what are some good meals to cook in a slow cooker, help me, my slowcooker is collecting dust?

Question

i was so excited to buy a slow cooker, the first and only time i used it i made a rice, mince and vegie mixture, it came all gluggy and mushy, it really put me off using it again
it sits on my bench collecting dust, and i use it for storage,,,
id really like to use it,,, but dont know what comes out good in it, any ideas please, thankyou xxxxx

Answer 1

Pot roast (throw a roast, plus some chopped veggies and a packet of french onion soup mix in the pot, cover with water and cook on low all day),

Chicken cacciatore (throw some chicken breasts in the slow cooker with a jar of pasta sauce, cook on low all day, serve over pasta),

BBQ ribs (throw your rack of ribs in the slow cooker, add a jar of your favorite BBQ sauce, and some apple slices, bake all day on low for fall-off-the-bone ribs)

Roast Chicken (wash you chicken in cold water, pat dry and rub with olive oil, season with lemon pepper seasoning, and stuff with lemon slices and garlic cloves. Truss the legs together, and bake on low all day for tender, rotisserie style chicken).

Chili, for this I will give you my homemade recipe that I won second place in a chili cook-off with - It's Beer Chili Con Carne, and being that you're in college, you'll likely always have some leftover beer on hand (or that was the case with me! Haha...enjoy!) http://www.recipezaar.com/230063

Answer 2

Pot Roast! It's so simple! Just salt, pepper the meat, stuff with garlic & dust with flour. Brown all sides in a skillet with a little oil. Slice an onion put half the onion in bottom of crock pot, put the browned roast on top of the onion. In that same skillet brown a heaping Tablespoon of flour, add a can of cream of mushroom soup undiluted. Stir till blended, pour over the roast & put the rest of onion on top. Do not add any water! Put the lid on and off you go. Cook high for 4 hours or low for 6 or longer 8 is ok too. When you get home from work it's all done, just fix some potatoes or rice and you've got an easy yummy meal!

Answer 3

slow cooking dilemma

slow cooking or braising is a method commonly used to cook tough meats such as pot roasts, anything that has a great deal of connective tissue.
The reason your first attempt at cooking was you used ingredients that are not tough.
The other benefit of using a slow cooker is that you can start cooking in the morning and it will be ready 6-8 hours later.

So what recipes can you use in a slow cooker.
Stews, chili, pot roasts. even uncooked corned beef.
If you are going to use beans use the dried variety. Also lentils will work.

Chef Robert, Author of Chef Robert presents romantic dinners for two

Answer 4

Roast Lamb,...Mine is done to suit the climate here in Queensland,Put the Roast Lamb in slow cooker while still frozen add couple of cloves of garlic,sprinkle with some Mc Cormicks season-all spice (any supermarket should have them) 2 cups of cold water 2 tbls margerine put it on high before going to bed (no flies hanging around) and in the morning it will be cooked.Mix 4 tbls gravox and 1 tsp cornflour with water in a jug no lumps,strain juices out of slow cooker transfer to pot, mix together with gravox (gravy done) start on vegies.

Answer 5

My favourite is steak and guiness casserole.
I start it of in a normal pan first, while the crock pot is heating up.
apx 1 kilo Cubed steak
1 chopped stick of celery
1 sliced onion
some sliced mushrooms
1-2 tablespoons gravy grans
1 can of guiness.
some chopped thyme

Fry meat until browned, with onions and mushrooms...all the juices should start developing. Then sprinkle over the gravy granules. when bubbling away nicely add the can of guiness and bring up to boil. then pour the lot into the crock pot. leave to simmer for a few hours.
Its really good served with creamy mash potato with a bit of horseradish stirred in.

Answer 6

you can pretty much throw anything in a slow cooker and have a good meal 6-8 hours later...throw you some chicken breast in there with a jar of salsa and 8 hours later you will have shredded chicken its good topped on chips with sour cream and shredded cheese..yes roast is another good one just add about a inch of water your roast some cut up taters and carrots and onions put the lid on and let it cook for about 6 hours...I like taking a can of tomato soup pour that in your cooker with one can of water added to it..take a round steak cut it up dip the pieces in flour then put that in the cooker,next add chopped green bell peppers just one...thats always good serve with mashed potatoes and use the sauce in the cooker as gravy...If your a counrty girl like me i love beans and cornbread..soak your beans over night and the next morning rinse them and throw them in the cooker with some ham or whatever you like let them cook all day....good luck and happy cooking...

Answer 7

Check out this aussie website:

http://www.slowcookerrecipes.net.au/slowcooker-recipes.asp?id=1

I dont have the patience for slow cookers..LOL

Answer 8

Rockmum here are three URLs that will take you to many crock pot (slow cooker) recipes and if you don't find any to your liking you can always do a yahoo search using "easy+crock+pot+recipes" and you will get all kinds of sites to go to.....

have fun slow cooking....

http://www.a-crock-cook.com/
http://www.grouprecipes.com/s/easy-crock-pot/recipe/1/relevancy
http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes/crockpot

Answer 9

Pot roast, Stu.

