Slow cooker recipes

So after all this slow cooker talk I thought we could do with a slow cooker thread here. I have also attached a 7-p basic intro to using one - taken from a book first published in 1979 and updated in 1990 so it may well be dated but it's worked for me with my 1990 vintage slow cooker...

First recipe:

Bolognese sauce
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1 lb extra lean beef mince
3 onions
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 celery sticks, chopped
2 tins of chopped tomatoes
1 or 2 tb tomato puree
herbs: parsley, oregano, rosemary, basil
salt & pepper


Turn slow cooker on.

In a non-stick frying pan, soften the onion, garlic and brown the mice.

Put into slow cooker. Add chopped celery, tomatoes, puree, herbs and seasoning to taste. I also like to add some Worcestershire sauce.

Forget about it all day on low setting.

When you get home, give it a stir to check, maybe re-season, get the rest of your meal together (my favourite is Dukan pancakes or thin omelettes cut into strips!!), and serve the sauce straight from the cooker.

You can already vary this recipe significantly by keeping the tomato base and adding different Veg (mushrooms, peppers) or different meat: diced beef, chicken pieces (I rarely brown those, nor do I toss them in flour,as a lot of recipes call for) etc.

I have also scanned and attached the Meat and Poultry chapter intros. None of the recipes in the book are suitable for straight copying as they all use flour and cream to thicken the sauces etc.

This is what I made at the weekend - in the slow cooker, using the browning method.
Succulent braised venison recipe - Recipes - BBC Good Food

Above is the link to the original, and below is my adapted CONSO version for less meat - for cruise you'll have to omit the flour & stir in a TB of cornflour in water / stock at the end, and also leave out the redcurrant jelly, maybe add a ts of sweetener and a bit of tomato puree?.

Slow cooked venison stew
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• 2 carrots , roughly chopped
• 200g swede, roughly chopped
• 2 onions roughly chopped
• 3 celery sticks, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 500gr ready-cubed venison for stewing
• 3 tbsp plain flour , seasoned with salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp redcurrant jelly
• 200 ml dry red wine
• 450ml beef stock
• 1 ts dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf

1. Switch on the slow cooker to HIGH. Dry fry the vegetables for 4-5 mins. Tip in the garlic and fry for a further min, then put into slow cooker.
2. Put the venison into a plastic bag with seasoned flour and shake to coat. Then fry the venison over a high heat, until well browned. Don't crowd the pan - cook in batches if necessary. It's a bit tricky as the flour now sticks and burns a little just turn down the heat and try to seal all over. Add to slow cooker.
3. Add the redcurrant jelly and wine to the pan, and bring to the boil, scraping up all the bits that have stuck to the bottom. Pour in the stock, then add the thyme, bay leaf, and add to slow cooker. Season if you like, stir and put the lid on. Switch to LOW.
4. This was perfect after about 8 or 10 hours.

I was in Tesco yesterday and saw they were selling slow cookers for £12. It had three heat settings, and seemed alright I think. Just thought I'd mention it in case anyone was thinking of investing.

Chicken stock

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock Recipe

I hope Anja will forgive me for reposting her slow cooker tips here, but I was looking for them earlier and had trouble finding them:

Well this was my first ever beef roast in any shape or form so I'm a novice!

It was half (a ~1kg piece) of a large "Beef Roasting Joint" they're half price in Sainsbury's at the moment. No idea of the cut! I carefully trimmed off any slivers of remaining fat, then quickly sealed in a non-stick pan, without any oil not even fry-light. Then lightly seasoned with salt and pepper all over and plonked into the cooker, put it on low and went to work... Came home about 8hrs later and it was done and sat in a pool of lovely juice (there was virtually no fat). Sliced into thin slices - yum yum. Very 'beefy' and quite tender.

