Slow Cooker recipes

Pistachios & cream

Toots wrote: »

I made this Chickpea Curry on Wednesday night and it was unbelievable! There's only 3 in my family (me, hubby and 4 year old son) so we ended up getting dinner for 3 nights out of it, so not only was it delicious, it worked out super economical. Only change I'd make is I'd swap out a regular potato for a sweet potato, but that's mainly cos I'm not keen on potato anyway. I used mini peppers from Lidl instead of green bell pepper, and a regular old chilli instead of a serrano chilli (because I don't know what that is haha), I also substituted chilli flakes instead of ground red pepper. It was mild enough for a 4 year old to eat, so if you want something spicy I'd say double up on the spices. I served it with a small portion of rice on the side, but it doesn't really need it - you could have it on its own.

I made this for my lunches and used sweet potato as you suggested and a few more veggies to bulk it up. I was a bit heavy handed with the spices so it's very hot but still yummy.

Lovely Bloke

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I lb/500g of rib steak, diced - or steak pieces
2 sliced carrots
2 sliced onions
2 sticks of celery, sliced
A couple of dessertspoons of flour
Pinch of mixed herbs
Salt and black pepper
A squirt of tomato puree
2 red Oxo cubes mixed with a pint of hot water
Olive or sunflower oil for browning the meat

Roll the meat in flour, then brown it on the pan in the oil.
Remove it from the pan and add the carrots, celery and onions. Fry gently until they start to soften. Add the meat, stock, tomato puree, salt and pepper and the herbs. If it's a bit too thick, add more water. Put it all into the slow cooker and cook it on low for 8-10 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.

* You could just throw it all into the slow cooker and stir in just one dessertspoon of flour before adding the stock, but it won't taste quite as nice.

making this for this evening, subbed in half a pint of home brew stout instead of some of the water to make up the stock.

4 or 5 hours on high I hope should be ok.

OU812

Corned beef. Any suggestions or tips?

hardCopy

Baldy Conscience wrote: »

making this for this evening, subbed in half a pint of home brew stout instead of some of the water to make up the stock.

4 or 5 hours on high I hope should be ok.

I'm planning to do beef and ale over the weekend. How did you get on with the half pint of stout? Was it a thin or thick sauce?

As a general rule, how much pearl barley do people add for thickening and at what point?

OU812

For anyone who bought the aldi slow cooker a couple of weeks back, They've got an upcoming divided crock for €14.99

https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/thur-10-dec/products-detail-page/ps/p/divided-slow-cooker-pot/

maryfred

OU812 wrote: »

For anyone who bought the aldi slow cooker a couple of weeks back, They've got an upcoming divided crock for €14.99

https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/thur-10-dec/products-detail-page/ps/p/divided-slow-cooker-pot/

Has anyone used one of these divided ones before. I bought the 6.5ltr slow cooker from Aldi, but wonder if you were doing two different dishes would both dishes end up tasting of each other.

JB81

Hi

I was just wondering if anyone is aware of any slow cooker that you can get which comes with a partition that can be removed/put in to make 2 cooking areas or 1 large single area?

Thanks in advance

Regards
JB

Lovely Bloke

hardCopy wrote: »

I'm planning to do beef and ale over the weekend. How did you get on with the half pint of stout? Was it a thin or thick sauce?

As a general rule, how much pearl barley do people add for thickening and at what point?

Sorry only getting to this now.

The sauce was reasonably thick. I used my homebrew stout, so the sauce was totally amazing

I use a handful of Pearl Barley at the start of cooking.

snowgal

JB81 wrote: »

Hi

I was just wondering if anyone is aware of any slow cooker that you can get which comes with a partition that can be removed/put in to make 2 cooking areas or 1 large single area?

Thanks in advance

Regards
JB

see a few posts above-aldi

JB81

snowgal wrote: »

see a few posts above-aldi

Yeah thanks, sorry i should have stated other than aldi, because the actual cooker is not in the stores at the moment, only the pot accessory..

Thanks anyway

Regards
JB

A_Sober_Paddy

Baldy Conscience wrote: »

Sorry only getting to this now.

The sauce was reasonably thick. I used my homebrew stout, so the sauce was totally amazing

I use a handful of Pearl Barley at the start of cooking.

Much difference between pot and pearl barley?

Dizzyblonde

I use pearl barley - I never knew there was another type.

