slow cookers are shit

AnnHiggins

discuss….

CassandraNORI

My slow cooker came in handy when my kids were little and I was home all day and exhausted and bored and crazy. I’d have a burst of energy in the morning chopping stuff and putting it in the slow cooker so when dinner time came I didn’t have to do anything else but serve it up. I haven’t used mine now in a long time because I’m relatively normal again, have the brain space and physical energy to think up and make dinners in the afternoon.

TLDR - they have their place. But things tend to get mushy and over watery in them but I didn’t really care back in the day. Easier to mush up for baby mouths.

LadySybilVimes

I WILL FIGHT YOU.

No, I won’t. They’re okay for some things. I have one of those five-in-one deals that sears the meat before you cook it, that helps a lot.

Have you ever seen those Slow Cooker Central cookbooks? The woman who runs that uses her slow cooker for everything - breakfast, lunch, dinner - and has multiple slow cookers on the go all the time. Lunacy.

AnnHiggins

oh yeh, i totally get their efficacy for baby/toddler food - i mean who cares what baby food tastes or looks like - babies certainly don’t! even for a cheap and cheerful midweek meal when you simply can’t be arsed - i get that. But it’s more the people i see ((on other fora etc) extolling the virtues of them and it’s like the only method they use to cook - i’ve just never had a great meal from one - mediocre at best ((either cooked by yours truly, or someone else).

NightHawk

I’m ambivalent - except I hate the space it takes up when I have pots and pans that can achieve a similar (better?) outcome in the oven.

I do like feeling all efficient and putting something on early in the morning and feeling all smug the rest of the day while it cooks itself.

CassandraNORI

NightHawk I do like feeling all efficient and putting something on early in the morning and feeling all smug the rest of the day while it cooks itself.

This is me now

WidowWyncke

Curries,curries are good in the SC.

LadySybilVimes

I have a recipe for beef casserole with cheesy herb dumplings that DH loves and the kids tolerate. For a roast I prefer the oven, though.

ALittleBitter

LadySybilVimes ooh can you please share the recipe?

LadySybilVimes

It’s this Women’s Weekly one: https://www.womensweeklyfood.com.au/recipes/beef-casserole-with-cheesy-herb-dumplings-15203

[deleted]

Correct, they are shit. I don’t understand these people who prep everything in the morning, then put it all in the slow cooker. It’s just such a joyless existence.

MrsT

Mmmm mush meals

IcyPole

Too much advance planning needed for them. I’m not thinking about what’s for dinner when it’s breakfast time.

Heyho2

I liked when the kid was little. She was a nightmare in the evening and quite frankly, I didn’t care what I was eating. We haven’t used it for yonks now though…

Is it same level controversy if I say thermomix seems like shit too?

Longdarkteatime

Slow cookers are the Devils work! Makes the entire house smell rancid when cooking pork or beef. Not really useful for veggie dishes either as they make baby food out of any self respecting vegetable and you can’t season as you go.

NightHawk

Hehe I had no idea they were so controversial.

I’m happy to receive unloved slow cookers to dye yarn in.

Gum-boots

They suck. Ovens are a lot better. The best roasts I’ve had ((not cooked by me) were in the oven for hours at 100 and then ramped up at the end . So good

OnFire

I love my slow cooker!

It was a godsend when my kids were younger.

I haven’t used it in a while as DH does most of the cooking - he uses it to cook roast lamb or beef, so it gets used once a week. He also does soup in it during winter.

WidowWyncke

I love mine too, only for certain recipes and I don’t leave it on all day.
It’s much easier to clean than Le Creuset in the oven or on stovetop.

LadySybilVimes

On thermomixes, I have one and it’s a completely inessential purchase. I use mine a few times a week but I’m not sure if I’d replace it if it got broken/stolen.

CassandraNORI

Reviving this controversial thread to post the one recipe I always do in the slow cooker - having it tonight and it’s slowly cooking as I type. Super Yummy

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/141395/mediterranean-lamb-and-lentil-stew/