Tips For Converting a Recipe to a Slow Cooker Recipe

This week in class is all about slow cookers also known as crock pots! Slow cookers are great because you can prepare everything the night before or the morning of, plug it in, go to work, and come home to a delicious dinner! Slow cookers get their name because that is exactly what they do, cook your foods very slowly for a long period of time. You can cook most meals in a slow cooker with a little bit of tweaking so below are 7 tips to help you change your recipe to a slow cooker recipe.

1. Ingredients you should add at the beginning

Some ingredients stand up to and even benefit from having longer cooking times, while others not so much. All of these can be added at the very start of cooking:

• Vegetables - Onions, root vegetables like potatoes and carrots, winter squashes, tomatoes (they will break down and add depth to stews and soups), celery, cauliflower and broccoli (these last two depend on the recipe and cooking time. I like mine a little more crisp so I don't add them to the bottom, but if you want them to be soft adding them at the beginning is the perfect time!)

• Meats - Lean cuts from the shoulder and rump of beef, lamb, goat, pork, whole chickens, chicken thighs, and chicken legs.

• Spices - Most spices can and should be added at the beginning of cooking. The only exception may be rosemary that can become bitter over the longest cooking times so may be best when added at the end.

2. Ingredients to add at the end

These are quicker-cooking ingredients that wouldn't hold up over hours of cooking and add some fresh flavor to a slow-cooked dish. Add all of the following ingredients in the last 30-45 minutes of cooking:

• Vegetables - Softer vegetables like peas, corn, bell peppers, and spinach.

• Meat - Chicken breast, fish, and other seafood. Check the chicken breast for doneness at the end of cooking and give it a little more time if it's still pink in the middle.

• Pantry Items - Rice, noodles, and other grains. You can add these already cooked, though uncooked grains are helpful for soaking up excess liquid and it makes them more flavorful. Beans can cause some debate; personally, I like to add them at the end of cooking so they retain some firmness, though they can be added at the beginning if that's easier for you.

• Dairy products - Milk, yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese. Coconut milk is also best added at the end.

3. Cut all ingredients to be the same size

This ensures that all the ingredients will cook basically at the same time.

Image taken from this blog.

4. Take the time to brown your ingredients

With our busy schedules it's tempting and sometimes necessary to just dump all of our ingredients into the slow cooker and press go. This is a-ok and will give you a nice warm dinner to come home to however if you have a few extra minutes and really want to bring your meal up to the next level browning and searing your meat and vegetables before will trap in some of their flavors. This means your meal will have richer and more intense flavors!

5. Use less liquid

There is very little evaporation when using a slow cooker. If you're adapting a regular soup recipe it's likely you won't need to use all the liquid called for. So how do you know how much liquid to use? Put all of your ingredients in the slow cooker and then pour the broth over the top. It should cover the vegetables by about 1/2 inch. If you have excess liquid at the end of cooking try removing the lid for the last 30 minutes to let some of it evaporate. Or maybe you could use the extra liquid as a sauce if you are cooking meats.

6. Place longer-cooking ingredients on the bottom

Meats and root vegetables will take longer to become tender than say cauliflower. For the items that will take more time, nestle them around the bottom and sides of the slow cooker where they will have more direct contact with the slow cooker's heating element.

7. Choosing a cooking time

Recipes with meat like chili and pork shoulder are best when cooked for six hours minimum or up to ten hours. Vegetarian recipes are best cooked for around four hours, but can do a minimum of two hours or maximum of six hours (after six hours the vegetables will start to get unpleasantly mushy). 

This week we only made one slow cooker recipe with a salad, then prepared a slow cooker recipe to be cooked the next day, and then one more slow cooker recipe as a take home challenge recipe. Curious about them? Click on any of them below and you can see their recipes!

• Honey and Chili Chicken Thighs
• Green Goddess Salad
• Chicken Tagine with Apricots, Almonds & Chickpeas
• Collard Greens Stew with Meat and Garlic 

And as always if you have any questions or comments feel free to leave them below!