Lovely Bloke

never heard of pot barley myself, but this link after a quick google says they are interchangeable

A_Sober_Paddy

Just had my slow cooked stew, tasted a little on the bland side

400g stewing beef

160g each of the following
Onion
Parsnip
Carrot

80g celery

Tinned Tomatoes x1
Oxo beef cube made with 200mls of water

Thyme x2tbsp

Wirchestershire Sauce x1tbsp
Butter 10g

Bay leaves x3

All in the cooker for 8 hours

Any suggestions?

Dizzyblonde

I add a splash of wine or balsamic vinegar these days and it makes a big difference. Was it a bit thin? If so, stirring a tablespoon of flour into the meat and veg before adding the liquid helps thicken it.

Lovely Bloke

Pepper!

Did you brown the meat beforehand?

A_Sober_Paddy

Baldy Conscience wrote: »

Pepper!

Did you brown the meat beforehand?

I used salt and pepper, I never brown meat just find it tastes better without doing so in all my other dishes, wethrr its lamb or beef

beertons

Chilli flakes. Mightened be called a stew then, but sure we all have our own names for things. I made a chilli a while ago and forgot to put the flakes in. The cayenne and paprika did the job though.

FortuneChip

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Just had my slow cooked stew, tasted a little on the bland side


Any suggestions?

Nothing wrong with the ingredients, although maybe some crush garlic? And I agree some chilli flakes (it won't be hot, it won't even add much of a kick when slow cooked, but it's there)

Fry everything first.
I'd toss the beef in some seasoned flour and the fry it in a pan.
Fry the veg in a second pan.
Add both to the slow cooker then use a glass of red wine to deglaze the beef pan. Scrape up all those tasty bits and add it in.

Everything into the slow cooker.

A_Sober_Paddy

FortuneChip wrote: »

Nothing wrong with the ingredients, although maybe some crush garlic? And I agree some chilli flakes (it won't be hot, it won't even add much of a kick when slow cooked, but it's there)

Fry everything first.
I'd toss the beef in some seasoned flour and the fry it in a pan.
Fry the veg in a second pan.
Add both to the slow cooker then use a glass of red wine to deglaze the beef pan. Scrape up all those tasty bits and add it in.

Everything into the slow cooker.

Can't have alcohol in the gaff, so rules out wine, oh I have garlic in, its in all my stuff

ahlookit

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Just had my slow cooked stew, tasted a little on the bland side

400g stewing beef

160g each of the following
Onion
Parsnip
Carrot

80g celery

Tinned Tomatoes x1
Oxo beef cube made with 200mls of water

Thyme x2tbsp

Wirchestershire Sauce x1tbsp
Butter 10g

Bay leaves x3

All in the cooker for 8 hours

Any suggestions?

I make this pretty regularly (without the celery). Pretty much the same basic ingredients as yours, with a few small alterations. Always find it comes out well

http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/10/slow-cooker-rosemary-garlic-beef-stew-slow-cooker/

A_Sober_Paddy

ahlookit wrote: »

I make this pretty regularly (without the celery). Pretty much the same basic ingredients as yours, with a few small alterations. Always find it comes out well

http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/10/slow-cooker-rosemary-garlic-beef-stew-slow-cooker/

Rosemary with beef, thought rosemary with pork ?

Also cheers for the link

the beer revolu

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Rosemary with beef, thought rosemary with pork ?

Also cheers for the link

Rosemary is typically paired with lamb but will really go with most things if you like rosemary.

Great with tomatoes, roast potatoes with garlic and rosemary etc. I'd be wary of dried rosemary, though - it can be very pungent and harsh.

FortuneChip

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Can't have alcohol in the gaff, so rules out wine, oh I have garlic in, its in all my stuff

Ah, apologies.

I'd still recommend deglazing the frying pans with some chicken/vegetable stock after frying the meat off.
It's those leftover bits that stick to the pan that carry so much flavour.

spurious

I add a blob of tomato ketchup to anything stew shaped.

stoutykid

I have recently tried slow cooker spice mixes by Gordon Rhodes... I picked them up in my local butcher but they do have a web page you can buy from. They are very reasonable. I tried the lamb tagine one and it was really spicy and flavorsome. I sometimes find that my food out of the slow cooker can be a little bland spice wise. It can be hard to get the combination right. Will def be using these again...I can highly recommend if anyone was wondering about them.

