The Art of Slow Cooking: Slow Cookers 101

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Slow Cookers are a great solution for busy cooks on a budget. Delicious meals that require very little prep can be hot and ready to serve at the end of a busy work day. 

Prepare scrumptious roast dinners and melt-in-your-mouth chicken with ease. Create luscious soups and stews without hovering over the stove. Slow Cookers yield delectably easy meals and get you out of the kitchen. Hereโ€™s how to master yours.

A wooden spoon stirring healthy crack chicken in a crock pot.

Not only do slow cookers save you time in the kitchen, but they can also save you money in the supermarket. Grocery dollars donโ€™t go nearly as far, in todayโ€™s economy, but a slow cooker turns inexpensive cuts of meat into tender, flavorful stews. They also make it easy to get dinner on the table, helping you avoid buying expensive takeout

A well-chosen and properly cared for slow cooker will last many years, help to save money, and reduce your meal-prep stress immeasurably. 

Features To Look For

Whether purchasing a slow cooker for yourself or as a gift for mom, there are important features to consider.

  1. A Glass Lid โ€” A tight-fitting lid that holds in heat is essential to proper slow cooking. Removing the lid over and over to check your food allows that important heat to escape. Choose a model with a glass lid, so you can check progress without lifting it.
  2. Functions โ€” Standard, less expensive slow cooker models can have analog or digital controls. Most offer HIGH, LOW, and KEEP WARM functions. More expensive models can have features that include searing/sauteing, braising, baking, sous vide, and even proofing bread. Choose a slow cooker that fits your needs, budget, and cooking style.
  3. Timers โ€” While itโ€™s not a necessary feature, having a timer on your crockpot can be a nice feature. They can automatically shut off the slow cooker at the end of the cooking time. And they can often be set up to switch to that keep warm setting.
  4. Heating Method โ€” Standard slow cookers usually have a base that heats from the bottom and encloses a removable insert. More expensive models may have bases that also heat from the sides. This definitely allows for more even cooking, but is considered a premium, rather than a necessary feature. Avoid slow cookers that are designed with a flat base and no sides. The free-standing crock sitting on top of the base doesnโ€™t hold heat as well.
A bowl of keto shepherd's pie on a grey surface.

Size Matters

Do you like having leftovers to work into another meal? Do you regularly cook for more than three or four people? How much space do you have for storing a slow cooker?

An average slow cooker recipe is usually written for six-quart, or larger, models. If you are a small household and donโ€™t mind scaling recipes, a three- or four-quart slow cooker may be just right for you. Smaller slow cookers donโ€™t allow as many options for leftovers, however.

A six-quart slow cooker is the size most cooks begin with. Itโ€™s perfect for roasting whole chickens, making Mississippi pot roast or creating hearty soups and stews.

If you often double recipes, to create intentional leftovers, then you may find that eight- or 10-quart slow cookers are even better suited to your cooking style. Choose the slow cooker size that is right for you.

Caring for Slow Cookers

Slow cookers require only a minimum of care and are fairly easy to clean.

Itโ€™s important to choose a slow cooker with a removable crock. Being able to remove the inner cooking pot means you can easily put it into your sink for cleaning.

You can purchase liners for slow cookers that help make clean-up quick and easy. But if you want a more affordable solution, simply soaking the crock for 30 minutes to an hour makes cleaning it a breeze.

If you find a stubborn spot, sprinkle baking soda on a damp cloth and then firmly rub the area. Baking soda wonโ€™t scratch glass or porcelain and is an inexpensive and effective cleanser.

Be sure the base is unplugged and cool. Then, you can use the same baking soda on a damp cloth trick to remove any baked on drips that have made their way into the slow cooker base.

Clean and dry both the insert and the base, after each use. Store your slow cooker with the crock in the base and the lid on the crock.

Two images from a step by step process of keto chicken soup.

Benefits of Slow Cooking

There are definite benefits to preparing meals in slow cookers.

  1. Fix It and Forget It โ€” The few minutes it takes to prep ingredients and load them into a slow cooker are usually the only hands-on minutes a cook spends cooking their dish.
  2. Saves Electricity โ€” Depending on energy costs in your area, slow cookers use less energy than your range or oven. And they wonโ€™t heat up the house like your oven.
  3. The House Smells Amazing! โ€” Just like baking bread or cookies in the oven, or simmering a pot of soup on the stove-top, the meal in your slow cooker will send delicious aromas wafting through your home.
  4. You Avoid Takeout โ€” Knowing there is a delicious, hot meal waiting at home curbs the temptation to hit the drive-thru or call for takeout.
  5. Meat Is Tenderized โ€” Slow cooking allows the breakdown of tougher cuts of meat. Theyโ€™ll become melt-in-your-mouth tender, while remaining succulent and juicy.
  6. Flavor Is Magnified โ€” Slow cooking ingredients with seasonings, herbs, spices, and aromatics creates a much deeper flavor profile than can be achieved in short cooks on a stove-top. 
  7. One-Pot Meals โ€” The entire meal can be prepared in your slow cooker. Add some bread and a salad and the meal is complete.
  8. Save Money โ€” Choose affordable, tougher cuts of meat and more cost-effective recipe ingredients for fabulous slow cooker meals. Slow cooking means theyโ€™ll be as delicious as more expensive cuts.

Timing Perfect Slow Cooker Dishes

You will quickly find that most recipes written for slow cookers fall back on the standard three to four hours on HIGH or six to eight hours on LOW instruction. This is a best-estimate timing at best, and one that can turn perfectly good food to dust, at worst.

