It's Slow-Cooker Time

[Joan]

Grilling outside might be a little too hot for some. And using the oven only makes the kitchen hotter. So, now would be a good time to use your slow-cooker, if you have one. So, with Chris's blessing, let's post what good RECIPES we all make with our slow-cooker right here.

 

[timothy]

I agree. I've been gone, out of the house for at least half the day for the last few months.
Starting something in the morning is easy.
Just a few recently.
Mississippi Pot Roast.
Polish sausage and potatoes with cream of mushroom soup ( I winged that, pretty good)
Spiral sliced ham.
Italian sausage or meatballs with tomato gravy , the long, slow simmer makes them especially tender.

Tim

 

[Bob Bass]

Joan... Is it really only 88 degrees in Boca Raton right now ?
It's 104 here.

 

[Joan]

I agree. I've been gone, out of the house for at least half the day for the last few months.
Starting something in the morning is easy.
Just a few recently.
Mississippi Pot Roast.
Polish sausage and potatoes with cream of mushroom soup ( I winged that, pretty good)
Spiral sliced ham.
Italian sausage or meatballs with tomato gravy , the long, slow simmer makes them especially tender.

Tim

Timothy, 'I'm glad to hear you like the idea. Maybe we can come up with some more good recipes for you. That Mississippi Pot Roast sounds great. Have a recipe to share?

 

[Joan]

Joan... Is it really only 88 degrees in Boca Raton right now ?
It's 104 here.

Hi Bob, Is it 88? I don't go outside, so I can't prove it. lol I did hear some thunder a little while ago tho. BUT 104!!!!!!! My goodness, How can you stand it?

Opps, I lied. DH did take me outside a few months ago to look at a beautiful sunset.

 

[Greg in Utah]

I mostly use mine to cook beans overnight.

2 cups of picked over (looking for pebbles) pinto or mayacoba beans + 1/4 onion + 4ish cloves of garlic. Add salt, cumin, Mex oregano, some Chile molido.

Run It on high for 2 hours, then drop it to low and hit the sack. In the morning you have a pot of beans.

 

[Joan]

Greg, sounds good. I answered my own question I was going to ask. lol

"What Kind of Bean is Mayocoba?
Commonly known as Peruvian (Peruano), canary (canario) or Mexican yellow beans, Mayocoba beans are medium-sized, oval-shaped and pale yellow. Like many hearty beans, they're free of cholesterol, low in fat and high in fiber, protein and iron."

Like they say, "we learn something new every day" Thanks again.

 

[Brian Thomas]

Try doing an apple cobbler in a slow cooker. You won't be disappointed my wife made one earlier today and I can't wait to have some w/coffee tomorrow am.

 

[Joan]

Hi Brian, how was the apple cobbler? Speaking of apples, here is a very good recipe that we made some time ago.

Chicken and Apples
makes 6 servings
5 or 6 qt. slow-cooker

6 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/2 tsp. salt
1`/2 tsp. dried marjoram leaves
dash of ground nutmeg
dash of garlic powder
1 onion, chopped
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
3 Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced
1//4 water
1 1/2 TB. cornstarch

1. In a small bowl, combine orange juice concentrate, salt, marjoram, nutmeg and garlic powder.
2. Place onion in bottom of slow cooker.
3. Dip each chicken breast into orange juice mixture to coat. Place in slow cooker over onion.
4. Pour any remaining orange juice mixture over chicken.
5. Cover and cook on HIGH 1 hour and then on LOW 2 hours.
6. Add apples and cook on low 1 hour.
7. Remove chicken, apples and onions to serving platter.
8. Pour sauce that remains into a medium saucepan.
9. Stir together water and cornstarch. Stir into sauce
10. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sauce is thick and bubbly.
11. Serve sauce over chicken.

Source: "Fix It & Forget It" - I know, this recipe is not exactly one that you can "forget it", but it was very good and I wanted to share. Better ones to come. lol

 

[Brian Thomas]

The cobbler was great. We used apples that we picked from our tree in the backyard, and they worked fine. Will have to try that chicken and apples recipe. We have that Fix it & Forget It cookbook so will have to check it out again. Here's a good link for a lot of slow cooker recipes.

Stephanie O'Dea - Live Slowly. Live Purposefully.

Stephanie O'Dea is a the author of Slow Living: Cultivating a Life of Purpose in a Hustle-Driven World and host of the Slow Living podcast.

stephanieodea.com

 

[Brian Thomas]

Oh has anyone used the slow cooker option on their Instant Pot? I've read pretty mixed reviews on that option and haven't used it. My thought is: Have you ever seen a slow-cooker with a metal liner?

 

[timothy]

Oh has anyone used the slow cooker option on their Instant Pot? I've read pretty mixed reviews on that option and haven't used it. My thought is: Have you ever seen a slow-cooker with a metal liner?

