Slow-cooker recipes for the cooking-impaired

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Mar 14, 2000
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So I just got a 7-quart slow-cooker. What are your favorite slow-cooker recipes? Give me some things to try to cook, preferably ones that don't require anything more complicated than "cut", "pour" or "flip switch and ignore for several hours". :)
 
IIRC Rusty had quite a recipe for Hangover Rememdy stew (not the exact name). I think it was a crock pot type of deal. Sounded very good.
 
Make sure to cut off most of the fat from meats. No fat can drip away so all the gravy in there will be quite fatty at first.

I use a blade roast,cut slices in it big enough for big slivers of garlic. I put this on the bottom with two ounces of water. Sprinkle pepper on top. potatoes,carrots,turnip,onion on top in bite sized chunks. Don't make them too big as they sometimes cook slower. Try to arrange them so they won't sit in the gravy that will form as they may mush up too much. You can throw a parsnip in if you like em. 3/4s full at least. Again a bit of pepper on top of veggies . No salt. If you like to add it do so on the plate after cooking.

Cook on low for a few hours. Open briefly to test. If the veggies are done so is the meat. No need to delve down. If the veggies are not quite ready turn it on high for an hour and you should be O:K:.

Never leave the top off for more than a few seconds. They lose heat quick and regain it slowly.

You can substitute stewing beef for blade roast. The gravy in the bottom can be used as is or thickened. Be careful taking the meat out . It will be fall apart tender.
 
Chicken!

Take a whole fryer, or pieces, or even chicken slurry if you have access to it. Rinse, and in the case of the whole fryer, if you're really cooking impaired, reach inside and take the giblets out before you cook it!

Toss your chicken in the crockpot with a chopped onion, a few cloves of garlic, some ginger powder, bay leaf, black pepper, pinch of sea salt, etc. You can add other veggies like carrots and potatoes at this point, but they'll be well done if you cook them all day. You can also omit them at this point and add them after the chicken has cooked for several hours, keeping them a bit more firm.

Add water to cover more or less, toss the lid on, and turn it on. Come back when it's done.

Reserve the stock in the crockpot, let it cool, skim the fat, and then add lentils, split yellow (or green) peas, etc, and turn it back on for some great soup.

You can also simmer chicken in bbq sauce for something different.
 
You can make nice, fluffy rice in that sucker. Pot roast, of course... also ribs, fall-off-the-bone tender.


Mike
 
Musgo Soup:

Take all of your leftovers, chop up anything that needs it, and throw it all in the pot. Add salt, pepper, and garlic to taste. Add a bit of liquid if it needs it, depending on how soupy you want the result to be. (Water's fine; stock is better.) Set to LOW and go to work.

"Musgo" refers to the ultimate goal: the beef musgo, those carrots musgo, the potatoes musgo...

Beans:

Take whatever beans you have laying around and rinse them. Don't bother soaking, they won't need it. Throw them all in the pot and add enough water to cover them. Throw in some pork or bacon if you have some laying around. Set to LOW and go to work. Don't add any salt until you're ready to serve as it may make some beans tough. Serve with bread or over rice.

Ribs:

Trim most of the fat and throw them in the pot. Chop up an onion or two and throw those in as well. Dump a bottle of barbecue sauce in there, add enough water to just cover everything, and set to LOW. I actually don't do ribs like this anymore because they come out a bit too tender.

Kevin makes a good point with the heat setting; the only time you'll need anything other than LOW is if you're in a hurry. Setting on LOW before you go to work ensures that it will be ready when you get home.
 
1. *Cut* a big chunk of beef into pieces that will fit into the cooker. Any kind of cut...

2. *Pour* a can of Campbell's french onion soup on top of it.
3. *Pour* (I know...already too many steps) half a can of Coke (gotta be Coke) on top of that.
4. Turn it on high for 8 hours or so.


The meat will be delicious and tender...falling apart in fact.

Serve with whatever veggies you like.
 
