Find your diamond
Find your jewelry
shape
carat
color
clarity

OK - I give in, time to get a crockpot

CJ2008

CJ2008

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Dec 31, 2006
Messages
4,750
For years I've watched you ladies rave about your crockpots and although I've considered them I never pulled the trigger.

But I hate the time cooking takes, and I'm not very good at it, so I think I need to finally give this method of cooking a try.

I did some research here on PS before posting this and this is what stood out to me:

1. Are you ever afraid of leaving your crockpot unattended (fires, or your cats getting into it?) Have you ever had something bad happen leaving it unattended all day?

2. Someone recommended an all-in-one because of the pressure cooking option. This kind of resonates with me since I don't know that I'll always feel like planning meals and all that requires 4 to 8 hours in advance. Any advice on this?

3. Size/shape and brand.

These are the recommendations I remember: oval size, to make sure it's not too small, that it has a removable pot, and a dipping pot (to make smaller sauces I think?) Anything else?

Mostly I'd be cooking for just me and DH - but if it requires chopping, etc., I'd want to make enough for say 2 days' worth of meals. What size would be good for us? (I'm thinking if I really get into this I can always buy a larger one later, for when company comes over).

What brands do you recommend?

Thanks so much! I am always in search of something that will make cooking more bearable so that I actually do it once in a while!
 
Hi,

I finally got one last winter!

to answer your questions:
1) I don't worry about being away from it. I always cook on low for longer time (7 hours) so there is less chance of overheating or the liquid evaporating. You'll be AMAZED at how YUMMY your house smells when you wall in after a meal has been simmering all that time! Cat ignores it. We have a mini crockpot (the dipping one) that came with the big one...we made jokes about putting catnip in water and brewing him tea to see what he does, but haven't attempted that yet! ;)

2) For meals, I usually just cook meat with spices in the crock pot, so I'm not sure about all-in-one. The times I've combined rice or pasta, those have turned mushy, so I'll add that stuff at the very end.

3) Oval. For size, I would go with 6 quarts...if there is that size. Mine is 9 and it's too big for DH and me for 2 meals...You're suppose to fill it at least 1/2 way and I end up wasting extra broth to get it raised to that level. My kids won't eat crockpot meals and I will eventually get a smaller one, but I haven't looked at sizes yet.

Also, be careful with the removable part. Mine chipped the other day because I was in a hurry when scrubbing it out!

ETA - I'm not much of a cook, mostly because of food allergies and my kids are SO picky. I basically make four dinners every night. My safe recipe is I add chicken breasts, chicken broth, pace picante sauce and a bunch of red pepper and let that simmer for 7 hours and the chicken is super tender and then I shred that for burritos.
 
MC|1351090791|3291389 said:
Hi,

I finally got one last winter!

to answer your questions:
1) I don't worry about being away from it. I always cook on low for longer time (7 hours) so there is less chance of overheating or the liquid evaporating. You'll be AMAZED at how YUMMY your house smells when you wall in after a meal has been simmering all that time! Cat ignores it. We have a mini crockpot (the dipping one) that came with the big one...we made jokes about putting catnip in water and brewing him tea to see what he does, but haven't attempted that yet! ;)

>>>>>>LOL

2) For meals, I usually just cook meat with spices in the crock pot, so I'm not sure about all-in-one. The times I've combined rice or pasta, those have turned mushy, so I'll add that stuff at the very end.

>>>>>OK so basically you just throw the meat and spices in...no chopping...I love that. I never thought of it for just cooking meat, so that there isn't that much planning except for buying the meat.

3) Oval. For size, I would go with 6 quarts...if there is that size. Mine is 9 and it's too big for DH and me for 2 meals...You're suppose to fill it at least 1/2 way and I end up wasting extra broth to get it raised to that level. My kids won't eat crockpot meals and I will eventually get a smaller one, but I haven't looked at sizes yet.

Also, be careful with the removable part. Mine chipped the other day because I was in a hurry when scrubbing it out!

>>>>>OK thanks for advice re: size and warning!

ETA - I'm not much of a cook, mostly because of food allergies and my kids are SO picky. I basically make four dinners every night. My safe recipe is I add chicken breasts, chicken broth, pace picante sauce and a bunch of red pepper and let that simmer for 7 hours and the chicken is super tender and then I shred that for burritos.