My book says (I scanned that for the recipe thread)
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Roasts

Meat or poultry roasted in the slow cooker is not as crisp as when cooked in an oven as the oven's high, dry heat cannot be reproduced. Nevertheless, slow cooked roasts are deliciously succulent. Buy a joint or bird which will fit in the pot and allow the lid to fit snugly. Trim excess fat and brown evenly on all sides in a frypan. With a non‑stick pan it is possible to brown without adding further fat. Transfer to the slow cooker and season. Fattier meat may be stood on a trivet or crumpled foil There is no need to add any liquid. Cook steamed puddings and joints of pork on HIGH only to ensure. thorough heat penetration. Casseroles of cubed pork may be cooked on HIGH or LOW as wished.

After roasting remove the meat to a hot serving dish ' and carefully pour the juices from the slow cooker into a jug. Allow it to settle for a moment and the fat will float to the top. Skim or pour off and strain the juices to make a delicious gravy.

Roasting times will depend on the size and shape of the meat and the proportion of fat and bone, but the following table can be a guide.

Beef, lamb and veal
1‑1.6kg (2‑3 1/2 lb) LOW 4‑10 hours
HIGH 3‑6 hours
1.6‑2.3kg (3 1/2 ‑ 5 lb) LOW 7‑12 hours
HIGH 5‑8 hours
Pork
1‑1.6kg (2 ‑ 3 1/2 lb) HIGH 3‑5 hours
1.6‑2.3kg (3 1/2 ‑5 lb) HIGH 4‑6 hours

Beef Gulasch - Beef with peppers

500gr diced stewing steak - lean
5 green and/or red peppers, sliced
5 large onions chopped (or more)
2 tins of chopped tomatoes
1tb Paprika (more to taste)

Dice onions and put into slow cooker.
Put half the pepper slices in and press down a bit.
Add diced meat, season a bit with salt and pepper. Add remaining peppers

In a bowl season the chopped tomatoes and add lots of paprika. Mix well and pour over meat & veg.

Cook on low for about 8hrs / all day.
Check and if necessary season some more before serving.

It will be very soupy, you can either eat it like that, or mix 1 tb cornflour with water, yoghurt, anything you prefer and stir in, switch to high and stir occasionally until thickened a bit, this could take 30 mins.

I managed to procure my mum's slow cooker yesterday, as she doesn't use it so I'll definitely be having a go at some of these and I'll let you know how I get on. Keep them coming!

Chicken in tomato sauce

This is what we had last night, and it was delicious and the leftovers made a lovely soup today!

Into the slow cooker put (in this order):

• 1 large chopped onion
• skinned chicken pieces - I had 6 legs and thighs (on offer again...), just legs or breast would be lower fat.
• season well with salt & pepper
• Add 1 large sliced courgette
• Pour over 1 tin/carton (400gr) sieved tomatoes (passata) or chopped tomatoes, making sure veg & meat are covered.

Put on low 8 hours/all day.

Before serving give it a stir and re-season.

Now I left it plain as a above as we had baked pumpkin with it but if liked you could add some oregano / other herbs and a crushed clove of garlic to the tomato and mix well before pouring it in.

We fished out the chicken and veg for dinner last night, and then had the remainder of the sauce as soup today after adding a bit more water!

Rancheros Pie

500g minced beef
1 onion
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
i tspn cumin seeds lightly crushed
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon crushed chillies
1/4 tspn allspice
2 stems oregano roughly chopped
400g can toms
250ml stock

topping
500g butternut squash
a few crushed chillies

Dry fry the beef and onion in a pan, until browned.

Stir in the garlic, spices, oregano, toms and stock. Season.

Spoon into slow cooker, and cover with overlapping slices of squash. Sprinkle with a few dried chillies and a little salt and pepper.

Put the lid on and cook on low for 7-8 hours. When cooked, brown under the grill if required. (My SC wouldn't fit!!)

Of course the original recipe had butter on top of a sweet potato topping! The original also had sultanas in which doesn't really sound as though it goes to me!

I don't know what it's like - is in the sc as we speak!

Mmmh that looks delicious - yes I have lots of recipes for slowcooker potato 'bakes', substituting Squash is a brilliant idea!!