Slow Cooker recipes

witnessmenow

We make a sausage casserole in the slow cooker that we really like, its this one

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/great_sausage_casserole_73010

Prepare as per recipe but do the final cooking in the slow cooker. I think it needs at least 4 hours on high. I think its sweet enough without the sugar so maybe leave that out. This time around I added carrots and celery as well, cut small and fried for a few minutes first.

EDIT: I also just throw the beans in pretty much straight away.

arian

witnessmenow wrote: »

We make a sausage casserole in the slow cooker that we really like, its this one

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/great_sausage_casserole_73010

Prepare as per recipe but do the final cooking in the slow cooker. I think it needs at least 4 hours on high. I think its sweet enough without the sugar so maybe leave that out. This time around I added carrots and celery as well, cut small and fried for a few minutes first.

EDIT: I also just throw the beans in pretty much straight away.

We made this recently, but cooked in the oven rather than on the hob as in the recipe. Can't remember how long we cooked it for. We too left out the sugar. It tasted good.

We'll try it in the SC next time.

Gloomtastic!

Discovered this recipe today that works great in the slow cooker - it's very Mediterranean and different to your usual stew.

Pork with Fennel Casserole

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/pork_and_fennel_71661

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Cheshire Cat

Thanks for that Pat! What kind of sweetener do you use? Sugar or something like Stevia?

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

A_Sober_Paddy

Hey all

Anyone have any good pulled pork receipes, but for only 300-400 g of pork?

Leinster1980

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Hey all

Anyone have any good pulled pork receipes, but for only 300-400 g of pork?

This one is a staple in our house. Just reduce the recipe. It's very very good. I would always use the specified size in pork shoulder and freeze the leftovers. The left overs are yum on homemade pizza or jamie oliver Korean fried rice.

http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2056106123/1/#post69309519

La.de.da

I did my first joint of beef yesterday. Good god it is gorgeous and so easy.
Thanks for ye're tips

dollyk

kylith wrote: »

It's very easy. Just wrap a few spuds in foil and stack them in the SC, no need for any liquid. Cook on low for about 8 hours. The best baked spuds I've ever tasted.

Im going to try this, Sounds a bit mad without any water ?:)

Alf Stewart.

dollyk wrote: »

Im going to try this, Sounds a bit mad without any water ?:)

It sounds like an interesting concept alright, but I can't imagine the spuds would have a crispy exterior.

The best baked potatoes have crispy skins in my humble opinion, but I'm most definitely willing to give these a go.

I have a nice steak (I will fry it mind) that will go well with some spuds, and sauteed onions mushrooms and broccoli.

daisybelle2008

Satriale wrote: »

Tried sourdough bread in the slow cooker a few days ago. Probably came out one of the best sourdoughs i've baked, crusty where it touched the cooker and soft crust from the steam everywhere else. Preparation as normal, put it in the (buttered) crock at room temp, left to rise, then 2 and a half hours or thereabouts on high.

Looks great, do you have recipe?

dollyk

dollyk wrote: »

Im going to try this, Sounds a bit mad without any water ?:)

Potatoes are 80% water.

yellow hen

I have a big top side of beef which i'm planning to slow cook tomorrow. Can anyone recommend a recipe? I'm a total slow cooker novice

Satriale

daisybelle2008 wrote: »

Looks great, do you have recipe?

Feck, i dont really, i've been making it for years and i wing it a bit tbh, but I'll give you a rough idea, though i'm sure there are more polished and accurate methods out there.

I mix a few tablespoons of my starter into 2 or 3 hundred grams of flour and mix it into a thick batter. Then i either leave it overnight or prepare it in the morning to have it ready in that evening. At that stage, if everything is going right it should be bubbling a fair bit. If it is, i add a teaspoon(+ish) of salt, na teaspoon(+ish) of sugar, maybe a tablespoon of olive oil, around 300/400 more grams of flour and enough water to pull it all together.
10 minutes kneading by had or if you're a lazy baxter like me, 5 minutes with the Kenwood dough-hook on high.

