Slow Cooker 101

A slow cooker can change the game when it comes to easy, dump-and-go meals but first – let’s dive into a few tips and tricks to learn how to properly use your cooker.

How to cut time out of the kitchen with a slow cooker

A slow cooker is a fabulous time saver for those who love a home cooked meal at the end of an event-filled day. All that’s needed is a little prep work in the morning or even the night before, and you’ll return to a house full of delicious aromas. Add a quick side dish such as refrigerator biscuits or a chopped salad and dinner is served. Or, with that extra time you’re saving, you can make homemade dinner rolls!

How do I choose the right slow cooker for my family?

Consider the size of your family when looking at slow cookers. A 5 or 6-quart crockpot is usually a good size for most recipes and will suit the needs of a variety of families. Most slow cookers these days have a removable ceramic crock. Be sure to check for this feature, as they are much easier to clean. This option also allows you to assemble your meal the night before and place it in the refrigerator. In the morning you can remove the crock from the refrigerator and place it into the cooker without any further work on your part.

You can certainly pick up a used cooker at a thrift store or rummage sale, but they can also be purchased new for around $30-40 at discount department stores and online outlets. Different sizes are available for large meals or serving dips, hot drinks, desserts, and appetizers.

I have one, now how do I use it?

Slow cookers are wonderful for making meals you might normally prepare on the stovetop or in casserole form. There are a few things to keep in mind when using your slow cooker for your favorite recipes.

• Vegetables take longer to cook, so place them in the crock first.
• Meat should be trimmed of fat and poultry skins removed.
• Cut meat to fit if need be, and layer on top of vegetables.
• Liquid should only be added in small quantities because the slow cooking process will produce a considerable amount of liquid on its own.
• If you want to add pasta or instant rice, wait until the last 30 minutes of cooking time.
• Add seasonings and herbs toward the end of cooking time as slow cookers do have a tendency to dilute flavors added early.
• Your slow cooker should be approximately 2/3 full. Having too little in your cooker can cause foods to dry out and even burn while too much food in the cooker can result in an overflow from the food expanding during cooking.
• Don’t peek! You’ll want to avoid lifting the lid while your food is cooking. Lifting the lid during cooking allows valuable heat to escape. Consider this – each time you lift the lid, add another 20 minutes onto your cooking time.
• There is both a high and a low setting. The low setting takes twice as long as the high setting. This allows you to cook meals in around 3-4 hours. The low setting cooks in around 6-8 hours. Any recipe can be adjusted from high to low and vice versa by simply doubling or cutting the time in half. For example, if your recipe says to cook on low for 7 hours, you can adjust your temperature to high and cook it in half the time.

Slow cookers are ideal for church potlucks, social gatherings, parties, and yes, even for travel.

Allow your slow cooker to work for you all day, then simply unplug it, take it where you want to go and plug it back in. Most slow cookers have a “warm” or “keep warm” setting that keeps an even temperature low enough to maintain the heat, yet not too high that cooking continues. So next time your Aunt Sally asks you to bring your famous homemade chili, bring it in your slow cooker!

Is food prepared in my slow cooker safe?

Slow cookers are designed to cook food slow enough to remain unattended for several hours but fast enough to keep food at a safe cooking temperature. You can run a test at home to be sure it is working at a safe temperature. Here’s how:

• Fill slow cooker with 2 quarts of tepid water
• Heat on low for 8 hours
• Use an instant read thermometer to check the temperature of the water. Check quickly as the temperature will drop dramatically when you remove the lid.
• The water temperature should be 185 degrees F.

If the results of your test show the temperature of the water to be higher than 185 degrees that means that a meal cooked for 8 hours without stirring would be overdone. If the water temperature registers below 185 degrees, this could indicate that your slow cooker does not heat food to an adequate temperature, which could mean that there is potential for food safety problems.

Playing It Smart with Your Slow Cooker

• Use only fresh or thawed meat; do not use meat that is still frozen.
• Cut meat into chunks and remove skin from poultry.
• Cook meat on high for the first hour, then turn the cooker down to low for the remaining time. This allows it to heat up quickly and “heat down” gradually.
• Slow cookers only need a small amount of liquid. 1/2 cup is generally a good rule of thumb. If you are using a recipe that does not call for a liquid, add ½ cup of water or broth.
• Keep the lid closed to avoid prolonging cooking times.

Recipes Using the Slow Cooker

You can make just about anything in a slow cooker from appetizers, drinks, desserts, sides, and even full meals. The convenience never ends. Once you’ve used a slow cooker a couple of times you won’t know how you lived without it!

Here are a few of our favorite things to make in the slow cooker:

• Crockpot Roast Beef
• Buffalo Chicken Dip
• Mississippi Pot Roast
• Crockpot Apple Cobbler