I love my crock pot. No really, it’s serious. There is nothing better than throwing a bunch of stuff into a big ol’ pot in the morning, when motivation level is still high, and returning to a ready-to-eat meal in the evening when your only motivated to change into pajama pants with an elastic waistband.
I especially love it this time of year, when a bowl of soup is about as good as life gets. So, here’s a couple of tips to make crock potting {that’s a verb starting…now} even easier:
- Technically, for safety reasons, you are supposed to always start with thawed meat. And even though all the “professionals” say you are not supposed to put frozen meat in the crock pot… I do it anyway. I am a rebel, what can I say?
- Resist, at all costs, lifting the lid to your crock pot. I know the waft of cooking goodness is hard to resist, but it really messes with the temperature and can add quite a bit of additional cook time when done a few times throughout the day.
- Only add dairy to a crock pot meal in the last 15 minutes or so of cooking because it tends to break down during a long cook time–make the texture a little less than desirable.
- Since you basically have to do nothing extra, consider doubling your crock pot recipes to get a meal for now, and one for the freezer for later. This works best with soups {not cream based} and chilis.
- A lot of recipes can be adapted for the crock pot, just reduce the liquids by about 20% {evaporation is much less when using a slow cooker}.
- As a general rule of thumb, the low setting on a crock pot is 200 degrees and the high setting is about 300 degrees.
- Browning meat before throwing it into the crock pot results in better overall flavor–though, sometimes it defeats the purpose of dump and go, so don’t feel obligated, like the meal won’t turn out, it still will.
- Add herbs during the last hour of cooking. I know it seems counter-intuitive not to let the flavors marinate all day, but the flavors can actually break down a bit over extended cooking times.
Need some recipes to try out in your crock pot? Go HERE to check out my slow cooker recipes or HERE to see the recipe index, and scroll down to Crock Pot Recipes.
~Mavis
My favorite Crock Pot – Crock-Pot Cook’ N Carry 6-Quart Portable Slow Cooker
My Favorite Slow Cooker Cookbook – Fix-It and Forget-It Big Cookbook: 1400 Best Slow Cooker Recipes!
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darlene says
I love all 5 of my crock pots, yes 5, individually. I don’t discriminate! I need them all too. I have tried to trim it down to a few, but they are all unique and needed at different times! I am seriously considering a new one, but don’t tell the husband! I need (want) the 6 quart programmable one, I only have the 4 quart programmable one at present. I. Need. It!
Thanks for posting your crock pot recipes Mavis. I have tried them all……in one crock pot or another…..=)
Dianna says
Thanks for this! I’m not a very experienced crockpot cook, and sometimes I don’t like the way the recipes turn out. I’m excited to try some of your tips and see if it works better next time!
Edwin says
My wife won a new 6 quart in an online contest and it gets used a least twice a week. Everyone needs one of these. Make spaghetti sauce! Low and slow for 6 to 8 hours, let the magic begin. My next use will be Pork Chili, my own recipe with browned cubed pork and black beans and a batch of corn bread.
Paula Dearr says
Why haven’t I seen a currant blog post since Oct 30th? Is there something I can do about it? Hope you feel better soon, getting your teeth worked on is never fun,but has to be done.
Mavis Butterfield says
Hi Paula, you probably just need to delete your browser cache/ cookies. 🙂
Tara Eagle says
I like to stew chicken in my crock pot for using in casseroles and salads– I get really good chicken soup base where I live from the Amish here— I line my crock– put an entire bag of frozen- boneless/skinless chicken breasts into my crock– I bring about 1 1/2 Cups of water to a boil and add about 1 1/2 Tbs of chicken base to it– some poultry seasoning, freshly cracked pepper and a bit of Lawrey’s seasoned salt. I stir til the soup base is dissolved and then pour the HOT liquid over the chicken. I cover the crock and cook on HIGH for about 3-4 hours. I remove the chicken and then strain the broth to use later in soups or simmering veggies.
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For an easy White Chicken Chili– follow the steps above– return the broth to the crock PLUS half a cup HOT water– shred the chicken and put into the crock– add in: 2 cans of Great Northern beans– 1-2 packets of McCormick® White Chicken Chili Seasoning Mix– 1 Cup frozen sweet corn– 4 oz light cream cheese (1/2 of an 8 oz loaf)– some ground cumin and chili powder to taste. Cover the crock and cook an additional hour on HIGH– stir well to blend the cream cheese. I serve with multi grain tortilla chips and some shredded SHARP cheddar cheese
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For an easy Chicken Caesar Sandwich filling– follow the steps above– shred the chicken and put into the crock– Add in: 1 bottle of your favorite Caesar Salad dressing– 1/2 Cup shredded (not grated) Parmesan cheese– some parsley. Cover the crock and cook an additional half hour on HIGH– stir well to blend. Serve on a toasted whole grain bun with some romaine lettuce and sliced Roma Tomato– or wrap up in a whole grain tortilla. Great summer supper if you pair with some fruit salad