Here is the website if anyone is interested....http://www.gordonrhodes.co.uk/shop/gourmet-sauce-mixes

b.gud

Slow cooker coming up in Lidl for €20 next week for anyone interested

54and56

Hi all,

Have a bit of a slow cooker emergency on my hands. I'm making a version of the Rosemary beef dish linked to above but totally overdosed it with ground black pepper and having just sampled it (5 hours into the cook) it nearly burned the mouth off me. Didn't think I put that much black pepper in but obviously I did. I got a phone call as I was preparing it and I think I dosed it with black pepper twice

Any suggestions as to how I can tone down the black pepper/hot taste?

harr

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Hi all,

Have a bit of a slow cooker emergency on my hands. I'm making a version of the Rosemary beef dish linked to above but totally overdosed it with ground black pepper and having just sampled it (5 hours into the cook) it nearly burned the mouth off me. Didn't think I put that much black pepper in but obviously I did. I got a phone call as I was preparing it and I think I dosed it with black pepper twice

Any suggestions as to how I can tone down the black pepper/hot taste?

All that I would think of is ,take it out of the cooker and put into a normal saucepan and add cream or something similar and keep adding till hotness has gone down a bit... Obviously won't taste As ment but might be saved..you might need to re thicken sauce near end...
Good luck

Just found this ,it might help
http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/964475/in-a-pickle-what-to-do-if-a-dish-is-too-spicy

54and56

harr wrote: »

All that I would think of is ,take it out of the cooker and put into a normal saucepan and add cream or something similar and keep adding till hotness has gone down a bit... Obviously won't taste As ment but might be saved..you might need to re thicken sauce near end...
Good luck

Just found this ,it might help
http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/964475/in-a-pickle-what-to-do-if-a-dish-is-too-spicy

Thanks Harr, you saved the day!! Cream worked very well. Two of us had that and I tried using some freshly cut pineapple as I'm not a big fan of heavy creamy dishes which made the dish a little fruity but less hot and quite nice actually.

Thanks again.

harr

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Thanks Harr, you saved the day!! Cream worked very well. Two of us had that and I tried using some freshly cut pineapple as I'm not a big fan of heavy creamy dishes which made the dish a little fruity but less hot and quite nice actually.

Thanks again.

No problem,glad it worked out for you,I have never tried pineapple for this reason before and it's a handy tip to know...

D'Agger

Just got a slow cooker so I'll be reading up on plenty of these recipes over the coming days/weeks

Simple question to start off though - I have football training, can I hoof on some chicken/turkey, potatoes & broccoli/carrots at the same time to be ready when I'm back I.e. 2-3 hours later? In my mind I figure the meat & potatoes would be grand but the veg would be cooked to the point where they're useless, I'm basing that on general cooking times for veg compared to meat

The Black Oil

Veg such as carrots can take a very long time, at least on low setting. When I make Jamie Oliver's beef and ale stew, for example...that'd be ticking over for about 8 hours.

You can do spuds in their jackets in a few hours on high setting, ime.

Baggly

Wouldn't be doing much in 3 hours that you couldn't also achieve in a normal pot in any oven.

If you want the most from your SC, plan to cook things well beyond the 4 hour mark.

D'Agger

Pter wrote: »

Wouldn't be doing much in 3 hours that you couldn't also achieve in a normal pot in any oven.

If you want the most from your SC, plan to cook things well beyond the 4 hour mark.

Understood, days I'm not training I'll look to use long cooks & on weekends too but id like if I could fire on something for 3-4 hours days I train that's reasonably plain and healthy like plain chicken breast, sweet potatoes & carrots or broccoli - on high for 3-4 hours, would the veg be alright? I just have it in my head the broccoli would be shíte

The Black Oil

There's been some discussion here re whether chicken comes out well or not. Have a look from here on. http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=96581696&postcount=607

Maybe try some veg on its own to start, to get a feel for it.

Baggly

Trial and error as well. What might be fine for me might not suit you

heldel00

D'Agger wrote: »

Understood, days I'm not training I'll look to use long cooks & on weekends too but id like if I could fire on something for 3-4 hours days I train that's reasonably plain and healthy like plain chicken breast, sweet potatoes & carrots or broccoli - on high for 3-4 hours, would the veg be alright? I just have it in my head the broccoli would be shíte

Buy a plug timer for your slow cooker. Make your dinner the night before, put slow cooker pot in fridge, take it out that morn before work, set timer and Bobs your uncle!