Leave to rise. When i use the "batter first" method the proof seems to be fairly fast but at times i've left it overnight to prove as well, (if necessary you can slow it down by putting in the fridge or speed it up by placing in a warm place). Punch it down and place in a buttered tin of suitable size(I sometimes dont bother with this second rise if i use the batter first method.) And if the dough is a bit dry i might dispense with the tin and just put it on a greased tray and make a round loaf.

Leave to double in size, then bang it in the oven 10 minutes in a fairly hot oven then lower to 190-ish fan for 35. (A few times ive put it in the cold oven and it turned out fairly well too, seems to get a little extra rise as it heats.) I usually place a pan of water in the bottom of the oven for a nice steamy environment, and put a few cuts with a sharp knife on the surface of the loaf.


Note on the starter.
You can buy the starter, or if you know anyone who makes sourdough they will give you a bit, but i made my own years ago and its still going strong. IIRC i mixed a couple of spoons of ordinary flour, wholemeal flour and some water into a batter and left it on the windowsill for a few hours to try and gather some wild yeast .
Maybe not practical at this time of the year (but i'm sure i read somewhere the wholemeal has some yeast of its own anyway).

Following day mix in another spoon of flour and wholemeal flour and some more water.
following day mix in another couple of spoons of each, water and into a batter again.
The next day throw away half of the mix and mix in another couple of spoons and water.
Continue for a week, halving and feeding and you should start to see it bubbling as the yeasts feed. Once the yeast is going you can use just plain flour to feed from then on.


You can store the starter at room temperature halving and feeding every day or you can store in the fridge halving and feeding every few days. i keep mine in the fridge. i also keep a bit in the freezer in case mine dies from lack of care .
If you notice some liquid on the top and a nail varnish smell, this is alcohol a by-product of the yeast, just pour it off and mix in some more flour and water. it's pretty hard stuff to kill completely.

Hope i havent missed anything, please correct me if anyone spots anything or has an improvement on my wildly improvised breadmaking. Or if anyone has any suggestions, i'm always varying small things to try them out (like firing it in the slow cooker for a change of tack)

anon71

Going to pop this here and hope for some help. I'm feeding 4 people for Christmas dinner. Ham and boned, stuffed and rolled chicken. We don't eat turkey. Dinner will be served around 2pm.
My plan is to slow cook the ham from that morning in cider and spices. High for 4 hrs will be fine it's not a huge piece and I've done that before. Ideally I'd also like to slow cook the chicken and then put it into the oven to crisp up at the same time that the spuds will go in to roast. The chicken will be a large free range one from the butchers that they will stuff with my stuffing and then roll. I've never slow cooked a chicken like this so I'm not sure quite how to go about it. The idea behind using the slow cooker is convenience on the day but I do want to chicken cooked properly as well.
So has anyone here slow cooked a chicken like this. Looking for help with timings in the slow cooker and also the crisping in the oven. Also if the chicken is slow cooked will it still carve well or is it more likely to fall apart, which I don't wan't.

Thanks...

ellejay

anon71 wrote: »

Going to pop this here and hope for some help. I'm feeding 4 people for Christmas dinner. Ham and boned, stuffed and rolled chicken. We don't eat turkey. Dinner will be served around 2pm.
My plan is to slow cook the ham from that morning in cider and spices. High for 4 hrs will be fine it's not a huge piece and I've done that before. Ideally I'd also like to slow cook the chicken and then put it into the oven to crisp up at the same time that the spuds will go in to roast. The chicken will be a large free range one from the butchers that they will stuff with my stuffing and then roll. I've never slow cooked a chicken like this so I'm not sure quite how to go about it. The idea behind using the slow cooker is convenience on the day but I do want to chicken cooked properly as well.
So has anyone here slow cooked a chicken like this. Looking for help with timings in the slow cooker and also the crisping in the oven. Also if the chicken is slow cooked will it still carve well or is it more likely to fall apart, which I don't wan't.

Thanks...

Hi anon

In my own experience, I've only cooked whole chickens in my slow cooker, and they do fall apart.
I'd be inclined to roast it in the oven on Christmas day.
If you need the oven for something else, maybe you could roast it the day before, carve it, then reheat it in the slow cooker?

I'm using my slow cooker to keep the soup warm!

cobham

I use my slow cooker to do a ham but prefer to let it take its time maybe over 5 hours the day before and let it cool in the liquid. I will carve meat and put on hot plates with other hot items on the big day or sometimes on a plate covered in foil and popped in oven for bit to warm thru.