>>>>>>Sounds like my kind of recipe! :cheeky:

>>>>>>What brand do you have?

ETA: Thanks MC! :bigsmile:
Click to expand...
 
I love our crock pot.
I'll buy a large cheap hunk of meat, throw in some onions, tomatoes, herbs and simmer it all day then pull apart and freeze individual servings in zip lock bags (after sucking all the air out).
I'll get around 20 meals for the effort.
 
kenny|1351098121|3291470 said:
I love our crock pot.
I'll buy a large cheap hunk of meat, throw in some onions, tomatoes, herbs and simmer it all day then pull apart and freeze individual servings in zip lock bags (after sucking all the air out).
I'll get around 20 meals for the effort.
Click to expand...

LOVE this - my kind of cooking, really...I need to get one.

MC and Kenny - what meats and herbs do you use? (I am so not creative when it comes to cooking I wouldn't know what to put in it).

ETA: What brand do you have, Kenny?
 
Ours is the brand "Crock Pot", and claims to be the original slow cooker.
Honestly, I didn't research, I just grabbed whatever Costco had.
I bought the largest one.

I never use a recipe but here's what I'll typically do ...

Throw in a large cheap cut of beef or pork.
You can cut it up into cubes if you like to shorten cooking time.
Put meat in first so it gets covered with wet stuff.
One large onion, chopped
2 or 3 large tomatoes, chopped
half cup of red wine
garlic 2 or 3 tablespoons - Costco Kirkland Minced Garlic in the 48 ounce jar is wonderful, cheap and keeps long in the fridge
sage
thyme
rosemary
coriander
Paprika
salt
freshly ground pepper
2 whole bay leaves
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
Add a little water if needed to ensure meat is covered.

Stir occasionally and cook on medium heat till the meat is very tender, maybe 8 hours if meat is whole or 6 hours if meat is cubed.
Actually stirring is optional so you can cook while at work or overnight.
Remove and discard bay leaves.
 
I LOVE my crock pot! I use it so often when entertaining for large, casual crowds. It's awesome.

1. Are you ever afraid of leaving your crockpot unattended (fires, or your cats getting into it?) Have you ever had something bad happen leaving it unattended all day?
I have some problems with fearing that terrible things are going to happen when I leave my house, so yes, I do get afraid to leave it unattended. I DO leave it unattended, though, and nothing bad has every happened. We have three cats, and they get into everything, but no incidents with the crock pot yet.

2. Someone recommended an all-in-one because of the pressure cooking option. This kind of resonates with me since I don't know that I'll always feel like planning meals and all that requires 4 to 8 hours in advance. Any advice on this?
I don't have an all-in-one, but it sounds snazzy!

3. Size/shape and brand.
I'll have to check the brand at home, but we have a huge oval one.

These are the recommendations I remember: oval size, to make sure it's not too small, that it has a removable pot, and a dipping pot (to make smaller sauces I think?) Anything else?
I don't have the dipping pot, but I love the oval size, and I love that it's huge.
One other tip I have is to see if people like the ones with the hinged lids. Mine doesn't have a hinged lid, and I wish it did because it would be easier to handle it when I serve out of it. But maybe people with hinged lids have other feedback, too. The non-hinged lid is annoying because you have to have a space to put it when you open the pot.
 
Mine is also the same Original Crockpot one that Kenny has.

I use mostly chicken and various herbs (oregano or thyme). I'll google chicken crockpot recipes and then print out a few and then cross off the ingredients I don't want to bother with (or cannot eat) and then buy the rest at the store. Usually, I get herbs in bulk amounts rather than buying a jar so I can purchase enough oregano for say 5 meals for like 50 cents and it's fresh that way, rather than spices that have been sitting in a jar for a year.

If you have a Trader Joe's by you, they carry free range low sodium chicken broth for $2.00 a box and I stock up on those as they come in handy! Another thing you can do is buy some sort of italian sauce and pour that in with the chicken broth and chicken and cook it all day. Maybe add wine, if you like to cook with that.

