I want to love my Crock Pot. Talk amongst yourselves.

I recently came across A Year of Crockpotting, one woman's chronicle of her New Year's resolution: to use the slow cooker every day. It brought on a wave of envy and regret. I have a Crock Pot. I know it could be a part of simplifying my meal planning. I'm a good person. So why does everything I make in my Crock Pot taste boiled and bland? Am I the only one who feels...lukewarm about her Crock Pot?

It could be that good, simple vegetarian recipes for the Crock Pot are few and far-between (I was so excited about the cookbook Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker, but never find myself cooking from it). It could be because my kids refuse to eat anything stew-y. But I know I'm thinking too simplistically. Right? Can someone please educate me?

What are your favorite Crock Pot tricks? I'm thinking cookbooks, recipes (online and linkable, meat is fine), or just the ways you integrate the slow cooker into your cooking week.

Comments

[Robin]

I am recently trying to do the same thing with my family. The two sites that have been most helpful have been:
Top 30 Crock Pot Recipes - Southern Cooking
http://southernfood.about.com/od/crockpotrecipes/a/top_crockpot.htm
Crock Pot Recipes for Kids
http://kidscooking.about.com/od/dinnerrecipes/p/crockpotrecipes.htm

The thing that has surprised me the most is that not everything is stewy! In fact it's great.

[Jackie]

Chilli! Roast beef, or chicken are my favorites, no need for basting. also soup!

[shirky]

Here's the secret. 90% of cookbooks are garbage, filled with untested and poorly described recipes just thrown in for filler. The carefully tested, detailed recipe is a rarity. I don't mess around with most cookbooks anymore, I am stuck on those published by America's Test Kitchen (formerly Boston Common). If you follow one of their recipes you won't go wrong. They are honestly foolproof (but not dumbed down) and never have vague instructions like "mix and simmer until done." Try em. (The Best Make-Ahead Recipe has a slow cooker chapter).

I don't know if it will help if your kids won't eat soups though.

[Alexandra]

This blogger has some great Crockpot recipes - scroll down a few weeks back and look for the Short Rib one and my faviorite is the Chicken & Sweet Potato curry one - a wonderful flavor and not bland at all.
http://workitmom.com/bloggers/orderingdisorder/

[Melissa]

Not vegetarian, but our favorite meal in the slow cooker is carnitas, which is basically shredded meat. We love to use fresh game that hunter friends of ours give us, but I've also used chicken and pork.

And the best part? My favorite recipe uses BEER as the cooking liquid . . .

Check "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker" for some great recipes including some decadent desserts!

http://www.amazon.com/Your-Mothers-Slow-Cooker-Cookbook/dp/B000Q67862/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207579049&sr=8-1

[Adam R.]

I don't know anything about vegetarian recipes, but I do know that my wife makes a mean pulled-pork, bbq ribs, and other delicious meat-y recipes in our slow cooker. Combined with her freezer cooking approach, we always have yummy dinners waiting to be enjoyed! Her favorite sources are "Don't Panic, Dinner's in the Freezer". Personally, I've found some winners from allrecipes.com.

[radmama]

Canadian Living Magazine has yummy recipes for crock pots. Probably some of my more successful attempts have come from them. They have a website.

I also have made some great stuff from these two books, but they often have a fussy list of ingredients. http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/Canadas-Best-Slow-Cooker-Recipes-Donna-marie-Pye/9780778800248-item.html?ref=Search+Books%3a+%2527slow+cooker%2527
http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/150-Best-Slow-Cooker-Recipes-Judith-Finlayson/9780778800385-item.html?ref=Search+Books%3a+%2527slow+cooker%2527

[Sleepycat]

I don't crock as much as I would like to but I have posted a collection of recipes, a lot of which are crockpot ones on my blog at http://learningmywaythrough.wordpress.com/recipe-archives/
Neeps and Tatties and Easy Roasted Veggies are vegetarian plus there are some crock pot desserts too.

[Lewellyn]

Ugh. I feel exactly the same way about my slow cooker. It was a special request for Christmas this year, but after a couple disappointments, it languishes in the basement. And we have it easy compared to you - we eat meat and stews!

Part of the problem is timing. My husband won't eat any stew meat that hasn't been browned first, but I don't have time in the mornings to brown the meat before I leave for work, and I'm not sure it is safe to brown it the night before. Plus, on the days I'm at work, I'm gone for 10 hours, and most slower cooker recipes are not that long - even on low.

[crockpot lady]

Thank you for the link to my blog!

I would have to say that shirky is ABSOLUTELY correct that 90% of cookbooks are filler. It is terribly disappointing.

I do have quite a few vegetarian recipes that are tried-and-true listed on my site. Although I was emailed recently that I included chicken broth as the base of my corn chowder. oops. use veg stock... ;-)

I've read the slowcooker books listed above, and I've gotten good recipes from all of them. I like to check things out from the library, though, because I hate storing anything.

My suggestion would be to start with very simple 5-ingredients or less recipes and build your way up.
you are more than welcome to email me for suggestions!

(and it's okay if you don't fall in love. really. ;-0 )

xox
steph

[Annette]

Beans come out great in the crock pot, and if you make a big ol' pot of 'em, they can be used for lots of meals throughout the week.

[Ethel]

We've found that a great way to use our crock pot is to pre-make meals with all-dry ingredients (rice, beans, freeze-dried veggies, spices, etc.), and store them in well-sealed bags on a shelf in the pantry. I can cook many meals at once this way, and my husband always has something he can just throw in the crock-pot at the beginning of the day.

