Do You love slow cooker recipes!?
Many recipes of your favorites can be converted for the slow cooker! Yes, you can enjoy them with extra flavor and surprise your family and friends!
In this article, I will share with you some interesting rules and tips that will help you to upgrade a regular recipe using your slow cooker!
8 Basic Rules To Adapt Your Favorite Recipes For The Slow Cooker:
1. Brown the meat:
The first step is to brown the meat or poultry, then onions, garlic, and other ingredients. We most often use a casserole dish or a large skillet. As for the fish and shellfish, we add them an hour before the end of cooking and set the slow cooker to high intensity.
2. Arrange the food:
Root vegetables cook more slowly in the slow cooker than in the oven. For this reason, they are cut into pieces of no more than 1 inch and placed in the slow cooker under meat and poultry.
If you are using peas, spinach, or other delicate vegetables, add them in the last 30 minutes of cooking.
3. Adjust the heat level:
Some recipes require to be cooked over high heat. However, most of them are better suited to the low setting. Generally, high-intensity cooking hardens meat and poultry.
4. Avoid frozen food:
The meat and vegetables should be completely thawed before starting the cooking process. You should avoid extra liquids as well as bacteria growth conditions.
5. Decrease the amount of liquid:
Most recipes adapted for the slow cooker require about 50% less liquid. In fact, the liquid in the slow cooker does not evaporate, which is not the case for cooking on the stove or in the oven. If, after adapting a recipe, you find that there is too much liquid left at the end of cooking, degrease the surface, filter the broth in a roasting pan or shallow saucepan and boil it until it reaches the desired consistency. Adding thickening agents such as flour or cornstarch in the last minutes of cooking can also help. Slow cooker recipes often include this step.
6. Add flavor:
In a slow cooker, the taste of the herbs and spices fades. So, add these flavorful ingredients near the end of the cooking process. This will allow you to keep the flavor and preserve their benefits and properties. Since there is no ideal dose for each dish, always sprinkle a little less than the recipe and add according to your preference.
7. Adapt certain ingredients:
It is recommended to add the green peppers in the slow cooker at the end of your cooking to prevent them from becoming bitter. In the same way, you should add dairy products such as milk, cream, or sour cream in the last 10 minutes of cooking to avoid fat separation.
8. Adjust the cooking time.
| Traditional Cooking | High intensity slow cooker | Low-intensity slow cooker |
| 15 Ã 30 minutes | 1 1/2 to 2 hours | 4 to 6 hours |
| 35 to 45 minutes | 3 to 4 hours | 6 to 10 hours |
| 50 min to 3 hours | 4 to 6 hours | 8 to 18 hours |
How to store the leftovers?
Avoid storing the leftovers in your slow cooker. You should transfer them to a good storage container.
Can we reheat a dish in the slow cooker?
No. The slow cooker would take too long to reach a temperature high enough to prevent bacteria from growing.
So, these are my best tips to convert dishes for the slow cooker! Do you have any other tips to share!?
If you like this article, please share it to encourage me!