You can google crockpot recipes and print out 20 or so and slowly work through those. That's basically what I've been doing.

oooh, and getting good quality chicken is important. I buy free-range and get bigger pieces so they don't dry out. I tried using bone-in and it turned into a disaster. The chicken melted off the bones, and THAT was tender, however, we had to pick the bones out of the soup! (that was my first cooking attempt)
 
Haven|1351102126|3291519 said:
I
These are the recommendations I remember: oval size, to make sure it's not too small, that it has a removable pot, and a dipping pot (to make smaller sauces I think?) Anything else?
.
Click to expand...

oh, about the dipping pot. If you plan to use it for entertaining, be sure to try out the recipe first. We used it w/out testing it and the dipping sauce wasn't ready when our company showed up even though we followed the directions using a recipe that came with the crockpot.
 
CJ, I could have practically written your first post verbatim. I keep thinking about getting a crock pot too, but I've had the same hesitations and questions you have. I get SO nervous thinking of leaving anything on/cooking while no one's home. Even at a low temp., the thought makes me nervous.

ETA: The recipes mentioned so far sound really good. :lickout:
 
Haven, I'm going to try that recipe, it looks great!

I also got my crock pot at costco. The one they carry now is even better, as I believe it has a timer you can set (for it to start cooking). I might be wrong on that though.

I've found the best recipes to be the easiest one. I have one where you take a pork shoulder and use root beer to cook it in. Makes amazing shredded pork. Or chicken where you use bbq sauce and a can of pineapple. Delish.
 
We also have a Costco crockpot and it at the time, it also came with a mini pot for things like fondues... which of course we use constantlly... :roll:

I am not allowed in the kitchen - I do not cook (I "destroy" - burn, flame, ruin... I'm good at all those techniques), but with this crockpot, even *I* can make edible food!!! One super simple recipe is chicken thighs and a jar of salsa on low for 4 - 6 hours. Yup - there ya have it, Enerchi's family secret is out!

Oh and here's another secret family recipe - chicken thighs and a jar of Bombay Curry (or any brand in your local grocery store) of the Butter chicken or the Marsala... pour it over the chicken and let it work its magic. These are the recipes that I survive on when DH advises me that I'm on duty for dinner!

He is a big fan of allrecipes.com and they have a crock pot section.
 
Yes I second the recommendation for chicken stock and jars of seasoning gunk.
Trader Joe's has a few glass jars of fantastic Indian seasoning gunk, like tandoori and masala whatchmaclalit. :lickout: :lickout: :lickout:
 
We have a crockpot, although we only use it when we are home. I know many people do leave them on all day, but we had an incident that makes me afraid to do it. We were using our crockpot to make meatballs during a party and all of a sudden smelled something burning. After investigating, we discovered that the removable "pot" had a hairline crack and the sauce and grease had leaked onto the burner part of the crockpot and was burning. Luckily we were home and caught it quickly, but I don't know what would have happened if we weren't home. After that I would never leave it unattended.
 
I have to admit that I don't use ours as often as I should. I'm not comfortable leaving anything ON unattended :twirl:
We replaced an old one with an oval Crock-Pot 6 Qt Countdown with Little Dipper/Warmer from Costco. I like the timer but the warm setting seems a little too hot, nothing major.
The little Dipper does a great job keeping creamy soups for DH in the winter months without scorching =)
Not sure if the 6 Qt is too large for you two, I mainly use ours for [tender] pulled pork and applesauce. Love, love those crock pot liners!
 
I use my crock pot almost every day. I have the crock pot brand - 4 quart oval. I really, really, really want the Ninja one.
 
I'm worried that after using it once or twice, it'll sit used taking up counter space. How often do you use your crockpots? Also, how do you make each dish taste different? Even with different seasonings, it all seems very similar which is my issue with crockpot meals, hence it becomes unused after the initial love affair. How do you overcome that
 
ours is used at LEAST twice a week at our home! DH will set it up when he comes home at noon and by 5/6pm, its all good to go! Plus, the lovely aroma to walk in to, just feels so 'homey'! Like June Cleaver has been slaving away in the kitchen all day and we are Wally and The Beav coming home!!!

"Ward... is that you? I'm in the kitchen!!" :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
1. I'm always afraid something bad will happen while we're gone so I have been too worried to leave it on all day. Our oven died in a rather ugly way (burned through a temperature regulator and just kept heating until the electrical stuff inside was burning).