I would think roast with dry heat best for chicken. The only chicken suitable for slow cooker is the less tender portions, drumstick, thighs etc and on the bone. The long slow cook brings out the goodness of the bones to give a good stock. Bit of a pity to debone a free range chicken but certainly a good idea for serving up easy. I would keep bones to make a stock. I would also do some stuffing separate to the meat.

anon71

ellejay wrote: »

Hi anon

In my own experience, I've only cooked whole chickens in my slow cooker, and they do fall apart.
I'd be inclined to roast it in the oven on Christmas day.
If you need the oven for something else, maybe you could roast it the day before, carve it, then reheat it in the slow cooker?

I'm using my slow cooker to keep the soup warm!

I don't need the oven for anything else. It was just the logistics of the day because I wouldn't be home for all of it and it would have been handy to have the meat tootling away in the slow cooker while I was gone.
But I do think your right about it falling apart. I actually hadn't thought about reheating it in the slow cooker. Would that be a matter of just slicing and leaving it on some tinfoil in the cooker? Would it be on high and how long would it take to heat up?

anon71

cobham wrote: »

I use my slow cooker to do a ham but prefer to let it take its time maybe over 5 hours the day before and let it cool in the liquid. I will carve meat and put on hot plates with other hot items on the big day or sometimes on a plate covered in foil and popped in oven for bit to warm thru.

I would think roast with dry heat best for chicken. The only chicken suitable for slow cooker is the less tender portions, drumstick, thighs etc and on the bone. The long slow cook brings out the goodness of the bones to give a good stock. Bit of a pity to debone a free range chicken but certainly a good idea for serving up easy. I would keep bones to make a stock. I would also do some stuffing separate to the meat.

I will be doing extra stuffing to serve alongside the food. Boned and rolled is just for convenience sake. It's probably the only time of the year when we don't make stock from the carcass so I can sacrifice this once. And I will be roasting after all.

athtrasna

Any suggestions for party food I can do in the slow cooker? Something that will turn into nibbles rather than a big pot of chilli/curry?

Gloomtastic!

athtrasna wrote: »

Any suggestions for party food I can do in the slow cooker? Something that will turn into nibbles rather than a big pot of chilli/curry?

You could slow cook some ribs in stock for 8 hours then take them out, cover them in sauce and put them in a very hot oven for 15/20 minutes.

ellejay

anon71 wrote: »

I don't need the oven for anything else. It was just the logistics of the day because I wouldn't be home for all of it and it would have been handy to have the meat tootling away in the slow cooker while I was gone.
But I do think your right about it falling apart. I actually hadn't thought about reheating it in the slow cooker. Would that be a matter of just slicing and leaving it on some tinfoil in the cooker? Would it be on high and how long would it take to heat up?

To be honest I'd just cook the the chicken in the oven! I'd do a low heat and time it to be ready when you want to eat it.

If I was reheating chicken in the slow cooker I put it sliced, in a tinfoil parcel with water and make sure the water doesn't leak out. To keep it moist.
You'd need a little water in the slow cooker, and add something to raise the parcel up out of it, eg carrots.

ellejay

athtrasna wrote: »

Any suggestions for party food I can do in the slow cooker? Something that will turn into nibbles rather than a big pot of chilli/curry?

I can only think of meatballs or chicken wings for the slow cooker.

Speedwell

ellejay wrote: »

I can only think of meatballs or chicken wings for the slow cooker.

Buffalo chicken dip... http://allrecipes.com/recipe/68461/buffalo-chicken-dip/
Cocktail sausages in bbq sauce: http://damndelicious.net/2014/10/20/slow-cooker-cocktail-sausages/
The supreme nacho bar... make a cheese sauce, there is no Irish equivalent to Velveeta: http://www.themagicalslowcooker.com/2013/01/21/super-bowl-nacho-bar/
Bourbon barbecue wings: http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a44369/slow-cooker-barbecue-bourbon-chicken-wings-recipe/

Start with those

hidinginthebush

Made chilli last night, came home to it today, what a welcome home it was!!

