Following on from the comfort food thread, I expect our slow cooker to be soon earning its keep.
Aside from the beef stroganoff, lamb and beef joints we seem to use it for, what else do you recommend?
We tried a paella once but that wasn’t good. Apart from that, the slow cooker has been a revelation of convenience and taste for hearty meals.

Really good for Curries and chillies.

I mentioned on the other thread but they’re amazing for Tagine recipes too.

Or for a party, hot Jamaican rum punch. Half a bottle of rum, half a bottle of ginger wine, the same amount of water, some sugar and some pineapple to serve. Lush!!!

I’ll be keeping an eye on this – mine only ever gets used on chilli!

My mum and sister both seem to live out of theirs though!

I just convert any recipe using cheap tough cuts of meat, beef shin, lamb neck fillet etc.

Never understood people who put chicken in the slow cooker, or purely vegetables, unless making soup of course.

This works really well for example with lamb neck fillet, and if you chuck the squash in for the last hour or so, rsther than from the start.

Ooh, where to start… I normally only recommend tougher cuts for the slow cooker, but there are exceptions.

In mine right now:

In a large non-stick frying pan, crisp up some cubed pancetta, add chopped leek, onion and mushrooms and sweat for a bit. Add some sliced pork tenderloin (use lots – this makes a nice lunch the next day), brown off a little. Add a carton of passata, a tin or two of canellini beans, a pouch of pre-cooked flavoured lentils, a couple of bay leaves and a teaspoon or two of strong mustard.

Get it up to heat and then transfer to the slow cooker for as long as you like.

Another good one –

In a large non-stick frying pan, crisp up some cubed pancetta (do you see a theme to my cooking?), add some sliced chorizo and cook through until some oils come out. Add a large glass of red wine and rapid boil until it doesn’t stink of vino. Add two tins of canellini or butter beans, and a tin of chopped tomatoes.

Chuck it in the slow cooker for 1-2 hours. Serve with lovely buttery, crunchy runner beans and a little grated pecorino.

Ive just made a batch of baked beans.

4x tins of haricot beans in water (dont bother with the drid ones, theyre never as nice)
2x tins of chopped tomatoes
4 onions, finely chopped
hunk of smoked pancetta or other smoked, v fatty, dead pig.
4 fat spoons of black treacle
1 heaped teaspoon of english mustard powder
Chilli powder (half teaspoon) or tabasco (6-12 drops) to taste
Couple of good sloshes of soy sauce and Worcester sauce.

Caramelise the onions SLOWLY in oil while slowly frying the pancetta in another pan, rendering the fat out. Add everything to the onions, stir and slow cook for half a day at around 120-140 degrees. Keep an eye on the moisture and add a bit of water if you need.

EDIT: Damn it wallop! Id typed out my bean receipt 10 minutes ago and got a phone call! 🙂

Quite fancy the idea of a slow cooker, but what model to get? Amazon (Spain) has a load, any recommendations?

Best Ragu Ever.

Fry some pancetta, then add some VERY FINELY CHOPPED carrot, celery and onion. Put a lid on it and sweat for 5-10 minutes. Add some minced beef. Brown gently. Add some red wine and reduce. Season. Add half a tube of tomato puree, crumble in a beef stock cube and then add some boiling water to water it all down.

Put in the slow cooker for at least 2 hours. Cool down, then pop it in the fridge. Eat it the next day, and not before.

Quite fancy the idea of a slow cooker, but what model to get? Amazon (Spain) has a load, any recommendations?

The simpler the better! I’ve got the Morphy Richards one on that page you linked to, those prices seem a bit steep though – only paid £25 for mine (and I’ve seen it cheaper than that since)! It does the job well.

Lamb Handi?

