The beauty of the slow cooker is in the phrase “set it and forget it”. Invented in 1940 by Irving Nachumsohn (who changed his surname to Naxon) as a way to prepare cholem for Shabbat (we need a WFD on this stew), he sold the rights in 1971 to the Rival corp. of Kansas City who marketed it as the “crock pot”— a way for the woman on the go to prepare dinner and still have the life she wanted.
But advertising in the 1970s aside, the slow cooker is an invaluable tool to prepare good food when you have to be elsewhere. Or, for someone like me, to prepare a week’s worth of food in one go. So even though this will be picture light I present to you some ways I use MY slow cooker.
Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
This is one of my go to recipes. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have the burnt ends or smoke ring that necessitates proper maintenance of the grill/smoker, but the flavors are true. First, rub your preferred pork rub all over a nice 7-8 pound bone in pork shoulder. Wrap and store in the fridge overnight. Place the pork into your slow cooker fat cap up with nothing else, set on low and let it go for 9-12 hours. Meanwhile make your sauce:
1 cup cider vinegar
¾ cup water
½ cup packed brown sugar
5tbsp ketchup
1 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp red pepper flake, or to taste. The sauce should be piquant, but not hot. Chill until needed.
When the pork is done, the bone should slide out easily with no problems. Let rest about 10 minutes, then drain as much fat as possible (you could have up to 32 oz) and shred with forks. Do NOT remove any remaining fat on the meat. That’s flavor, y’all. Immediately add the sauce and stir. The meat will absorb the sauce, making for some of the best pulled pork.
Slow Cooker Chicken Soup
In the bottom of your crock pot, add chopped onion and celery, and your preferred herbs. I used dried dill and celery seed. I also chopped a poblano for a little kick. Add chopped garlic as you like. Add black pepper. Place chicken thighs (with bones and skin) skin side up to cover the bottom of the crock pot. Add water to fill to near the top. Cover and turn to low. I cooked mine for close to 14-15 hours because I had a lot of water and a lot of chicken. Remove chicken and set aside to cool. Add carrot pieces and keep cooking for close to two more hours. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred the meat from the bones. Most of the cartilage will have dissolved into the broth. Keep or discard the skin as you like. (I love the skin). Add chicken back to the pot when carrots are done and let the chicken come back up to temp.
NOTE: This method also works wonders when making a beef broth.
Slow Cooker Pot Roast
For this, I used about 4 pounds of chuck roast. This recipe takes a bit of time to prepare. First, I seasoned and browned the meat, giving it a nice crust. Then into the pan I added some onions and gave them a sweat. I added tomato paste, cooked it for a minute, then added a cup of red wine to deglaze. I added the beef to the crock pot, and when the wine had reduced a bit, added the onion mixture. I then added some beef broth to bring the level up to a good braise. I set the cooker on low and let it go until it was fork tender—about 6-8 hours. I then added potatoes and carrots, made sure there was enough liquid, then let that go for another couple of hours until the potatoes were nice and tender. The result is in the picture at the top.
Slow Cooker Italian Beef
Take a cut like a nice rump roast or top round roast and put it in your pot. Add salt, pepper, Italian herbs, oregano. Stores where I am have a packaged and powdered Italian Beef gravy thing where you add liquid. If you can’t find that, add a couple of packages of dried beef gravy mix. Add beef broth, and pepperoncini and brine to your taste. Let it go on low until shreddable. Serve in the jus. It ain’t Johnnie’s, but it’s pretty good sammiches all the same.
And finally…
Slow Cooker Caramelized Onions
Rub the sides and bottom of your cooker with softened butter. Melt some more butter, add a bit of salt, and then pour over your thinly sliced onions and toss. Add to the cooker and cook on low for 10-12 hours where they will be golden and caramelized. Stir once or twice, and if there looks to be a lot of liquid, crack open the lid to let the steam escape and the liquid evaporate. Heat may vary, so check a bit more often to make sure the onions don’t burn to the bottom. If you want a bit of extra flavor towards the end of cooking, add a bit of brown sugar and balsamic vinegar. These freeze very well, and you have caramelized onion ready at the drop of a hat.
Conclusions
I could go on and on with these recipes. Notice I haven’t gone into detail about amounts to use. That’s because slow cooker size varies. I have a HUGE slow cooker that can fit a 9 pound roast in it. Your Mileage May Vary. So use the ingredient amounts that fit your cooker. Time may also vary. But for the soup, I recommend really cooking it long. That’s just to melt the cartilage and get all the vitamins and stuff out of the bones. The thigh meat will still retain flavor, because it’s damn near impossible to overcook thigh meat.
Learn your cooker. One’s low setting may be almost as hot as another’s high setting.
Obviously there are hundreds and hundreds of recipes and techniques for slow cookery. I’ve shared some of the ones I use.
WFD for me is some of that medicinal slow cooker chicken soup I had left over in the freezer. Just thaw and reheat, and all my ills will fade away. What’s for Dinner at your place?