Victoria Shearer - Slow Cooker Classics from Around the World

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eISBN: 978-1-4162-0750-4

Slow Cooker Classics text copyright 2013 Victoria Shearer. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book onscreen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form, by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Sellers Publishing, Inc. e-books.

January 2013

Dedication

To my fantastic daughter-in-law Lisa
the busiest mom I know. This ones for you!

S ince the discovery of fire, hungry humans around the globe have slowly cooked less-than-tender morsels of meat and poultry and hard, fibrous vegetables in a simmering pot until the ingredients were tender and tasty. A time-honored technique, this moist heat cooking cooking in a constantly moving environment of liquid or steam is now known as braising (from the French word braise, meaning ember).

From the South African potjie, the Persian khoresh, the Moroccan tagine, and the Indian curry to the first American hearth-cooked stew, braised food has been a culinary staple the world over for centuries. But it took Rival Industries 1960s invention of the Crock-Pot slow cooker to revive and revolutionize slow cooking, which had taken a backseat to baking, broiling, microwaving, and grilling over the years.

The slow cooker is a fairly simple appliance, really. Low-wattage heating coils are sandwiched between inner and outer metal walls, wrapping around the sides and bottom of the slow cooker. A stoneware, metal, or clay insert, which holds the food, fits inside the slow cooker cavity. The coils heat up, the space between the inner and outer walls heats up, and the indirect heat is transferred to the insert, which cooks the ingredients slowly and steadily.

Over time, the Crock-Pot trademark name became a generic reference for all slow cookers. But although all Crock-Pots are slow cookers, all slow cookers are not Crock-Pots. Nearly a dozen companies manufacture slow cookers today, with Hamilton Beach and Crock-Pot dominating the market. (Other manufacturers are: All-Clad, Cuisinart, Kitchen Aid, Presto, Proctor Silex, VitaClay, West Bend, and Williams-Sonoma.)

In developing this book, I set out to revisit global slow cooked culinary classics and convert them for use in the modern-day slow cooker, which has enjoyed a renaissance in the twenty-first century. Todays home cook has never been busier, often juggling a full-time job and a family. The slow cooker is a savior of sorts a family can save money by using less tender cuts of meat and poultry and can save time by loading up the slow cooker, turning it on, and letting the moist heat do what it does best slowly cooking ingredients to mouthwatering perfection.

I used four different slow cookers to test the recipes I developed for this book: Hamilton Beach Set n Forget, 6-quart cooker with temperature probe and spoon lid (model #33967); Hamilton Beach Premiere Cookware 5-quart with stovetop searing insert (model #33351); Hamilton Beach 4-Piece Set with 2-quart and 4-quart interchangeable inserts (model #33148); and Proctor Silex 1-quart with lid latch (model #33116Y).

The two larger slow cookers were great when cooking for six or more or when cooking a roast, ribs, or whole chicken or making soup. The small slow cooker worked wonderfully well for dips, snacks, and desserts. The most versatile, however and my personal favorite was the slow cooker with the 2-quart/4-quart interchangeable inserts. The 4-quart was perfect for many recipes serving four to six; the 2-quart worked well for side dishes, servings for two people, and snacks and desserts.

In my extensive testing, I found that the slow cookers all cooked much faster than the manufacturers stated times for recipe conversions (an observation that friends have noted for other brands of slow cookers as well). I found that in most cases, one hour of conventional cooking equated to about four to five hours in the slow cooker on low setting. If meat or poultry cooked for more than six hours, it was likely falling off the bone or shredding, both of which are fine for many recipes, like Pulled Pork or Russian Beef Stew but undesirable for Greek Pork Chops or Chicken Dijon.

When it comes to slow cookers, size matters. The cooking insert should be a minimum of one-half to two-thirds full for ingredients to cook in the amount of time stated in a recipe. Filling a slow cooker less than half full will cause the ingredients to cook much faster. The insert should be filled no more than three-quarters full or the simmering ingredients may bubble over the edge of the slow cooker. So it is important that you choose the right size slow cooker when making a recipe. Small slow cookers are available in 1-, 2-, 2-, and 3-quart sizes. Medium cookers come in 3-, 4-, and 4 quart sizes. Large slow cookers have 5-, 5-, 6-, and 7-quart capacities. All the appliances are reasonably priced. If your budget allows and you have the storage space, invest in a couple of sizes for maximum versatility.

So get ready, get your passport, and go around the world in your slow cooker the Middle East for Lebanese Orange-Apricot Chicken; the Caribbean for Bahamian Conch Chowder; India for Rogan Josh; France for Gingered Carrot Vichyssoise; China for Red Cooked Beef; Cuba for Picadillo Stuffed Onions; Southeast Asia for Lamb in Spicy Peanut Sauce; Italy for Neapolitan Genovese; the United Kingdom for Currant-Glazed Corned Beef; and Germany for Shredded Pork and Sauerkraut Sammies. Then head back home to the Americas for some Autumn Harvest Pork Roast, Garlic-Chive Mashed Potatoes, Boston Baked Beans, and Sugar Apple Crisp.

Bon apptit! Buon appetito! Enjoy your meal!

All the recipes in this book are designed to help you create tasty, ethnic-inspired, restaurant quality meals for your family, while you spend your time out of the kitchen on other ventures. Each recipe is accompanied by an easily spotted graphic icon that will alert you to the amount of slow cooking time required, so youamount of slow cooking time required, so youll know how toll know how to plan your day:

	-4	Less than 4 hours
	48	4 to 8 hours
	8+	8 hours or more

The book is also chock full of helpful tips. Look for the icon at the conclusion of each recipe. Youll find useful information for substitutions, innovations, serving ideas, and ingredient sources.

In the back of the book, look for the detailed pantry, refrigerator, and freezer list, which shows every ingredient youll need to prepare any recipe in this book as well as necessary kitchen equipment and supplies.