Slow Cooker/Crock Pot: Recipes and Techniques

[Dave the Cook]

How big?

[fifi]

Uh... Not one of the big oval ones. Uh... about "that big"? Damn. I don't know. The one I have now is about 11.5 inches in outside diameter of the crock. I just went and measured it. I may also buy a smaller one.

[Dave the Cook]

Well, do you want to be able to put a big butt in it? Four to six lamb shanks? Five pounds of onions?

[ExtraMSG]

Is there any difference in crockpots whatsoever? Multiple temperature settings and size are the only differences I've ever noticed.

[Dave the Cook]

I haven't looked real closely, but I think that not all of them are necessarily crockery. In at least one model, you can use the "pot" to start on the stovetop for browning, then move to the basin for slow cooking.

I suppose there are also differences in how the heat is applied, and I'd be surprised of there isn't some sort of programmability built in to some of them.

But I think you're saying that there's not a lot of difference in how they apply heat, and their intended purpose. in that, you're probably right.

OTOH, I don't see why we can't peddle a few insignificant differences into a rousing debate. We've made more of less, I think.

[Richard Kilgore]

Ah, the garland of grapes vs the happy blue geese decision. I too opted for the grapes. I use it at least a couple of times a month (but in private, shhhh).

They have them in most sizes now in white and stainless. The only newer functional option that appeals to be is the warming setting, not that the more sophisticated settings wouldn't possibly be helpful: you can set them to cook at high or low and then drop to warm after a preset number of hours. The ones with the most options seem to be the large (4.5 qt?) ovals. I suspect that any of the rivals are fine if they have the functions you need. I have no experience with the fancy models and also would be interested in hearing from someone who has a years worth of miles on theirs.

Check out Rival Products website..

[ExtraMSG]

I've always thought of a crockpot as one of the few cooking items I'd be willing to buy at Goodwill or a garage sale.

Edited February 8, 2004 by ExtraMSG (log)

[Dave the Cook]

I have the geese, but it was a present. I also picked up two smaller ones by accident a couple of summers ago when we were in charge of the food concession at the neighborhood pool, and no one claimed them.

Richard's on to something, since Rival invented the category. Of my three, two are Rivals, and they've performed flawlessly. I do think the "warm" setting would be helpful, not just for holding food at the end of the cooking time, but as serving pots for stews and such.

But just to get a full survey, this appears to be the low end, with this and this representing two different branches of the evolutionary tree.

In between, there are crockpots with matching insulated carriers, and aluminum "crock" pots that you can take off the base unit and sitck in the oven so you can, um, slow cook, with them?

[Marlene]

I have this one rival and an older oval one. I like rhw smart pot, it goes automatically to keep warm after the preset cooking time is done.

[fifi]

Thanks for the links, guys. I think I am going to be a little bit of a traditionalist and say that the whole point is the crock. The idea of an aluminum pot or whatever seems just stupid. I can throw a Calphalon or Le Creuset in a low oven as well as anyone else so who needs that idea. Plus, I will stick with Paula Wolfert's wisdom of clay cookery on this one.

Continuing to go with tradition, I will probably get a Rival. Looking through their site here, I almost miss the geese. There are a couple of models with some kitschy flowers but alas, the geese seem to have flown the coop. (Richard, your link seems to have died. This one now works.)

Off to Targaaay later in the day.

[Chad]

Cook's Illustrated did a brief piece on slow cookers in the March/April 2003 issue. In the "standard slow cooker without fancy features" category, they recommend either the Rival or the Farberware Millenium. They do like the West Bend Versatility -- that's the aluminum one that you can use on the stovetop. I'd find that handy as I always brown my meat before putting it in the crock pot. My wife doesn't, which really creeps me out.

Personally, I'd get the 6.5qt oval stainless Rival. The stoneware lifts out for leftover storage or easier cleaning, a huge plus in my book. There is very little worse in this world than cleaning a gunked up crock pot. Awkward, messy and just a pain in the ass. We frequently leave ours to soak for days, each hoping that the other will tackle the job out of sheer disgust or impatience. I usually win. The pullout crock would be a breeze to clean.

Chad

[Marlene]

Yes I like having the stoneware come out to clean. It cleans up beautifully in the dishwasher. Fifi, just a note though, if you're going to do all night cooking with one, don't get the smart pot since it will switch to keep warm after a maximum 10 hours. I don't think this feature can be turned off, but I've never tried. I'll try to find my manual and see!

