Let’s get this disclaimer out of the way straight away: I was not wholly convinced when Jowa said she wanted a slow cooker/Crock Pot.
Perhaps it was the suspicion that I faced a future of flavourless stews that put me off. But then again I could see the logic in creating delicious dishes all in one pot and still having time to play with the kids.
So the Crock Pot arrived and our experiments have begun. First up – pork loin with zucchini and carrots in a tangy orange juice braise.
Okay, I’m not going to bother with the recipe at the moment because, while it has promise, we need to improve it (cutting down on the orange juice and adding some ginger and spice I suspect).
But I’m not deterred. In fact I’m kinda excited to experiment in with our very own take on Slow Food so to speak. So, before I scour the Net looking for new recipes, I thought I’d ask the Gastrokid community for recipe ideas?
Let me know and I’ll get slow cooking.
- matthew
We like this one — mostly from cans but tastes great and is very quick to make:
http://www.familycircle.com/recipe/recipedetail.jhtml?recipeId=R100282
Can’t wait to see what others have to say. We recently got our slow cooker too. I love it, but am always making the same things.
I don’t know if you can get it in Wales or not, but I liked a cookbook called “Slow Cooker Ready and Waiting” by Rick Rodgers. The few recipes I tried were pretty good, but his introduction is great. He explains how to translate your regular stovetop or oven recipes for use in the slow cooker– how much to reduce the liquid, when to add certain ingredients, how to figure cooking times, etc.
And one crock-pot no-brainer are beans – they cook better in a crock pot than on the stove.
Real Simple magazine ran a series of slow cooker recipes in their January 2008 issue. All the recipes seemed unusual and step away from the “stewy slop” that usually comes to mind when I think of slow cooker food. The *idea* of the slow cooker food (easy, ready when I need it) is often better than the “stewy slop” that comes out, in my experience. But I made the chicken with potatoes and orange from that Real Simple January 2008 issue and really liked it.
Here’s a link:
http://food.realsimple.com/realsimple/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1694879
If any of your readers tried the other recipes in that issue, post here because I’m curious to try some of the other interesting-sounding ones.
Best,
Amy in AZ
These look good too:
Red Wine Short Ribs
http://food.realsimple.com/realsimple/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1694857
Beer Braised Pork and Black Bean Soup
http://food.realsimple.com/realsimple/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1694943
even Lasagna is a Slow Cooker?
http://food.realsimple.com/realsimple/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1694908
Now you got me thinking… dinner tonight…
Best,
Amy in AZ
I’ve used a recipe similar to this one for making Swedish meatballs — the ultimate comfort food! I use ground turkey.
http://www.dianaskitchen.com/page/crock/swdmball.htm
My chef friend recommended this, I love it because it is so quick! Season a whole chicken, then put it in the slow cooker. Add any or none of the following: Fresh thyme, garlic, onion, celery, carrots, potatoes. Do not add any liquid. Cook for 5 to 6 hours. As the chicken cooks, it releases it’s own juices. When it is done, you have a very moist chicken that is falling off of the bone and you have a wonderful, very concentrated chicken stock at the bottom for soups, risotto, etc.