- onions always taste better if they've had a few minutes in the frying pan on the stove before getting put into the crock.
- veggies take longer to cook than meat so put them into the bottom of the pot.
- fresh herbs break down so this is one area where dried is better.
- If you want cooked but not stewed, don't add a lot/any liquid. You will get sufficient liquid from the stuff you're cooking.
- don't think of it as easier or faster, it's just prepared earlier in the day.
- add no or minimal salt. Salt intensifies as it cooks so it's best added at the very end.
1 roast of your preferred meat (I like chuck or rump or sometimes pork).
some root vegetables (favorites: turnips, potatoes, carrots)
herbs to suit (bay leaf, thyme, oregano, pepper, but not all at once!)
1 onion
2-3 garlic cloves (or more, if you love it)
1/2 c. (or so) beer/ red wine
- chop onions and toss with a bit of oil into a frying pan (try to find a pan you can fit your roast into as well). After they've started to turn clear (sweat) put them in the bottom of your warmed crock.
- chop all of your root veggies and garlic. Place on top of onions in the crock pot. Add whatever herbs you're using.
- turn the heat all the way up on your roast and sear all sides of the roast. When meat is browned on all sides, place in crock pot.
- Keeping heat on high in pan, add the beer. Allow this to cook down getting all of the tasty bits left in the pan from the meat & the onions. Once this has been reduced to a thick syrup-like stuff, pour/scrape it on top of the roast in the crock-pot. Put on the lid and cook on HIGH for 3 1/2-4 hours or LOW for 7-8 hours.
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4 comments:
Cool... I've been meaning to learn how to make something like that. I didn't know that about the salt. Does it matter when you put the other seasonings in (is there a benefit to putting spices in early or late in the slow cooking process)?
I'll add another tip: no matter how tempting it is, DO NOT open the lid to check the food. Each time you do so adds as much as 15 minutes to the cooking time. This method is truly "set it and forget it".
Another tip: lots of slow-cooker recipes can be put together the night before, after the kids are in bed. My crockpot has a removable insert so everything can be assembled ahead of time and put in the fridge. Then you just have to remember to put it in the crockpot and turn it on at the right time. A large ziploc or containter would work, too, just dump everything in the next day.
Mandy, it doesn't seem to affect other seasonings negatively, although pepper can become bitter. In fact, most seasonings are stronger the longer they are cooked. It's that with salt that can become overwhelming pretty fast. That's true no matter how you're cooking, but with the slow cooker, things cook for so long it matters more. (that's why most recipes call for adding salt last.) hth! and thanks for the xtra tips Christina!
haha... No wonder my crock pot stuff takes so long! I am a chronic crock pot checker. Especially because things like beans seem to take FOREVER to cook in the crock pot and I'm not sure what is a realistic amount of time to wait. I've always wondered if it's safe or prudent to put something like beans on low and cook it overnight. Thanks for the crock pot tips, all!
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