I bought a CROCK-POT SLOW COOKER today, and have already prepared a bang-up , ten-hour, hearty vegetable beef soup with it.

I imagine slow-cookery is old hat to many of you. But it's all new to me. I see what the fuss is all about now, as I see how tender the beef chunks have become, and I am aware of that idiosyncratic "lazy" odor and taste that foods get when they are allowed to caramelize and season with the long slow heat.

I also bought a big book of slow-cookery today, and I am surprised to learn just how versatile they are. I used to think soups and chilis were the only think they were good for.

Have YOU a favorite, tested recipe you'd like to share with me? Or your secrets/tips/hints for for success with the slow-cooker?

I've heard there are inner pans/attachments one can buy to start making cakes and puddings... but I don't know where one can purchase them.

Your comments?

Are there any of you who are NOT fond of slow-cookery (just out of curiosity) ?

Congratulations on your purchase - I wish you many delicious meals from it!

I love my slow cooker. It has two compartments, so I can cook something with meat for myself and something vegetarian for my husband. There is some cross-over of juices thanks to the condensation, but he is not a fussy veggie - so long as what he is eating doesn't cause the death of animals, he's okay. So a bit of chicken stew condensation in his corn chowder doesn't bother him.

My favourite slow cooker recipe is this meatloaf:
http://www.a-crock-cook.com/crock-pot-meat-loaf.html

Oh, and I have cooked beef chunks in this marinade and they came out great. Tender and delicous.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Steak-Tip-Marinade/Detail.aspx

AllRecipes.com has a lot of great recipes too - take a look!

One of the best things to use a crock pot for, if you're inclined toward that sort of thing and don't care how it looks in the end, is to cook a whole chicken. The trick is to make aluminum foil b-a-l-l-s (about four) on which you prop the chicken so the bottom of it doesn't sit there in the fat that will drip off. By the time it's cooked, it won't look good, but pull off the skin and the taste! oh! tender! yummy! moist! You won't miss the skin.

I won't recommend one recipe, but I'll recommend a crockpot cookbook that really is outstanding.

It goes beyond the "tsp. of dry mustard and dash of Worcestershire sauce" recipes that seem all too common to crockpot recipes.

Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook

It really has a nice variety of ethnic, meat, and vegetarian dishes. Nearly all of the ones I'ved tried in the past 3-4 years have turned out terrific.

Congrats on the new cooker, Rasputin! Many good meals to come.

People may think my recipes are strange, BUT, when I make short ribs and sauerkraut, I brown the short ribs, drain the sauerkraut and add a full can of beer for liquid, delicious. I also have a recipe where I brown the ribs and for liquid use a full can of Coke and you would not believe how good those ribs taste. They taste like barbequed ribs!

Honestly, I received a crockpot as a wedding present and I don't use it all that much. I use it mainly for chili and overnight oatmeal. Now, the overnight oatmeal really is delicious and makes the house smell wonderful. Here's a couple of recipes, although I do not use any milk or cream in mine, just water instead.

http://healthycooking.suite101.com/article..._oatmeal_recipe


http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-b...cipe/index.html


It is important that you use steel-cut Irish oats for this recipe, instant or rolled becomes too mushy. I use McCann's Steel Cut oats.

Dave, congratulations on your new crockpot!
A common mistake people make with crockpots is to add too much water.
If vegetables are in the recipe, all you usually need is 1/2 cup. Meats, on the low setting don't need any water at all. If it is on the high setting I sometimes add a little water to play safe as they can stick.
Here is my recipe for pot roast and vegetables: Place cut vegetables on the bottom. (whatever you want, potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, etc. I include a whole onion so I can take out the large pieces and put them on my plate as my family doesn't like it, but they like the flavor it provides.) Over this add 1/2 cup of water. I mix in 1 packet of brown gravy mix. This is not necessary but I think it adds something. Lay the roast on top of this. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours.

I looked up the Bread n Cake Pan and found that it is discontinued. Here are some cake recipes using a greased and floured shortening can with paper towels on top to absorb moisture. http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1712,155177-243205,00.htmlI would assume they are using metal and not plastic. I have also seen recipes using coffee cans.