1. *Cut* a big chunk of beef into pieces that will fit into the cooker. Any kind of cut...

2. *Pour* a can of Campbell's french onion soup on top of it.
3. *Pour* (I know...already too many steps) half a can of Coke (gotta be Coke) on top of that.
4. Turn it on high for 8 hours or so.


The meat will be delicious and tender...falling apart in fact.

Serve with whatever veggies you like.

I don'T know what to think about that... I'll have to try.
 
Thanks guys! I've never heard of cooking with Coke before. Am definitely going to have to try all of these. :thumbup:
 
A lot of the time I don't eat the meal until next day, and a night in the fridge raises the fats to the surface where they are easily scooped and removed. They form a surface of 'ice'. This allows the food to keep/cook with the flavor from the fat without all the calories.

I find fresh cut garlic helps a lot of dishes in the crock pot or slow cook. IF you want chili verde, all you have to do is throw in a roast of either pork or beef and add a couple cans minced green pepper.

Adding softer vegitables towards the end of the cooking cycle will allow them to retain their 'structural integrity', while adding them in the initial stage forms gravy. both are good to do.

Mostly, I allow the meat to do the work with whatever else I throw in there.


munk
 
I like to take carrots and put them in the bottom of the cooker, top that with a shoulder roast that has been salt and peppered, over that pour cream of potatoe soup mixed with one envelope of French Onion soup. Cook for 10-12 hours on low or 5-6 on high and enjoy. The gravy is already made.

Another good recipe is chicken breasts covered with cream of chicken soup mixed with italian seasoning or curry powder, depending on what mood you are in. Served over pasta or rice is quite tasty.

How about 1 pound of browned hamburger, 3-4 carrots and 2 potatoes cut up, small onion, 1 can of stewed tomatoes with the juice, 1 stalk of celery and 1 bay leaf. Cover with about 1 quart of beef broth (I like pacifica when I can find it, but swansons healthy recipe is OK, too). Season with salt and pepper to your liking and let it cook for 10 hours on low.

And my favorite..........2 cornish game hens stuffed with Uncle Ben's wild rice (cooked as per package instructions with just a little less water). I put about half a cup of water in the bottom of the cooker and then let it cook for 10-12 hours. Works great to come home to a great meal. I like to put carrots in the bottom so they are done when i get home too. Great meal!!
 
Oatmeal!

I don't mean rolled oats, I mean steel cut groats that may even have some of the husk mixed in with it. Mix one measure of oats with four measures water, set to low and have a hot, nourishing (not to mention regulating and choloesterol lowering) breakfast. Add some vanilla yogourt and enjoy!

john k
 
Oatmeal!

I don't mean rolled oats, I mean steel cut groats that may even have some of the husk mixed in with it. Mix one measure of oats with four measures water, set to low and have a hot, nourishing (not to mention regulating and choloesterol lowering) breakfast. Add some vanilla yogourt and enjoy!

john k

How long do you cook them on low for?

If they cooked all night would you have mush in the morning?
 
And my favorite..........2 cornish game hens stuffed with Uncle Ben's wild rice (cooked as per package instructions with just a little less water). I put about half a cup of water in the bottom of the cooker and then let it cook for 10-12 hours. Works great to come home to a great meal. I like to put carrots in the bottom so they are done when i get home too. Great meal!!

This sounded so good that I had to try it, with some slight modifications. The grocery store had no cornish hens so I made do with a small fryer. I fried up some sausage and the giblets, added brown rice, and used that for the stuffing. (I considered corn meal and bread crumbs instead but the rice is probably healthier.) The exterior received a rub of kosher salt and black pepper. I layeredd onions, carrots, and mushrooms beneath and above the chicken. Plenty of diced garlic was added to everything.

It should be ready when I wake up. I'll be taking half of it to work (if I can make it in) tonight so I'll know more then, but I never thought to cook fowl in the crock pot. Thanks for the idea, Gin and Josh. :thumbup:
 
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