Onion, garlic and ginger fried in plenty oil for about ten minutes (don’t brown it) then add tomato purée and a pack of passata or tin of plumb tomatoes blitzed smooth. Simmer for a few minutes while you gently roast tsp cumin seeds, several cloves, cinnamon stick,bay leaf, six green cardomum pods, a teaspoon paprika powder,a good heaped teaspoon cumin powder, half a teaspoon turmeric, three heaped tsp garam masala in a dry frying pan until it smells toasted. Stir the spices into the mix stirring it to stop it sticking. Brown neck of lamb, or any other cheap lamb cuts and add to the slow cooker, together with the spice mix, then add 3/4 pint stock made with 2 stock cubes. Finally add a couple of pinches of fenugreek leaves and a good heaped teaspoon of salt. You can leave this to cook for as long as you want. In a conventional oven ill do this for three hours at 130 degrees, in a slow cooker overnight is great. It produces a really rich and warming sauce. Once coked it needs draining of excess oil and fat, and then finishing with handful of chopped coriander and as many green finger chillies as you like.
Serve with thick roti.

any recommendations?

Get a big one.
Stick any meat, any veg and whatever spices/seasoning take your fancy and the results are always delicious, so you’ll kick yourself when you have less leftovers. 🙂

Aldi £12.99
They still hade a few left in Northwich this morning

Get down to your local garden centre (the wyevale type places). Get a recipe book for just a few quid.

Ours mostly gets chilli, curry, stewed meat (cheap cuts generally producing the best results) and tagine type things.

Even non sophisticated kid friendly curry is great from the slow cooker.

thanks for the recommendations, although Northwich is a bit of a journey from Madrid 🙂

Oxtail stew, make it 2 days before you want to eat it. And don’t forget the dumplings

..or at the other end of the scale, the Tefal 8-in1 multi cooker
Slow cooker with keep warm facility, rice cooker with timer, porridge maker with timer, steamer. Not had it long, but the rice bit is great – going out, got last night’s curry in the fridge, rice ready for 7 O’clock beep beep beep.

Lamb shoulder, garlic, rosemary, new potatoes, onion, tomato, covered in chicken stock. No pre cooking or browning, just in the cooker and left all day. Served with crusty bread.

Oh and get ready to come home to a house that smells amazing

get a slow roast joint of your choice ours is beef. place veg in bottom of cooker. swede, carrots thsat sort of thing. place joint on top. cover veg with water. season with whatever you have available, we like out of the garden stuff…tyhme, sage, rosemary. switch on before you go to work….job done.

Ham joint cooked in cola.

I got one big enough for a whole chicken, but it also does smaller portions just as well. Don’t use chicken breasts though as they just end up dry. Use thighs instead.

^^^ does that cola thing work, no other ingredients?

I do the beans thing too but with pork belly and pancetta.

Anyone got any good recipes that can be put on in the morning and are ready when you get home at night?

I have tried various dishes over the years but they always seem to disappoint (Bolognese, chicken chasseur, stew etc). They all seem to have a taint to them.

I did a leg of mutton in it on Sunday though that was spectacular!

Christmas Pudding – tease the whole house with that fantastic smell for several hours.

Not got any recipes yet. Just bookmarking the thread, cos mine is underused.

Never understood people who put chicken in the slow cooker

I make chicken curries…usually 4 chicken thighs, a few bits of veg and a Lidl curry sauce. Always tastes great. Bit of a faff removing skin and bones from the chicken but I normally do this while the rice is cooking….

I use mine plenty, but just tend to chuck stuff in. A beef joint with a few peeled potatoes, bisto granules, assorted herbs, mustard seeds, etc.

Fill it with water. Leave on low before bed and eat when home from work the next day. Meat just falls apart and tastes great.

Works with any meat tried to date – lamb, ham, chicken, etc. Just change the accompaniments to suit.

Rice pudding – made with gold top milk and a cinnamon stick.

^^^ does that cola thing work, no other ingredients?

Yeah, if you have a quick Google you’ll find some recipes for it but ham with non-diet cola works. Pepsi Max doesn’t, needs the sugar!

I’ve done ham in apple juice with cinnamon too, that’s tasty.

I switch in on when I go to work and its cooked when I get back (9hrs later).

If I’m cooking something that requires less time I use a plug in timer and set it so it finishes when I get home.

Ham joint cooked in cola.

I use cider much better

I did try cider once, turned out nice. Kitchen smelled like a brewery when I got home!