Perrin Davis - Master the Slow Cooker with 101 Great Recipes

Slow Cooker Copyright 2011 Agate Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system without express written permission from the publisher. Cover photo Getty Images. Photos on the following pages from Shutterstock: 5, 10, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 24, 42, 54, 72, 82, 102. Photos on the following pages from Michael Maes: 33, 37, 51, 61, 69, 79, 87, 91, 94, 101, 107, 115.

First ebook edition 2011 ISBN-13: 978-1-57284-689-0 ISBN-10: 1-57284-689-5 First edition, flexibound ISBN-13: 978-1-57284-121-5 ISBN-10: 1-57284-121-4 Surrey Books is an imprint of Agate Publishing, Inc. Agate and Surrey books are available in bulk at discount prices. For more information, go to agatepublishing.com.

MASTER THE SLOW COOKER WITH
101 GREAT RECIPES EDITED BY Perrin Davis A gate Surrey Books wants to help everyone, but especially kitchen beginners, learn how to explore different kinds of food and cooking. We are proud to introduce the 101 series, which aims to provide rewarding, successful, and fun cooking experiences for everyone, from novices to more experienced cooks. Slow Cooker 101: Master the Slow Cooker with 101 Great Recipes is one of the first books in this series, and it offers readers not only delicious recipes but also useful information about shopping for equipment, ingredients, kitchen essentials, and seasonings.

Getting started with your slow cooker can be intimidating, but well demystify the process for you. So whether youre using your slow cooker because you simply dont have time after work to put a dinner together, or youre interested in the slow cooker because of the wonderful flavors that can develop when the heat is low and slow, Slow Cooker 101 is a great place to start. Most of the recipes in these 101 series books come from a wide range of Agate Surrey authors and editors. Contributors to Slow Cooker 101 include Sue Spitler, editor of the 1,001 series that includes titles like 1,001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes and 1,001 Best Slow-Cooker Recipes, and Anupy Singla, author of The Indian Slow Cooker. Slow Cooker 101 recipes were selected to provide a starting point for anyone beginning their slow-cooking journey. The collection includes a variety of cuisines (Italian, Mexican, Spanish, Asian, and Indian, to name a few).

Most of the recipes are simple, although a handful of them are more advanced; youll find that all are easy to follow.

This book contains lots of fantastic main-dish options in the Beef, Pork, Chicken, Lamb, and Seafood Entrees chapters. Dont miss great dinner-party options like Lamb Biryani, Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff, and Poached Salmon with Lemon-Caper Sauce, as well as delicious family pleasers like Pulled Chicken Sandwiches and Picadillo Tacos. Hearty Philly Cheesesteak and Italian Beef sandwiches will put smiles on everyones face, and Greek Pitas are a big favorite in our house. In the Side Dishes chapter, check out delicious dishes like Brazilian Black Bean Bake, Ginger-Garlic Eggplant, Potatoes Gratin, and Goat Cheese Polenta. Youll love letting the slow cooker do all the work on holidays when you use it to make our Candied Yams or Real Mashed Potatoesand free up the stove and oven to make your other favorites! Winter Vegetable Risotto, Paella, and Seven-Layer Lasagna are just a few of the tasty offerings in the Pasta and Rice chapter.

Need to feed an army of kids? Look no further than our Ultimate Mac n Cheese on page 96. But before you get started cooking some of these great recipes, make sure youre up to speed on some slow cooking basics, and that your kitchen and pantry are ready to go!

Slow cookers have been around since the middle of the last century, but Rivals Crock Pot brand really took off in 1971. The name has become interchangeable with the slow cooker, but today countless other manufacturers make slow cookers. They all work pretty much the sametheres a round or oval stoneware, porcelain, or ceramic pot with a lid, usually made of glass or clear plastic (to prevent curiosity from getting the better of you), all set in a metal heating element that cooks food at a low temperature. Slow cooker dishes always contain at least a little liquid, and once the dish begins cooking, the liquid begins to turn into water vapor, which helps create a firm seal for the lid. The vapor condenses into liquid that returns to the food, increasing as time goes by.

That is why only a little liquid is added at start of cooking. Slow cookers differ greatly in size. The most common size is 3 or 4-quart, and some recipes in this book call for a 6-quart cooker. You can buy a slow cooker today with capacities as low as 16 ounces and as large as more than 7 quarts. Most cookers have two heat settingshigh (about 280F) and low (170F)and youll find those designations in each recipe in this book. The cooking process in a slow cooker is really quite simple.

You place your ingredients (which, as mentioned above, must always include some liquid) in the pot and turn the device on, setting it to either high or low. The heating element reaches the desired temperature and stays there for as many hours as you have specified on the devices timer. After that time is achieved, most slow cookers will shut off and go to a keep warm setting, which keeps the food at about 165F until you are ready to serve. One of the greatest advantages of the slow cooker is its ability to turn tough, inexpensive cuts of meat with lots of connective tissue into delicious, succulent morsels. Youll see that many of this books recipes call for relatively inexpensive meat cuts.

If you are a new cook, or its been a while since youve spent time in the kitchen, here is some helpful information that will make it easy to jump into Slow Cooker 101 recipes. If you are a new cook, or its been a while since youve spent time in the kitchen, here is some helpful information that will make it easy to jump into Slow Cooker 101 recipes.

The following is not necessarily slow-cooking specific, but if you have the following equipment, you will be prepared to make almost any recipe in this book.

Were sure you know this already, but your kitchen should include the following standard set of appliances. Pretty Much Mandatory Slow cooker (4 to 6 quart) Refrigerator/freezers (set to about 34F to 38F, or as cold as you can get it without freezing vegetables or drinks) Freezer (if yours is not frost-free, youll periodically need to unplug it to defrost your snow-filled box) Stove/oven (make sure the oven stays very clean, as burnt foods and other odors can affect the taste of your food), because youll need it for browning some meats before starting a slow-cooked dish Microwave (again, make sure its clean and ready for use), because its great for defrosting Blender (and not just for beverages and soupsyou can use it in place of a food processor or an immersion blender in many instances) Hand mixer (well, you can always stir by hand, but sometimes, the hand mixer is indispensable)Next page