15 Easy Recipes for your Casserole Slow Cooker (2024)

FAQs

How do I get the best results from a slow cooker? ›

Avoid overcrowding: For the best results, fill a slow cooker between one-half and two-thirds full. Go ahead and cook big roasts and whole chickens; just make sure you use a large crock and that the lid fits snugly on top. Trim fat: For silky sauces and gravies, take a minute or two and cut the excess fat from the meat.

If you take an extra 10 minutes to sauté the aromatics before scraping them into the slow-cooker, the finished dish will have deeper flavor and better texture. (And some new slow-cookers allow you to sauté right in the insert, so you don't have to wash a separate skillet.)

Due to the nature of a slow cooker, there is no need to stir the food unless it specifically says to in your recipe. In fact, taking the lid off to stir food causes the slow cooker to lose a significant amount of heat, extending the cooking time required. Therefore, it is best not to remove the lid for stirring.

It's really no different from cooking something on a stove: if you have no liquid at all, things are probably going to start getting too hot, sticking on the bottom, and maybe burning. As long as there's some liquid, you'll be fine.

Yes, you can put raw chicken in a slow cooker! Slow cookers and Crock-Pots are designed to cook raw meats. The direct heat from the pot, lengthy cooking time and steam created from the tightly covered container destroys bacteria, making slow cooking safe. You can put frozen chicken in a slow cooker, too!

Slow cookers are great for cooking cheaper cuts like beef brisket, pork shoulder, lamb shoulder and chicken thighs. You can also use less meat, as slow cooking really extracts a meaty flavour that permeates the whole dish. Bulk up with vegetables instead.

Information. It is best to thaw meat or poultry before putting it into a slow cooker. Frozen pieces will take longer to reach a safe internal temperature and could possibly result in foodborne illness. Frozen or partially frozen foods can also cool everything else in the slow cooker.

Just plug in your slow cooker, add your chosen recipe's ingredients, set the cooker to low or high, depending on the recipe's instructions, add the lid and let it cook. Once your dish is done cooking, you can either switch the slow cooker off to turn off the heating element, or warm if you're not ready to enjoy it yet.

Yes, you can add raw steak to a slow cooker to cook it to your desired doneness level.

Just slice up a bunch of onions. (You can use white, yellow, or red onions, or a combination of any of those.) Toss them with some melted butter. Then let them cook on low for about 12 hours total until they reach that perfectly caramelized, deep golden brown, sweet and savory perfection.

What adds bitterness to a dish? ›

They can also “ground” the flavors in a dish. That means your meal can stand up to intense seasoning––so you can enjoy the fantastic flavor of your seasonings without feeling overwhelmed. It's easy to add some bitterness to your cooking: cranberries, citrus peel, certain green veggies (like kale and dandelion greens).

This is because slow cookers cook food at a lower temperature than other methods, such as stovetop cooking. This means that it takes longer for the food to reach the correct temperature, which can cause the food to overcook and become burnt.

One of the most frequently asked questions we get is, “are slow cookers safe to use overnight or unattended?”, and the answer is- yes!

You're not adding the right amount of ingredients. Slow cookers should be “at least halfway, but no more than two-thirds full,” write Vance and Lacalamita. Anything less may cause your food to overcook, and conversely, if it's too full, your food may not cook fully.