Also, take your favorite marinade and a roast that it will taste good on. Put the marinade on the roast, maybe with a few tablespoons of wine / sherry / vinegar to soften the meat, in a freezer-safe container. Add chopped onions, carrots, and other veggies that freeze well. Store until you realize one morning that you haven't planned dinner yet. Throw in crock pot (some pots may need a little water to avoid going dry; ours does not). The veggies you put on top should end up on the bottom of the crock pot, but don't have to be perfect.

This is a very versatile style of cooking that we do from time to time.

[rekha]

We don't use our crockpot as much as we had hoped, but I will say that the Hot & Sour soup recipe in "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" is easy and quite possibly the *best* hot & sour soup we've ever had.

The January issue of "Real Simple" magazine also had a recipe for making lasagna (!) in the slow cooker. Haven't tried it yet but it looked intriguing..

[jquinby]

We've become real fans of Alton Brown's Overnight Oatmeal recipe, though we shorten the cooking time somewhat and use a timer to start the crock-pot up in the wee hours.

Recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_17138,00.html

[epeepunk]

We discovered after we'd asked for one when the twins were born that many crock pots are not calibrated and may cook at too high of a temperature. We were always getting overcooked meat when we used it. I tested the temperature for Low and found it was running hot. We got a new crock pot (the All-Clad) that is programmable so that it doesn't overcook. It's made a huge difference.

[Ashley]

The BEST slow cooker recipe ever is lasagna. You could either leave out the meat or add some veggies to fit your family better. It freezes really well too. Our family loves it so much however that we never actually get any into the freezer. I've posted the recipe on my blog: http://azwhipple.blogspot.com/2008/04/slow-cooker-lasagna.html

[Jen]

My family is also vegetarian and I use the crockpot a fair amount, but I find that I almost always have to cut the cooking time in half to come out well in my crockpot. I've had good luck with some of Steph the Crockpot Lady's recipes! Some things in Fresh from the Slow Cooker taste awesome, but in general I feel the amount of prep isn't in keeping with the beautiful "fix it and forget it" potential of the crockpot.

I also use my crockpot for things like baking potatoes or sweet potatoes, or cooking beans or lentils to use in other recipes. In winter, I use it to keep warm milk for cocoa waiting for us when we come in from the snow. For Valentine's Day, I used it to make the spicy truffles here: http://familycorner.blogspot.com/2007/11/slow-cooking-thursday_29.html

My point is, even if you can't find main course type recipes that work for you, there are probably other uses for your crockpot!

epeepunk, how did you test the temperature?

[molly]

We LOVE this recipe for turkey chili and it makes a huge amount so we always freeze some for later:
http://www.parents.com/recipes/recipedetail.jsp?recipeId=R100282

And another one we often use is about 2 lbs skinless chicken breast, 1/2 cup water, and one packet of Old El Paso Low Sodium Taco Seasoning, shred chicken after a few hours of cooking and serve as chicken tacos (or enchiladas, burritos, etc). Yum.

[LauraJ]

I had the same issues with my crockpot until my mom bought me the cookbook you mentioned. My family absolutely loves the Almost-Irish Stew. Seriously, it is so good, especially with biscuits on the side. A lot of the recipes in that cookbook are really good, though they often come out tasting the same as each other. We still manage to use the crockpot once a week during the cold months. Good luck!

[Kristi]

I haven't used my crockpot in forever, but a couple of years ago I got a cast-iron stewpot that goes on the stovetop or in the oven, and I've learned a few things cooking with it. Most importantly, DON'T skimp on ingredients. Salt, pepper, peppercorns, herbs, garlic, wine or beer -- all of these things add flavor and take less than a minute to add. Want flavor? Add ingredients!

[Marta]

I use my crockpot to roast chicken. Just crumple aluminum foil in the bottom, season a chicken the way you like and put in on low. Beautiful chicken, the fat drains under the foil so it is not greasy, and much cheaper than buying the cooked chicken in the store. :)

[Lisa J.]

Not really a recipe. . . maybe a hack. They use crock pots at our church to warm baby bottles. They keep water warming in the pot all the time and just pop the bottles in when needed. Maybe everyone else has seen this, but I hadn't. I think it's great for moms of multiples!

[agl]

I'm glad that I'm not the only one. Every fall I promise myself that I'll find at least a few crockpot (vegetarian) recipes that are at least somewhat tasty, and every year I put it off. Too many bland, unimpressive results in the past. But now I'm feeling inspired again. Thanks. :)

[Jessie]

I, too, am a crockpot fanatic, but I've been struggling to find flavorful recipes that don't dry out while I'm away at work during the day. I bought this cookbook http://www.cqproducts.com/item_details.php?item=7014&category=4
called 12-Hour Slow Cooker Recipes. So far I've tried seven of them and they have all been winners. Just thought I'd tell you about it!

[Kati]

great topic. My fav cookbook is Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1558322450?ie=UTF8&tag=preschoolnutr-20&link_code=as3&camp=211189&creative=373489&creativeASIN=1558322450

I'm making the chicken tortilla soup tonight. It has loads of great recipes and I've only found one or two that I wouldn't do again.

One thing I do often is make a meal to eat on another day. This helps if you are gone at work for long hours. Sometimes, you can even cook it overnight. Then, just store the whole thing in the fridge. Plus, stews always taste better the next day.

As for the kids, I know what you mean about stew-dislike. Mine will eat basic chicken soups and some of the bean stews (which are great from the crockpot).