Full disclosure, I bastardised Heston Blumenthal's recipe to fit what I had in the press and add the spicy butter components into the cooking process to make it a true one pot dish

Recipe as follows...

500g beef mince (not the lean stuff)
1 onion chopped
3 garlic cloves chopped
1 chilli chopped
1 star anise
1tsp ground cumin
1.5 tsp hot chili powder
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tin chopped tomatoes (though I prefer peeled plum tomatoes)
1 tin black beans, drained and rinsed (or any other bean .. Purists will argue for kidney but I hate them)
1/2 bottle red wine
A mug of beef stock

Simple and easy...
Fry the beef, break it up and let it brown. Then throw in the onion, garlic and chili. Keep stirring for a few mins, then add in the spices and puree. Mix it all up then add in the tomatoes, beans, wine and stock.

Give her a mix then throw in the cooker.... I left it on 5 hrs on high and came home to one of the richest and tastiest chilies I've ever had (be sure to fish out the star anise). It has a nice smokey taste to it, and isn't hot by any means, you can play around with the chilies and powder to give it more of a kick if so desired. It's seriously good though!!

bigronnie9

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

You could slow cook some ribs in stock for 8 hours then take them out, cover them in sauce and put them in a very hot oven for 15/20 minutes.

hmm...I might have to try this.

Attempted ribs once in the slow cooker, just covered in sauce and threw them in, was very disappointed with them.

Beef stock or chicken? Is there a best type of rib to get for doing them this way?

Dizzyblonde

There was a discussion about slow cooked ribs earlier in this very thread, with a great Youtube recipe back on page 66

Evil_g

bigronnie9 wrote: »

hmm...I might have to try this.

Attempted ribs once in the slow cooker, just covered in sauce and threw them in, was very disappointed with them.

Beef stock or chicken? Is there a best type of rib to get for doing them this way?

This should be posted on every page of this thread:

http://i.imgur.com/xMlN9N4.gifv

If you're in Dublin FXB's will sort you out with two racks of unmarinated ribs for a tenner.

Zelda247

I wanted to share a recipe for a dish I did yesterday that I was very happy with. This is for 2 people.

2 part bones deskinned chicken breasts
2 carrots
2 sticks of celery
small handful of dried soup mix
OXO veggie stock cube
1/2 teaspoon of parsley
1/2 teaspoon of thyme
tin of callanelli beans
couple of baby rooster potatoes
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon of chilli flakes
1 teaspoon of cumin

cooked on high for 2 hours and then on low for 1 hour. really tasty.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Satriale

Speedwell wrote: »

Bourbon barbecue wings: http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a44369/slow-cooker-barbecue-bourbon-chicken-wings-recipe/

Start with those

These are magic, my hands have been sticky for two weeks now.

rawn

Any suggestions for a recipe involving minced beef that isn't chilli or bolognese? Sick to death of them I have a kilo of mince I want to use up and would like to make a batch of something for my lunches this week. Nothing too spicy as I'm pregnant/heartburn

Dizzyblonde

rawn wrote: »

Any suggestions for a recipe involving minced beef that isn't chilli or bolognese? Sick to death of them I have a kilo of mince I want to use up and would like to make a batch of something for my lunches this week. Nothing too spicy as I'm pregnant/heartburn

I posted this minced beef stew earlier in the thread. I make it using 500g of mince but you could double it up:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=99781111&postcount=952

Kat1170

rawn wrote: »

Any suggestions for a recipe involving minced beef that isn't chilli or bolognese? Sick to death of them I have a kilo of mince I want to use up and would like to make a batch of something for my lunches this week. Nothing too spicy as I'm pregnant/heartburn

Home made burgers.

rawn

Kat1170 wrote:

Home made burgers.

Thanks but it's for lunches to be reheated in the microwave in work, so I'm looking for a one pot meal!

Evil_g

Not related to the mince question, but this looks interesting:

Slow Cooked Chilli Verde Pork:

https://gfycat.com/GrandioseUnconsciousBronco

(animated gifs are the perfect medium to communicate recipes)

ahlookit

Evil_g wrote: »

Not related to the mince question, but this looks interesting:

Slow Cooked Chilli Verde Pork:

https://gfycat.com/GrandioseUnconsciousBronco

(animated gifs are the perfect medium to communicate recipes)

Looks really good...anyone know where to get tomatilloes? Or is there something you can substitute for them?