I did for sloppy joes. Use the saute function to brown the meat,vegs, drained add sauce, set to " slow cook" and adjusted it to " more" instead of " normal " Used it on meatballs and sauce, same way.

Tim

 

[timothy]

My thought is: Have you ever seen a slow-cooker with a metal liner?

I see your point now, metal doesn't have the same thermal mass like a crock.

Tim

 

[timothy]

That Mississippi Pot Roast sounds great. Have a recipe to share?

I usually Google stuff, but here's one.

Tim

 

[Joan]

Sorry, thought you had a recipe that you used, otherwise I would have googled it.

 

[Joan]

DH likes the idea of using a slow cooker also. He has tonights dinner started already and now he can spend as much time as he needs out in the garage working on the generator for the house. And now the house is starting to smell good. Here is the recipe for tonights dinner. Of course I will let you know what we think of it. (maybe tonight or tomorrow morning, lol)

Slow-Cooker Balsamic Short Ribs

6 bone-in beef short ribs (about 3 1/4 lbs.)
3/4 tsp. salt, divided
1/2 tsp. ground pepper
2 TB. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, sliced
2 TB. tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth
2 TB. cornstarch
1/4 cup water
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

1. Sprinkle ribs with 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper. Heat 1 TB. oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the ribs and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes total. Transfer to a 6 qt. or larger slow cooker.
2. Add the remaining 1 TB. oil and onion to the pan; cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, garlic and thyme; cook stirring, for 1 minute. Add vinegar and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the liquid is mostly reduced, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker and add broth. Cover and cook on High for 4 hrs. or Low for 8 hrs.
3. Transfer the ribs to a serving platter. Transfer the liquid to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Whisk cornstarch and water in a small bowl and add to the boiling liquid. Cook, whisking, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1/4 tsp. salt. Serve the ribs with the gravy and sprinkled with parsley, if desired.

Source: "Eating Well" mag. - Nov. 2018

 

[Jim C in Denver]

I make four things in the slow cooker:

1. Balsamic short ribs (like above). Super awesome.

2. Bone in turkey breast. I you don't care about crisp skin and just want juicy turkey meat, this is the way to do it. Easy and idiot proof.

3. Chicken or turkey stock. After cutting the meat off #2 turkey breast or a couple of Costco rotisserie chickens, throw the bones, skin and other bits in the crock pot. Fill with water, salt and pepper. Simmer anywhere from 8 to 24 hours.

4. Carnitas. When I buy two pork butts from Costco, I usually smoke one for pulled pork and crock pot the other to make carnitas. Freezes great. The key is to crisp the carnitas under the broiler before serving.

Best Slow Cooker Carnitas (VIDEO) - A Spicy Perspective

If you're looking for a flavorful, fuss-free meal, this carnitas recipe is the ticket! Cooked low and slow in your crockpot, the pork becomes fall-apart tender and irresistibly juicy.

www.aspicyperspective.com

 

[Joan]

RECIPES - RECIPES - RECIPES !!!!!!!!! PLEASE

 

[Brad Baker]

Manuel's Chile Verde

I only make one thing in the slow cooker. There was once a restaurant/bar in Cocoa Beach called Desperados, long gone. I went there weekly and would always order the same, wonderful thing - Manuel's Chile Verde. It had good heat and wonderful flavor. I bugged the head bartender to get me the recipe. Some years after it closed, I saw her working another joint and she told me she saw Manuel and got me the recipe. The problem (for me) was that it had no quantities - only ingredients.

I started fiddling with it and came up with this. It may not be perfect but it's close.

Ingredients

• 2 lb boston butt
• 4 large poblanos
• 4-5 jalapenos (heat varies on these)
• 1 1/2 c crushed, unspiced canned tomatoes - blended
• 2 c water
• 1 tsp cumin
• 8 cloves garlic - crushed and chopped
• 1 c chopped cilantro
• 1/2 large onion - chopped
• 1/2 Tbsp pepper
• 1/2 Tbsp salt

Prep

• Trim and cube the pork
• Fry, peel and chop the peppers. I roast them over a gas flame until the skins are black, peel, remove membranes and seeds, chop
• Brown the pork - add salt, pepper, garlic, onion, peppers - cook until tender
• Put the pork mix in the slow cooker. Add tomatoes, cilantro, cumin & water
• Cook until meat is muy tierna and the veggies mixed.

Serve w/tortillas, refries, etc.

 

[Joan]

OK, it's my fault. I picked out the potatoes for dinner. We had a bag of those little, multi-colored ones and I put a purple one in the pot. The other dark spot is spinach. lol BUT, the ribs were DELICIOUS and so were the potatoes with the gravy on them.