etc. The only time it has been less than great is the most recent: I was braising a duck, totally skinned, cut into pieces (including hacking the bones into pieces with meat on them), and overcooked it by several hours. Tastes fabulous, but almost completely dissolved the shreds of meat on the bones.