You wouldnโ€™t roast chicken breasts in the oven for the same length of time that you would a chuck roast. So you shouldnโ€™t cook them for the same amount of time in a slow cooker, either.

Perfectly roasted chuck roast can withstand, and even needs, the full eight hours recommended by most slow cooker recipes to become tender. A delicious pork loin may require only six. And whether you want to serve slices or serve it shredded will affect the amount of time it should cook.

Perfectly juicy, slow cooker chicken breasts require only two and one-half to three hours on LOW in most slow cookers. They will be tender and can be cut into beautiful slices or even chopped or shredded to add to other recipes.

A reliable meat thermometer is the best way to test the doneness of meat whether you slow cook a homey family meal or prepare an elegant dinner for a properly set table.

Best Slow Cooker Keto Recipes

These are the best keto slow cooker recipes of all time (if you ask me). They are just what you want when itโ€™s cold outside, youโ€™re busy all day, and you want to come home to a meal that cooked itself. Set it and forget it with these flavorful, tender, keto crockpot meals!

1
Close-up of a creamy chicken and cheese dish topped with crispy bacon and parsley in a slow cooker, with a wooden spoon.
Slow Cooker Crack Chicken
Crack Chicken, also known as Cheesy Ranch chicken, is a low-carb slow cooker recipe that is so good it deserves an award. The ultra-creamy combo of chicken, cheese, and bacon can be made into a dip or dinner, depending on how you serve it. Make this winner of a dinner with only 5 ingredients.
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2
Keto beef stew in a white pot.
Keto Beef Stew Recipe
This fall off the fork-tender Keto Beef Stew recipe is an easy, one-pot meal for fall and winter meal prep. Come home to delicious comfort food in a crockpot! Plus, itโ€™s freezer-friendly and great for anyone eating healthy on a budget!
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3
A close-up of keto pot roast with carrots and onions in a white serving dish, garnished with herbs, with a knife resting on top.
Keto Pot Roast Recipe
Slow-cooker keto pot roast is the ultimate comfort for anyone on a low-carb diet. This simple gluten-free dinner is seriously satisfying. Youโ€™ll want to double the recipe and freeze some pot roast for another cozy, family-friendly meal.
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4
A close-up image of a keto beef and broccoli stir-fry in a white dish with a wooden spoon.
Keto Beef and Broccoli
Forget Chinese takeout and enjoy sugar-free, low-carb Keto Beef and Broccoli in the slow cooker with only 3g net carb per serving. This mouthwatering meal pops with flavor after stew meat simmers in spicy bone broth for hours on your countertop. Itโ€™s an easy one-pot, savory dinner that practically cooks itself!
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5
Beef shank slow cooker in a white and brown bowl.
Beef Shank Slow Cooker Recipe
Cook this beef shank slow cooker recipe and serve tender meat with soft buttery marrow over cauliflower mash or with a side salad. Itโ€™s a delicious budget-friendly dinner that takes only five minutes of prep time before letting the crockpot do the rest of the work.
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6
Organ meat stew in a white bowl.
Slow Cooked Organ Meat Stew Recipe
Add organ meats to your diet with delicious beef offal stew. Whether youโ€™re a beginner or an advanced nose-to-tail eater, this slow cooker stew with beef heart and kidney is a nourishing, one-pot, low-carb, and keto meal everyone will enjoy.
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7
A bowl of keto shepherd's pie on a grey surface.
Keto Shepherd’s Pie
This easy keto shepherdโ€™s pie recipe is sure to please during the cold winter months when slow-cooker comfort food is in high demand. Itโ€™s a hearty mix of beef, Italian herbs, and a touch of tomato paste topped with low-carb cauliflower mash and covered with melted cheese. Hopefully, you have a big crockpot because people will ask for seconds.
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8
A bowl of keto chicken noodle soup served with bread on a tray.
Keto Chicken Noodle Soup
Warm up with this keto chicken noodle soup recipe when the weather turns cold. Itโ€™s a low-carb alternative to the classic remedy. Slow cook chicken breast, vegetables, and herbs in a crockpot for an easy, healthy, one-pot meal.
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9
Chicken legs in creamy paprika sauce wooden background.
Keto Chicken Paprikash
This keto chicken recipe is a savory one-pot or pan low-carb chicken dinner with juicy chicken legs simmered in a creamy paprika sauce. With directions for cooking on the stovetop or in an Instant Pot or slow cooker, you can choose the best cooking method.
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10
Slow cooker stroganoff with chunks of meat and slices of mushrooms in a creamy brown sauce.
Keto Beef Stroganoff
Easy keto beef stroganoff is a family favorite. Budget-friendly chuck roast becomes perfectly tender after simmered in a creamy sauce in the crockpot. This nourishing comfort food dish with mushrooms is one youโ€™ll make again and again.
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Practice Makes Perfect

The more you use your slow cooker, the more adept you will become at preparing easy, delicious meals with it.

Start with slow cooker recipes from trusted sources and from any recipe book your manufacturer has provided.

Using slow cookers is a huge win for modern cooks! They save you time. Slow cookers help save money on grocery and energy bills. And they help you prepare flavorful meals like a pro.

Now is the perfect time for you to choose the best slow cooker for your kitchen and your cooking style. Youโ€™ll soon be creating delectable slow-cooked meals for any occasion.  

This article originally appeared on Food Drink Life

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2 Comments

  1. Fall is almost here and I just dusted off my slow cooker after seeing all these delicious recipes. I made the crack chicken several times last winter and loved it. Beef stew is next!

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