Slow cooking

[Mistress Kristi]

Ok, so I've decided that I need to eat better and cheaper. I pulled out my crock pot and bought the Fix it and Forget it lightly cookbook. It is amazing. I throw it in between class and work and when I come home from work I have healthy, low fat meals that last me all week. So this is a recomendation for this cookbook to those who love slowcooking. I feel awesome.

[Ysobelle]

Hmmmm. Can you post some examples? And can I trust a crockpot in a house with three possessed cats and a crack-addled (though crated) puppy?

[webmistress]

I have never used a crock-pot. Have been meaning to get one though - they seem fabulous.

[Lady Sarah]

I have never used a crock-pot. Have been meaning to get one though - they seem fabulous.

I love mine. ~S~

and Yso, it depends on how those cats act... do they get up on the kitchen counters? I feel safe in saying they'll sense the heat on the pot and back away, but the smell on the other hand could lure them closer.

[Absinthe d'Accalia]

I have an awesome pork tenderloin recipe that I make in the crockpot that I'll have to post. I use honey & coarse-ground mustard (Plochman's is a good one to use) as the main seasonings and use sweet potatoes as the veggie. The tenderloin is lean and good for you and the sweet potatoes get very carmelized and yummy while they're cooking. An easy way to cook a roaster chicken too - just chuck that bird in the crockpot (once you make sure there aren't any giblet bags or any other surprises in there) with a bit of broth, a chopped up onion, celery, carrots or what have you, a little salt & pepper and let it slow cook. It comes out so tender that it falls off the bone.

Ysobelle - your kitties should be okay with the crockpot. Ours would jump on the counter to do a stroll-by-sniffing, but I think they're so sensitive to the heat they'd leave it alone otherwise. Now, once whatever was cooking in the crockpot was taken out, it was a different story all together - then it was shoo, guard and otherwise parry plate-wandering paws! My Smokey dog will lay by the counter and 'guard' whatever is in the crockpot. He might be getting long in the tooth, but his sniffer still works well!

[Theresa Grant]

I am a HUGE fan of my crock-pot. It's not what your grandma used to make anymore... ;)

One of the big hits around here is using it to make pork carnitas, which is yummy both as the fresh dish but also as leftovers. You can also toss in a whole chicken and it comes out so very tender! Also great for slow-cooking soups, like chowders, as well as making traditional pot roasts and more.

...Sadly, I can't figure a way to make cheesecake in it. ;)

[Absinthe d'Accalia]

mmmm...crockpot cheesecake..... you know, you might be able to put the cheesecake in the springform pan, set it in about an inch or so of water and turn it on low - sort of like steamed pudding meets creme brulee meets cheesecake!

[Galleywench]

Made this for Jay's birthday dinner last week. Besides the two of us tis served 5 other adults (well, if Lars, Brian, Tony and Jay count as normal adults...) It's a regular staple in the Queens galley food files, inexpensive to make and goes well with any starch that will catch a gravy (rice, pasta, polenta will do, as do scalloped potatoes which is what it was served with last week).

4 oranges
1 cup hoisin sauce
1 small can tomato paste
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, cut crosswise into thin slices
4 cloves
1 cinnamon stick

4 lbs cheap chuck, stew meat or boneless ribs beef or pork
dried apricots (a good handful) or use dried cherries, cranberries or rasisns...or a combo of each

Zest and juice oranges, whisk together with hoisen sauce, paste. Add garlic, ginger and rest of spices. Toss over meat. Add to slow cooker, set on high 2-4 hrs. Add apricots or other dry fruit and cook on low an additional 4 hours or until meat is tender.

This is better if cooked the day before, cooled and the fat removed before reheating.