I find that foods overcooked in a slow cooker have a particular (unpleasant) flavor and aroma that I just can't stand.

I get along better with more conventional braises. You know, saute and brown things, add other things, cover and bake at low heat either on the stove or in the oven.

I do have an use my (old) slow cooker, but I only use it as a food warmer. It's nice for things like soups and warm dips on a buffet.

Turkey breast - put one half to one stick of butter( I do a a half stick) in crockpot, put turkey breast on top. Cook on high, till done. I'm from the south. We cook everything until we know it's dead(even our green beans). lol - So, ever how long it takes to kill yours is how long you should cook it. lol

This is good, almost more like a dip than a soup!

Kim’s Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

1 onion, chopped
1 - 16 oz. can chili beans
1 - 16 oz. can black beans
1 - 15 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained
1 - 15 oz. tomato sauce
1 - 12 oz. can of beer
1 – 10 oz. can diced tomatoes with green chilis, undrained
1 package taco seasoning
3 whole skinless chicken breasts

Optional:
Shredded cheddar cheese
Sour cream
Tortilla chips

Place onions, beans, corn, tomato sauce, tomatoes, beer and taco seasoning in the slow cooker and stir to blend.
Lay chicken breasts on top of mixture. Set crock pot on low and cook for 5 hours.
Remove chicken breasts, shred and put back in the soup for two more hours.
Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips if desired.

(I just dumped everything in at one time and let it slow cook all day. Shredded the chicken and mixed it up when I got home. Ready to eat! Excellent with a dollop of sour cream in the middle and cheddar cheese sprinkled around the outside. Scoop with tortilla chips or add crushed tortilla chips if desired.)

Thanks for the porridge idea, I''ll try it.

I always finish with too much liquid, getting a soup instead of a casserole, I'll try it your way, wish me luck.

Oh, I totally forgot what I use my crockpot for each Christmas--homemade mulled cider. Instead of taking up a burner on the stove for it, it can sit anywhere with a ladle and mugs, and the smell is perfection. You can buy premade mulling sice mixes, ot just invent your own--cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, cardamom, ginger, and orange peel do it for me.

Another great idea! I didn't think it is so versatile! Is mulled sider similar to what Germans call gluhwein, hot wine, boiled together with cinnamon , nutmeg ...? I never used ginger and cardamon for that, must be fantastic, the house will smell like Orgnza Indesence, or Elephant by Kenzo!

This is exactly that "caramelized" smell I was referring to... as though the food were taken JUST..THIS..SIDE of burnt, right?

Caramelizing is a type of browning technique at a high temp which cooks the sugar in a given food , does not come close to burnt.

Though , this could be relative , I once had a boss who's idea of burnt was actually done and what she deemed done was pink and raw to sane people ......... think chicken gang <<< shudder>>>

Good Luck! I forgot the salt and pepper on top of the whole thing. Smelka, if at any time you are uncomfortable with the amount of fluid and think it's not enough, you can always add a little bit more. A lot of people FILL the pot with water, which is not a good thing.

The Chinese eat their chicken this way....

ENCHILADA MEAT

How to cook the beef that goes into beef enchiladas.

Dump into crock pot:

A large chunk of pot roast or any other cheap cut of beef. There should be a significant amount of beef in the pot. A lot. As much as you can fit in with the following:

2 giant cans of Las Palmas Enchilada sauce (or your favorite brand, or salsa verde, or whatever). The meat should be covered. Add H2O if you need to.

As many garlic cloves as you wish. (I toss in an whole head, crushed.)

Let 'er rip... for 6-8 hours or such.

The result is meat that's cooked so tender and so flavorful you won't need to put anything else in the beef enchiladas. And they'll be to die for.

I just know this is something I am not going to find down the road at the local take out , do tell .......

Not so much. The aroma I'm referring to is much more a 'this food has been cooking far too long' quality. Beyond a certain point, overcooked foods tend to become unpalatable, IMO. Please bear in mind that I'm a great fan of long slow cooking techniques in general, like barbecue, braises, etc., but I do think there is an actual point of no return, where food flavor, texture and quality become adversely affected with excessive cooking times.

Steam table without the metallic tang , a blessing of sorts.

