Slow Food

I have one of these, it's a Morphy Richards 48718 Oval Slow Cooker and it is my most used piece of kitchen equipment.......and I have a LOT of kitchen gadgets! My slowcooker gets used most days, I use it for soupmaking, cooking stews, curries and desserts but also for cooking larger pieces of meat too. Today my slow cooker has a whole chicken in it, half a cupful of water goes in first to help create a little steam and the bird itself was seasoned with salt pepper and dried herbs before going in. I am often asked by friends and family if the skin goes crispy? My response is that it does, but not as crispy as an oven cooked bird. My chicken went in on low at 9am and I will remove it around 3:30, at this point the meat is so tender it just falls from the bones and no carving is needing it just breaks into chunks. I think chicken cooked this way has much more flavour.....like chicken used too!

Once the bird is picked clean the bones go back into the pot with some water and a few veg trimmings to make stock , proper one pot cooking! my favourite beef joint is brisket and long slowcooking is the best way to cook this cut, basically done the same as the chicken but I make a trivet out of carrots so the meat isn't actually sitting in the water......once cooked these tasty carrots are "chefs perks" yummy! Slowcooked food is healthy too as no fat is added normal casserole recipes can be adapted for slowcooker use, but the liquid content must be reduced. This is because all liquid within the slowcooker is recycled and there is no evapouration as in the traditional pan method, remember too that vegetables release liquid into the dish.

Slowcookers are ideal for those with busy lives as a bit of food prep in the morning means a meal ready upon arriving home from work or like us a hard day spent working outdoors. Slowcookers are cheap to use , using a fraction of the power a cooker would use. Using a slowcooker also means you can use cheaper cuts of meat , those that require long slow cooking are ideally suited to this method of cooking and taste divine. Don't feel left out if your vegetarian as meat free meals can also be cooked in them our favourites are red lentil bolognese, chick pea and potato curry and a veggie and lentil stew with veggie dumplings ........................very hearty and warming on a cold day.

Do you have a slowcooker? if so what do you cook in yours ?