2. I'm not familiar with the all in one that has pressure cooking also.

3. Hamilton Beach. Oval shape. 2qt, 4qt, 6qt nestled bowls. (LOVE that I can use the size that works for the recipe!!)


The 3 sizes in one thing is really great. I wasn't sure it would be all that useful, but I find that I can use the smallest to make oatmeal in overnight for breakfast and not have to worry about cleaning before making dinner in the 4qt or 6qt.

I'm not an expert on crockpots so I can't say how this brand compares to others. It doesn't have a timer but I wouldn't use that feature anyway (leaving raw meat to sit at room temperature for a few hours before starting to cook seems like asking for trouble)


I don't use it as often as I'd like. For awhile, I used it every day at least once (overnight oatmeal for breakfast). Recently it has been sitting a lot. I've got some new recipes that sound good though so hopefully it will get more use.
 
I love crockpot cooking! We have a med size hamilton beach that is round, this is a good size for a few meals for the two of us, just a note the high setting is very hot on this one, I will use it to brown stew meat then add the rest of the stuff and put it on low for the day. Then we have a big oval stainless one that is the crockpot brand that can feed a crowd, and we have a small one for dipping stuff, don't use that one much cause the pot does not come out. I am not much for recipes, we have cooked turkeys, chickens, hams and all kinds of roasts in the big one and just add water with whatever veggies and seasonings you want, we also make the obvious, beef stew, stroganoff, chili, bbq meat for sandwiches all sorts of soups, crock pots work perfect for this, just remember if you are adding noodles to anything add it at the end, they tend to get mushy if cooked too long. you can also stew fruit with some butter, cinnamon and sugar for hours on low (I have only done apples and peaches) then turn to high so it is bubblling then mix up any quickbread dumpling recipe, I like the one on the bisquick box cause I am lazy then dollop them on top of the fruit thinly and put the cover on until the dumplings are cooked through, if it is too thick it is doughy, scoop into dishes and add a little whipped creme on top, num num num.... You can also use this on top of stews or chick soups, I add sugar to the dumpling recipe for sweets and for savory leave it plain. now I am hungry. :wavey:
 
There are a lot of crock pot recipes that you throw all the ingredients in in the morning and let them simmer all day. There is even a page called crock pot girls on the ever popular social media site ;)

I was really into my crock pot a couple of years ago when my daughter was a newborn/baby. I have tried several of the dump and turn on the heat recipes, and honestly, I found most of them lacking. The recipes I have had the most luck with combine searing the meat beforehand and doing quite a bit of prep beforehand with the slow cooking part. There are several more expensive crock pots that have removable metal inserts that can be used to brown the meat directly, I think all clad is a leader in this type of slow cooker


There are several cookbooks that feature more labor-intensive pre crock pot cooking prep, some of my favorites were published by williams sonoma.

So basically, I use my crockpot like a slow cooking dutch oven, sear/brown ingredients beforehand and usually only cook the food in my crock pot for 3-4 hours. It was nice for me because I could do the searing and prep when my daughter was napping and then clean up the house and have dinner ready a little later. I think these same recipes could be cooked over a longer period at lower temps too though

Imo, if you want to dump ingredients in before leaving for work and come home to dinner at 6, it is handy, and the quality of the recipes varies. I think a lot of the food kind of has the same taste as well. Its great for chili and spaghetti sauce, but I think the meat and onions and garlic all need to be browned before being cooked in the slow cooker.
 
LAJennifer|1351150382|3291949 said:
I use my crock pot almost every day. I have the crock pot brand - 4 quart oval. I really, really, really want the Ninja one.
Click to expand...

I just saw this in the BBB ad we got in the mail yesterday. Looks pretty awesome. I mean, it sears meats! I hate crock pot recipes that require searing of the meat...if I have to pull out pots and pans before throwing stuff in the crock pot, doesn't it sort of defeat the purpose?
 
Erin,
You've nailed the problem for me. It all tastes pretty much the same and to make it taste good, I cannot use the dump and cook method, which I want to use it for in the first place. If I have to do that much prep work or want the meat soft, I might as well use a pressure cooker.
 
Since you seem to be concerned with brand, size and other details this advice may not be for you but consider picking one up at a Goodwill or other thrift shop. A nice bigger oval one (clean, of course -- lots of times they look barely used) should be less than $10. That way you can try it out and if it doesn't turn out to be something you like to use, you can give it away without having to feel guilty.