You can cook cabbage and carrots as a St.Patrick day meal.

Answer 10

check this link out for slow cooker recipes

http://indorecipe.com/archives/list.php?pagenum=0&categoryid=75


slow cooker beef stew
yield
8 servings.

ingredients

* 1-1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed

* 6 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch slices

* 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

* 3 celery ribs, coarsely chopped

* 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

* 1-1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into
1-inch cubes

* 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

* 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes,
undrained

* 1 cup beef broth

* 1 teaspoon ground mustard

* 1/2 teaspoon salt

* 1/2 teaspoon pepper

* 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

* 1/2 teaspoon browning sauce

directions
Layer the potatoes, carrots, onion and celery in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Place
flour in a large resealable plastic bag. Add stew meat; seal and toss to
coat evenly. In a large skillet, brown meat in oil in batches. Place over
vegetables.

In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, broth, mustard, salt, pepper, thyme
and browning sauce. Pour over beef. Cover and cook on high for 1-1/2 hours.
Reduce heat to low; cook 7-8 hours longer or until the meat and vegetables
are tender.




chicken cacciatore
Makes 8 servings

INGREDIENTS
5 to 6 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces pancetta, diced
1 pound crimini mushrooms, stems removed and quartered kosher salt and freshly
ground black pepper
2 chickens, 3 1/2 to 4 pounds each cut into 4 pieces (2 breast pieces, 2
thigh-drumstick pieces, wings reserved for another use)
1 large yellow onion, sliced into 1/4" slices
2 medium red bell peppers, seeded and sliced into 1/4" slices
3 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cup dry red wine
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
One 28-ounce can tomatoes, puréed
5 sprigs fresh oregano
1 bay leaf One 2-inch rind Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/2 cup capers, drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley leaves
fresh cooked pasta for serving
freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for serving

Equipment List
Cutting Boards, Chefs Knife, Olive Oils, Measuring Set, Herb Chopper, Grater.

Instructions
Warm 2 to 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet or Dutch oven
over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until
it starts to crisp and turns golden brown, about 5 minutes.
Add the mushrooms, lightly sprinkle with salt and stir to combine. Cook until
the mushrooms start to release moisture and turn a light golden brown, about 7
to 8 minutes. Remove the mixture from the skillet and transfer to a slow cooker.
Season the chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper. In the same skillet,
warm 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil if needed. Brown the chicken pieces in
batches, skin side down, in a single layer until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes.
Turn the pieces over and brown the second side, about 3 to 5 minutes more.
Transfer the chicken to the slow cooker.
Reduce the heat to medium, add 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, if needed, the
onions and red peppers to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the
vegetables are softened and starting to brown, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the
garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the wine, scraping up the
browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Increase the heat to high and bring to
a boil.
Remove the pan from the heat, add the chicken broth, puréed tomatoes, oregano,
bay leaf and Parmigiano rind. Stir to combine then transfer to the slow cooker.
Cover and set to cook according to manufacturer's instructions on shortest
setting, up to 6 hours.
Transfer the chicken and vegetables to a serving platter and cover with foil.
Discard the bay leaf and Parmigiano rind. Pour the braising liquid into a large
saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, maintaining
a simmer until the liquid has reduced by half.
When the chicken has cooled slightly, peel off the skin and discard. Add the
capers and parsley to the braising liquid and stir to combine. Season to taste
with salt and pepper. Pour half the sauce over the chicken and use the other
half for tossing with pasta. Sprinkle with grated Parmigiano and serve
immediately.
Makes 8 servings
Tip: A rind of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is used here to add extra flavor to
the braising liquid. It softens during cooking and lends richness to the sauce.
They can also be used in soups, stews and other braised dishes.



slow cooker lo mein stir fry
Preparation time: 15 min Cooking time: 4 hrs 30 min
Yield: 6 servings

2 tablespoons LAND O LAKES® Butter
1 (20-ounce) package boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized
pieces
1 cup stir-fry seasoning sauce
1 (5-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1 medium (1/2 cup) onion, sliced
1 (16-ounce) package fresh stir-fry vegetables (celery, carrots, broccoli and
pea pods)
1/2 cup whole cashews, if desired
1 (8-ounce) package lo mein noodles

Melt butter in 10-inch skillet until sizzling; add chicken pieces. Cook over
medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until chicken is browned (5 to 7
minutes). Place in slow cooker. Add stir-fry seasoning sauce, water chestnuts
and onion. Cover; cook on Low heat setting for 4 to 6 hours.
Increase heat setting to High 30 minutes before serving. Add stir-fry
vegetables; stir. Cover; cook 30 minutes, stirring once, until vegetables are
crisply tender. Stir in cashews just before serving, if desired.
Meanwhile, cook lo mein noodles according to package directions.
To serve, spoon stir-fry chicken and vegetable mixture over noodles.