Teach Me About Slow Cookers

[Joe Bob]

I've found that not smoking dope or drinking tends to make me remember that the crock is freaking hot.......I let it cool down before picking it up. Just a word of advice......they also have oven mitts.....ask yer momz about them.

[Danimal16]

Have you considered a pressure cooker? I have both, but like the pressure cooker. A good one is pricey, over $250, my Fissler is a set at $350. When I cook, I cook big batches and freeze, can or vacuum freeze the product.

[porwolf]

How about this "slow cook" solution: It was used during power outages in WW2: Take a big box or trunk, fill it with lots of heat insulating material including top making a cloth lined cavity, put a regular pot with stew, heated up to boiling temperature once, place it into the insulated box/trunk. Leave the pot there for about an hour. Workes just fine.

[drleah]

Had a "crock" pot for years. When it died, I bought this, IIRC $75 at Walmart. Insert can go on the stove (great to brown/sear prior to cooking) and oval shape handles more roasts.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[fintstone]

This is the one we have. Crock-Pot SCR503-UMSTK2 Slow Cooker and Little Dipper Warmer, 5 Qt. - Electrics - Kitchen - Macy's Price is right and works great (made chili last wekend), but I use a pressure cooker more often.

[nynor]

noah, we use ours all the time. i am sure it was under $50 and it works great. my wife makes all kinds of stuff with it, including lasagna and soups. yes, lasagna. and it is awesome.

anyway, good luck with your purchase. getting an oblong one is good advice. ours is not and i wish it was.

[madmmac]

Originally Posted by RWebb

oblong is a useful shape for various birds, etc.

This ^

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by Outback Porsche

Whatever you get just make sure you can put its insert on a stove top to brown up your meat. It makes the whole process a lot easier.

.
.
I use it now/then...is great.
.
West Bend® - Kitchen Appliances | Celebrating 100 Years! | 84905 - 5 Qt. Oblong Slow Cooker | Slow Cookers / Versatility
.
.

[jyl]

I think a pressure cooker is way more useful than a slow cooker. I have both, the PC is used 3X week, the SC seldom.

[Don Ro]

My understanding is that the intense heat of pressure cookers kills-off valuable nutrients.

[Danimal16]

Originally Posted by Don Ro

My understanding is that the intense heat of pressure cookers kills-off valuable nutrients.

I doubt it. There is no intense heat. If you broil something it has a higher heat. If you barbecue it has higher heat. Remember the duration is very short compared to non-pressure cooker prepared food. If you taste the food from a pressure cooker it is far more flavorful. The dish is cooked completely enclosed. There is nothing that escapes. If you prepare stock, the pressure cooker is the only way to go. Remember the cooking takes place under pressure, there is virtually nothing wasted.

[Don Ro]

Perhaps I need to adjust my "understanding"...
.
A: To answer your question, we consulted Kantha Shelke, Ph.D; a Chicago-based food scientist and spokesperson for the Institute of Food Technologists. Here’s what she told us:

Pressure cooking can reduce heat-sensitive nutrients (e.g., vitamin C, folate) and bioactive phytonutrients, such as betacarotene, glucosinolates (helpful compounds found in cruciferous vegetables) and omega-3 fatty acids, that are beneficial for human health. But so do other cooking methods—and generally to more or less the same extent.
.
With vegetables and fruits, the heat-sensitive nutrients (e.g., vitamin C, folate and bioactive phytonutrients) are generally most susceptible to degradation during pressure cooking. Consuming the cooking water can help restore some of these losses.
.
In the case of grains and legumes, although the vitamins and heat-sensitive vitamins and phytonutrients are vulnerable to deterioration, the net result of pressure-cooking is a positive nutritional gain—from the increased digestibility of the macronutrients (protein, fiber and starch) and the increased bioavailability of the essential minerals.
.
Pressure-cooked meat-based dishes show a significant reduction in unsaturated fat contents, but it appears that iron is not lost.
In addition to making foods like grains and legumes more digestible, pressure cooking does not create any of the unhealthy chemicals associated with baking and grilling methods.

[aigel]

Here is my exploration and the result. I still use mine frequently and it has held up okay.

Slow Cooker that isn't a piece of "Crock Pot TM" junk

Pressure cookers work great in getting things tender quickly. But I believe I can taste the difference between pressure and slow cooked, especially if there is meat and a sauce / gravy involved.

Also beware of kitchen / household gifts for your spouse unless you are 100% sure they are happy with such purchases. I have seen this backfire several times, even when the spouse was asking for something specific ...

G

[tabs]

Originally Posted by Danimal16

Have you considered a pressure cooker? I have both, but like the pressure cooker. A good one is pricey, over $250, my Fissler is a set at $350. When I cook, I cook big batches and freeze, can or vacuum freeze the product.

Hmmmm..my Fissler PC didn't cost anywhere near $350.....I paid $12.99 at a Thrift Store for it, and had to put in $24 for a new gasket and shipping from Fissler. So I got $37.00 in it...

I do use it and have no decided preference for either the PC or SC.
And I gots a RIVAL SC that I bought 35 years ago...at GEMCO I think I paid under $20 for it????? I am getting old.

[javadog]

I can't think of anything useful that I could cook in a slow cooker, so I don't own one. It's not the 1970's any more and I don't wish to eat my mom's cooking (sic).

If you want to braise something slowly, you can always throw any covered pot into a low oven.

Things like slow cookers, rice cookers... all they do is take up space in the pantry. You can cook without them.

JR

[mikesride]

Nothing screams "Happy Valentines Day" like a small household appliance......Next year she's likely to get you a nice new set of "blue balls"........good luck pal!

[cairns]

I got the All Clad.

But then again I bought a Porsche even though i know a Corvette would have done just as good a job for a lot less.

If I were getting one for the wife I would get the smallest lightest one I could find. Less chance of concussion.

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by javadog

I can't think of anything useful that I could cook in a slow cooker, so I don't own one. It's not the 1970's any more and I don't wish to eat my mom's cooking (sic).

If you want to braise something slowly, you can always throw any covered pot into a low oven.

Things like slow cookers, rice cookers... all they do is take up space in the pantry. You can cook without them.

JR

We make all kinds of roasts, briskets, gumbos you name it.

It's not all about what you cook in it but also the convenience.

There are days when you've got to get the kids out to school, go to work, after school one kid has piano lessons, the other has soccer practice then you have to run to a function back at the school etc.....

There's barely time to eat much less cook.

In the morning I can prep a complete meal in 5 minutes, set the program and leave the house. By the time we all get home it's done and ready to eat. Hard to beat that.

[javadog]

No time?

Pick up some Taco Bueno on the way home...

It's at least as good as any gumbo you can prep and get into the cooker in 5 minutes or less...

JR

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I'm not taking the chance of ruining a cassoulet on a burner and baking 10-12 hours in an oven is inefficient.