8)
 
Haven|1351104393|3291546 said:
This is my favorite slow cooker recipe. I've made it for a ton of casual get-togethers, and everyone always loves it. It's so easy.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/zesty-slow-cooker-chicken-barbecue/detail.aspx
Click to expand...

Haven, I literally just made this on Saturday! It's one of my favorites and we put the shredded chicken on those little Hawaiian buns with white cheddar cheese. Mmm so good and so easy. I have found that it is much better with thicker BBQ sauces, like Sweet Baby Ray's, so that the sauce doesn't get too runny.

This is another favorite:
http://www.mychocolatetherapy.com/2012/01/crockpot-chicken-tacos.html

I don't like jar salsa so we use the Garden Fresh kind. This recipe is great for chicken tacos, enchiladas, nachos, etc.


I have a Crock Pot brand slow cooker and its 6 quarts. We love it. I don't like leaving mine on while we're at work all day but I still do it and we haven't had any problems.
 
Enerchi|1351163465|3291982 said:
ours is used at LEAST twice a week at our home! DH will set it up when he comes home at noon and by 5/6pm, its all good to go! Plus, the lovely aroma to walk in to, just feels so 'homey'! Like June Cleaver has been slaving away in the kitchen all day and we are Wally and The Beav coming home!!!

"Ward... is that you? I'm in the kitchen!!" :lol: :lol: :lol:
Click to expand...

Oh, let's make it more 2012...
"Yes June. It's me Darling. I'm in the kitchen. How was your day at the office? I hope you don't mind I'm wearing your frilly apron and your pearls."
 
We use our crockpot a lot during fall and winter. I use it for making all kinds of soups, stews and chili and wild rice casseroles. We do roast beef in it which we sear first. I don't mind doing more work ahead of time. We don't really do any dump and cook things because we do have some dietary restrictions. We make sure not to use anything that adds too much sodium or sugar for instance. We have the Rival Crock-Pot, 6 qt size with removable ceramic insert. I like having this option for cooking, because our gas oven/stove overheats the kitchen year round! When not in use, we store it in our cupboards. Ours only has low and high settings. I'd like one with a medium setting as well.
 
Thanks so much for all your awesome advice. I see I'm not the only one with reservations about it! (Zoe - glad this was helpful for you too!)

As far as what some mentioned as all recipes tasting the same...I don't think I would mind that. As long as it's flavorful...I'm not picky - I just want something other than pizza or eggs or take out every night :cheeky: for not a lot effort. So I would definitely try the dump and cook method and see how that goes.

If I had to start browning this and browning that, and doing a lot of prep work, then it would be a lot less appealing and I would see it as no different than regular cooking.

I like mimi72's advice (Haven had said in a previous post in a different thread) to go to Goodwill and see if I find one (in really really clean immaculate condition, of course) so I can experiment without the guilt.
 
stargurl78|1351183039|3292201 said:
Haven|1351104393|3291546 said:
This is my favorite slow cooker recipe. I've made it for a ton of casual get-togethers, and everyone always loves it. It's so easy.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/zesty-slow-cooker-chicken-barbecue/detail.aspx
Click to expand...

Haven, I literally just made this on Saturday! It's one of my favorites and we put the shredded chicken on those little Hawaiian buns with white cheddar cheese. Mmm so good and so easy. I have found that it is much better with thicker BBQ sauces, like Sweet Baby Ray's, so that the sauce doesn't get too runny.

This is another favorite:
http://www.mychocolatetherapy.com/2012/01/crockpot-chicken-tacos.html

I don't like jar salsa so we use the Garden Fresh kind. This recipe is great for chicken tacos, enchiladas, nachos, etc.


I have a Crock Pot brand slow cooker and its 6 quarts. We love it. I don't like leaving mine on while we're at work all day but I still do it and we haven't had any problems.
Click to expand...
Yes! You're right, it's best to use a molasses-based BBQ sauce rather than one with a vinegar-base. The thicker the better.

And too funny--I LOVE Garden Fresh medium hot salsa! It's the only reason I ever set foot into a Jewel-Osco. Mmmm.
 
GET 3 FREE HCA RESULTS JOIN THE FORUM. ASK FOR HELP
Jewelry Blog
PriceScope-Concierge-Ad
Find prime cuts.
Top