I once befriended-- even lived with-- one of the country's most respected Chinese TV chefs. She taught Asian Cuisine at the SF Culinary Institute.

She just said that the Chinese prefer their chicken still soft, pearlescent and pink on the inside. Not raw at all, but not to the white, fibrous consistency we Americans tend to cook it.

She served it that way to me several times... and of course, the way this lady cooks, the food was ambrosia...

Last night I cooked a whole chicken in the crockpot. Deboned it & made Salade Oliver which is wonderful and filling. I put it in pita bread & take it to work for an economical and filling lunch.

I have the same cookbook, Hoos. I haven't gotten around to try any of the receipes only because I agree with some of consensus that the food comes out overcooked. I guess it is about timing and prepping the meat before hand. I am planning to use it again to make soups. I have a dutch oven which I am dying to use. I am looking for great receipes to use it on.

I do turkey breast in the slow cooker, too. You know the gazillion things you can make with turkey.

Every once in a great while I get in the mood for barbeque -- I put in a pork tenderloin plus a bottle of barbeque sauce. The meat shreds with a fork and it's delicious for sandwiches, or you can eat it on a baked potato or rice.

Vermont Country Store sells a mini-crockpot that is on my wishlist. The main reason I never bought a crockpot is because they make too much food for one person.

http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/browse/...101150/I/f01092

Isn't it the tenderest and moistest stuff evah?

Absolutely!

I've also cooked a side of pork in the crockpot. Falls off the bone. Then I shred it and top with BBQ sauce for pulled pork sandwiches

I really enjoy crockpot cooking and have a mini one and a large one. My favorite recipe is ultra-simple. I put a piece of roast beef or pot roast in the crockpot with a can of cream of mushroom soup, a package of Lipton's onion soup (powdery stuff in a packet) and a couple of canfuls of water. This makes a moist delicious pot roast with wonderful gravy. My kids (grown) love it and cook it themselves now.

I love my crockpot. I can make soups, stews, you name it. I never burn anything anymore. (I'm a lousy cook) There's something about coming home frozen and starving after a long winter day to a piping hot, fragrant dinner that just can't be beat.

My family loves this recipe:

Crock-Pot "Steak" Sandwiches
1 small chuck roast
1 can beer
1 small jar sliced peppercroncini peppers
1 large onion, sliced if desired
1 heaping tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Salt to your taste
Put roast in crock pot, top with sliced peppercroncini and juice, onions, garlic, and seasonings. Pour beer over all. Cook on low all day. Before serving, shred meat with two forks. Serve piled into sliced Hoagie rolls, and top with sauteed bell peppers (and onions, if you didn't cook meat with onions), and sliced provolone cheese.

I have four crock pots--one large, one medium, and two small ones that I mostly use for keeping appetizers warm at parties, but I lurve my crockpots. They are the savior of the working mom!

My mom used to make chicken this way in the crockpot. After cooking it the crockpot, she would transfer it to a pan, baste it with soy sauce and five spice powder, and blast it in the oven for 10 minutes to give it a lacquered glaze and crisp the skin.

It was my favourite meal growing up.

This is our favorite, I use Penzey's Italian salad dressing mix.

Italian Slow Cooked Beef for sandwiches

INGREDIENTS

* 3 cups water
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1 teaspoon dried basil
* 1 teaspoon onion salt
* 1 teaspoon dried parsley
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1 bay leaf
* 1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
* 1 (5 pound) rump roast

1. Combine water with salt, ground black pepper, oregano, basil, onion salt, parsley, garlic powder, bay leaf, and salad dressing mix in a saucepan. Stir well, and bring to a boil.
2. Place roast in slow cooker, and pour salad dressing mixture over the meat.
3. Cover, and cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours, or on High for 4 to 5 hours. When done, remove bay leaf, and shred meat with a fork.

You're just swimming in domesticity lately, Dave!

I have never really gotten into Crock pot cookery - my Italian husband hasn't been a big fan of the stuff I churn out with it. But I'm sure that a lot of the ideas given here will be tasty.

Good luck and bon appetit!

Dave, I came across a lovely recipe for slow cooker Irish Lamb Stew. Check this out.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/eating-...cipe/index.html