Gloomtastic!

ahlookit wrote: »

Looks really good...anyone know where to get tomatilloes? Or is there something you can substitute for them?

google Mexican shops Ireland and order online. Not sure what the difference between them and green tomatoes is but they are hard enough to get hold of as well. Or you could just use tomatoes...,,

dastardly00

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I posted this minced beef stew earlier in the thread. I make it using 500g of mince but you could double it up:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=99781111&postcount=952

I think I might try that recipe myself

When do you add the baby potatoes to the slow cooker? Do you leave the skin on?

Dizzyblonde

dastardly00 wrote: »

I think I might try that recipe myself

When do you add the baby potatoes to the slow cooker? Do you leave the skin on?

I throw them into the slow cooker from the start and leave the skin on. I cut the bigger ones in half.

Zelda247

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I throw them into the slow cooker from the start and leave the skin on. I cut the bigger ones in half.

Me too and it works a treat. I use the baby roosters, lovely!

miamee

Made a nice big beef stew in the slow cooker for the first time yesterday, it turned out lovely. I didn't follow a recipe just chucked the whole lot in and it came out alright! The gravy was a bit watery, that was the only thing. I was a bit wary of putting very littel water in so put in about a pint of beef stock and a stcok cube as well. Maybe I needed more stock cubes than one? Or less liquid.

Diced beef steak
2 carrots
2 parsnips
6-8 baby roosters (bigger ones cut in half)
1 onion
1 pint beef stock
1 beef stock cube.

6 hours on high. The slow cooker I have is nearly a family heirloom at this stage - it's as old as I am, still working perfectly. It hasn't been used much over the last 20 years or more.

Zelda247

miamee wrote: »

Made a nice big beef stew in the slow cooker for the first time yesterday, it turned out lovely. I didn't follow a recipe just chucked the whole lot in and it came out alright! The gravy was a bit watery, that was the only thing. I was a bit wary of putting very littel water in so put in about a pint of beef stock and a stcok cube as well. Maybe I needed more stock cubes than one? Or less liquid.

Diced beef steak
2 carrots
2 parsnips
6-8 baby roosters (bigger ones cut in half)
1 onion
1 pint beef stock
1 beef stock cube.

6 hours on high. The slow cooker I have is nearly a family heirloom at this stage - it's as old as I am, still working perfectly. It hasn't been used much over the last 20 years or more.

I find adding some flour (mix it with a little cold water first) thickens the liquid beautifiully.

miamee

Great, thank you!

Dizzyblonde

I stir the flour into the veg before adding the stock, and I add a handful of pearl barley which also helps to thicken the stew and makes it more wholesome

Glebee

Ive lost faith in the slow cooker and beef stews, I find they come out of the oven much nicer on a long slow heat...

hidinginthebush

Glebee wrote: »

Ive lost faith in the slow cooker and beef stews, I find they come out of the oven much nicer  on a long slow heat...

I 100% agree. I think the problem is that it doesn't get hot enough to melt everything down. when i make a stew on the hob / in the over, the onions melt into the broth, making it thick and nice, whereas in the slowcooker they remain on their own.

Now that said, I made a chili there a week or two back, and I cooked it on high for 6 hours, and everything melted away happily. So I think that could be the way forward. I might try it with a stew to confirm my theory, as I think the standard cooking guideline for the slow cooked is 4 hrs high or 7 hours on low. Giving it the few extra hrs on high seems to do wonders. 

Also feic all liquid is the way forward. The chilli I made had a mug of beef stock for 500g mince and it worked out ok. I find that making tomato based dishes (stews, curries, chilli, bolognaise) work better than a stew where the liquid comes from stock or beer.

rawn

When I put a stew in the slow cooker I take the lid off for the last hour - I find this helps to reduce and thicken the liquid!

trmartin

Eunice Power, who writes occassional cooking/baking articles in the Irish Times, describes discovering the benefits of slow cookers in last Saturday's Irish Times magazine (also provided two recipes, a third is only availabe on-line):

http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/food-and-drink/adventures-with-a-slow-cooker-1.2898652