Sarah Stevens - 50 Top Slow Cooker Recipes - Easy One Pot Recipes For The Whole Family

50 Top

Slow Cooker Recipes

Easy Crock Pot Recipes For The Whole Family

Sarah Stevens

Copyright 2013 Sarah Stevens

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Table of Contents

Introduction

When it comes to cooking, nothing beats the ease, simplicity and taste of a slow cooker. When you can just put the food in, walk away and return to a hot, homemade meal does it get any better than that?

The recipes that follow will help you save time while providing a hot and ready meal that will satisfy any appetite. So, whether youre cooking for just yourself or for your entire family, use this one kitchen appliance on a regular basis to spend your time creating cherished memories not slaving away in a hot kitchen.

Getting the most out of your slow cooker or crock pot

Before you embark on your slow cooker journey, here are a few tips and tricks to take your meals from nominal to phenomenal :

• Make sure you use a slow cooker that is the right size for your meal. If its too full or, on the converse, doesnt have enough in it, it will affect the outcome of your meal as it wont cook as well.
• Every time you remove the lid, youre slowing the cooking process, so try to resist the urge to peek at your yummy meal until it should be ready and youre trying to make sure its done (unless the recipe says to). Yes, it smells good when you release the aroma into the kitchen, but youll be able to taste your masterpiece soon enough. Keep the moisture in your meal instead of in the air around you.
• Dont worry about stirring your slow cooker meal. The recipes are designed to cook just as they are, no mixing required. (This takes away your excuse to continue lifting the lid!)
• Sear your meat or vegetables in a pan before adding them to the slow cooker if you have time. This seals in their juices and nutrients and creates better tasting food as an end product. Add some water to whatever juice and meat pieces are left in the pan and pour that into the slow cooker as well for some additional flavor.
• Dont add frozen meat to your slow cooker. As it takes longer to get it in a safe heat zone (above 40 degrees F), you risk the formation of bacteria by using food that has to thaw before it cooks. Just put your slow cooker ingredients in the fridge the night before to make sure theyre ready to go the next morning.
• Dont cook whole chickens or huge roasts in a slow cooker. The meat will cook unevenly and, like the frozen foods, it will stay in an unsafe temperature zone for too long. Get past this by cutting your meat into smaller portions, thereby allowing it to cook evenly and safely.
• Put your vegetables in before the meat. Thats right. The vegetables will actually take longer to cook, so youll want them on the bottom of the cooker. Also, make sure theyre all cut around the same size so that they cook at the same rate. If you have some small pieces and some large, you may end up with overcooked and undercooked bits.
• Be cautious of how much water you put in with your meat. You dont actually have to cover the meat for it to be juicy and tender. Think about when you cook a roast in the oven; its the same thing. Adding a little water for some moisture and to make some gravy at the end is okay, but anything more is a waste.
• Remove excess fat from your cuts of meat. It isnt necessary for taste, so why add extra pounds to your body? If you notice that a lot of fat forms at the top of your slow cooker, dip a piece of bread lightly on the top to soak up all the excess.
• Also, dont worry about buying the best cuts of meat. Its unnecessary and a waste of money as it will all cook around the same.
• Use the right temperature. Most slow cookers have both high and low settings. Depending on what you have in it and how long before you want to eat, you should pick the setting that best suits your needs. A good rule to follow is that it will take your food twice as long to cook on low as it does on high. So, if you want your meal around lunch time, you may want to use high, but if its a warm dinner youre after, then low is more appropriate. Having said that coking on low usually creates more tender meat so is what I recommend.

Using a slow cooker will allow you to make healthy, satisfying meals even when your schedule is packed full. Now, lets put what youve learned to use with great recipes like these:

Temperature and Weight Conversions

Oven temperature

If using a fan-forced oven, your cooking time may be a little quicker, so start checking your food a little earlier.

Mass(weight)

Pork Slow Cooker Recipes

Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder

A slow roasted pork shoulder is one of the best, special meals that you can cook at home. And when done right it gives you a combination of crispy skin and tender, juicy meat that you just cannot get any other way.

Ingredients

• 6 7 lbs of port shoulder, with the bone and skin.
• 1 head of garlic
• 1 tablespoon of sea salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon of oregano
• 1 teaspoon of dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, ground
• 1 onion
• 1 carrot
• 1/2 cup of oloroso or cream sherry
• 4 cups of chicken broth with the fat skimmed off
• 1/4 teaspoon of chili flakes
• 1 1/2 teaspoon of sherry or balsamic vinegar

Directions

1. Rinse and pat the pork shoulder dry.
2. Score the skin in a cris cross manner to about 1/8 of an inch so that it gets a diamond shaped pattern.
3. Crush the garlic, oregano, pepper, thyme and salt so that it forms a coarse paste.
4. Rub this paste all over the port shoulder.
5. Set this roast in an oiled roasting pan with the skin side up.
6. Set the oven to 450 degrees and roast for 40 45 min.
7. Take the tray out of the oven and transfer the pork to a slow cooker.
8. Scatter the onions, chili flakes and carrots around it.
9. Pour out half of the sherry and the broth on the pork ensuring that the surface of the roasted pork is thoroughly wetted.
10. Set the cooker over a low heat and cook for 7 8 hrs.
11. Test with a thermometer at the end of this time and when the temperature at the deepest portion of the meat is over 175 degrees, it is ready to come off the heat.
12. Before serving, transfer the pork to a carving board and set it in a warm place after covering it.