Mrs Fox

Folks, I own a 3.5l slow cooker that i haven't been using for awhile, but since I've started work again I'm going to blow the dust off the cooker. I used to only cook soup or small round beef in it, but I'd like to be able to cook a whole chicken with veg. I take it that a whole bird won't fit in a 3.5l cooker, so I'm thinking of getting a bigger one. I only need the extra room for a chicken, or bigger piece of roast; I'm not interested in making big batches for the freezer. If I'm making the likes of chilli/bolognese i would prefer to make a batch that's just enough for dinner and some leftover for lunch the next day. So, would a 5/5.5l cooker suffice? Or should i just go for a 6.5 and not fill up the pot? I'm very tempted with cookworks 6.5 from Argos just because it's a bargain at only €29. Any thoughts?

Dizzyblonde

I have a 6.5l slow cooker and mostly use it to cook for two, so I'd advise you to go for it if you have the space. It's so handy when you want to cook something bigger, and no more trouble to wash than a smaller one.

Zelda247

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I have a 6.5l slow cooker and mostly use it to cook for two, so I'd advise you to go for it if you have the space. It's so handy when you want to cook something bigger, and no more trouble to wash than a smaller one.

I would go for the larger one. I only cook for 2 and use my large one for everything, the smaller size is very limiting.

Mrs Fox

Thanks ladies. I got one this afternoon. Looking forward to tomorrow's dinner already.
My only gripe with Cookworks is the main body felt like a can. I'd say it'll be easily damaged if I'm not careful. Another option was Morphy Richards, but i didn't like the aluminium bowl.

Greenmachine

Great thread.

54and56

Mrs Fox wrote: »

Thanks ladies

and gentlemen!!!

Lovely Bloke

Mrs Fox wrote: »

Thanks ladies. I got one this afternoon. Looking forward to tomorrow's dinner already.
My only gripe with Cookworks is the main body felt like a can. I'd say it'll be easily damaged if I'm not careful. Another option was Morphy Richards, but i didn't like the aluminium bowl.

I've had that large Cookworks one for over a year now, and it's fairly robust even though it feels kind of flimsy. Mine gets bashed in and out of the back a corner press with no "corner door", so it's pulled, banged and all sorts. Be grand.

(I'm also a bloke:P)

Mrs Fox

Thank you all
I have the chook in already this morning.

Graces7

Got one of those real bargains in tesco recently after the new rescue cat killed my slow cooker by knocking it off the counter.. an end of line half price original crockpot.. Literally half price and an elegant addition to my kitchen

Mrs Fox

I cooked whole chicken using this recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/235713/whole-chicken-slow-cooker-recipe/

I cooked it for 8 hours, which i know now was about an hour too long with the size of the small chicken. Everything fell off the bone nicely though, leg meat succulent but breast meat was very stringy. It was also a bit too lemony, like washing up liquid; slow cooked lemon is just a no-no to my palate unless if it's in the oven. I will try other recipes, perhaps using only legs next time.

This morning I had beef stew in. Let's see how this turns out.

scudzilla

duckling10 wrote: »

on friday night I bought a Housekeepers cut of Beef from Lidl, 6.99 i think for one kilo.
I put it in the slow cooker on Saturday morning and cooked it with 100ml red wine and 400ml of stock (made from an Oxo stock cube mixed about 1 pint (400ml) of just boiled water).
I put it on high for 2 hours then low for 4 hours, but that was a little bit too short time. I took it up and sliced it, it wasn't quite falling apart, but we ate some and everyone loved it.
I put the rest of the slices back into the slow cooker and cooked it on low for another 3 hours. Today it was falling apart and delicious, and the winy stock made a fantastic base for a gravy, which hubby made. He melts butter in a small saucepan, adds flour or cornflour, mixes to a paste, then added the winy liquid. delicious.....
If I was doing it again I would have cooked the meat for 5 or 6 hours on high or 8 to 10 hours on low and it would have been melt in the mouth yummy...
I will definitely be doing it again.
Tomorrow is something with chicken. scuttles off to cook book....

Made that tonight, was just perfection and sooo easy

Gravy was the business too, did it the same way as you said

Toots

I've got this 4.7l one and I can fit a full chicken in that. I reckon you could probably use the 6.5l one and just not fill it. A lot of the recipes I've made have only half-filled my pot.