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks Fifi, I fixed my Rival products link above.

Looking them over, I like best the 6.5 oval "Recipe Smart Pot". You can really control the process over time. Otherwise I think I would go for the 5 qt round for something smaller. My grapes of wrath are still cookin', but I would like to replace it sometime this year. These things are a bargain given what they will do for you.

[bleachboy]

I've always thought of a crockpot as one of the few cooking items I'd be willing to buy at Goodwill or a garage sale.

Mine was secondhand, and it has cool pictures of funky lobsters, garlic bulbs, etc.

[fifi]

Good point, Marlene. I hadn't thought of that. I don't like things that turn off and on automatically. I am a control freak.

That is one funky crockpot, bleachboy. Ya gotta love it.

Chad... Are you saying that you have a crockpot that doesn't have a removeable crock? That would be a real PITA and a really good excuse to "throw it in the yard" and go out and get a new one. They aren't exactly expensive, after all.

I am beginning to think that a heating element has gone out in my "grapes of wrath" (excellent, Richard). At least, that is my excuse for going shopping and I'm stickin' to it.

[bleachboy]

Chad... Are you saying that you have a crockpot that doesn't have a removeable crock? That would be a real PITA and a really good excuse to "throw it in the yard" and go out and get a new one. They aren't exactly expensive, after all.

Mine doesn't have a removeable crock either. It's not really tough to clean unless you let it sit around for days as Chad described. And my wife and I have definitely gone through that standoff before.

[Mayhaw Man]

Not that I am trying to go off topic (but I am).

Do any of you ever use a roaster like this.

I use the thing for tamales, keeping lots of gumbo at temp. for parties, making jambalaya, cooking ducks, and any other task that takes something big that I want to keep hot for a long while and not scorch.

The one I have was my grandmothers and there is really no telling how old it is, probably 40 plus years. It has seen more Baptist Church Potlucks and family funerals than I ever will or hope to attend and it is still working like a champ.

I love the thing and realize as I am writing this just how much use I actually get out of it at parties and hippie potlucks. The roaster is a very useful item in my cooking arsenal.

[fifi]

Ah... The family roaster. My mother had one of those. I haven't thought of it in years. I will have to ask my sister if it is still around. Very useful.

[Mayhaw Man]

Fifi,

You will also find it very useful for cooking gargantuan batches of Okra and Tomatoes. Enough for the whole neighborhood to enjoy.

I don't know how old the thing is, but it had a fabric covering on the cord and the thermostat would shock the hell out of you if your hands were damp. I found a place some years back that sold aftermarket parts and replaced that stuff with a grounded plug and a new thermostat. It has been working wonderfully ever since.

[Suzanne F]

I have a Russell Hobbs 6-Quart (oval, though, so you can ignore the rest of this post). Got it last summer at the Broadway Panhandler Yard Sale -- different from non-commercial yard sales in that it's all "new" (unused) stuff they haven't been able to move, and discount even more deeply than normal.

Anyway, I've been very happy with it. Big ol' ceramic insert that cleans up well in the dishwasher. Glass cover, also dishwasherable. Off, Low, High, and Automatic which starts on high and switches to low when the bubbling starts. And what I really like is that off really does mean off -- unlike, say, the ancient electric skillet that still has a bit of juice flowing through as long as it's plugged in.

[helenjp]

Russell Hobbs 6-Quart (oval,

Saw your name and just knew what you would recommend...

I bought this to use in New Zealand. I love the dark blue stoneware liner, love the way it cooks, love the oval shape. Cooked some great fish and chicken "no-water" dishes in mine!

[Dana]

This is creepy-----mine has the grape motif as well.....

I don't recall ever having a problem cleaning it up. Seems like the crusties slid off without much trouble.

[Richard Kilgore]

Fifi - Check it out before blowing it off. The "Recipe Smart Pot" apparently gives a lot of control that the other smart pots don't. You can set it in 30 minute increments at either high or low temp, and you may be able to combine those during the cooking process. There is some point at which it goes to "warm" (not "off") as a fail safe. I don't know if you can over-ride that; you'll have to look through the instruction book. But even if it did cut back to Warm after say 10 hours...exactly how long are you planning on sleeping overnight? At any rate one of these techno-pots and a traditional high-low pot would probably cover all possible needs.

[Richard Kilgore]

Another alternative -- does anyone know how to replace the heating element so that Fifi can keep her prized grapes?

[fifi]

Shush, Richard. Don't you get it? Fifi wants a new toy.