O Crock Pot, joy of man's desiring

[spidey07]

That's the beauty of crock pots. Pretty much any sort of odds and ends can go in and a good meal comes out. Meat + veggies + liquid + spice = dinner

If you're going to cook out of a crock pot often I suggest always having the following on hand.

celery/potatoes/carrots/onions/peppers
cheap cuts of meat like pork shoulder, chuck roast, chicken thighs, etc
canned broth/stock
selection of cream soups like cream of mushroom, cream of chicken, cream of celery
Rotel tomatoes
Dry onion soup mix

Stock up when you find decent sales. If you've got those staples on hand you can cook 90% of crockpot recipes at a moments notice without needing to shop.

lol, when the casserole soups go on sale, and I mean a really good sale it's nothing for us to buy 20-40 of each.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Good to know, I'll check if my supermarket has all of these items already chopped up. I'd like to start prepping better meals for myself, but the crockpot meals are tough because they need to be prepped early in the morning so they can cook for the full 10 hours. I might start prepping what I can the night before and just toss it all in when I wake up in the morning.

The frozen meals are just a matter of picking it out of the freezer, opening the package and pouring it in the pot with water. It's only 1 item I need to get from the store also, which saves some time.

your really talking about 15 minutes max prep time for anything you make and it can provide meals for a week easily. The time per meal ratio is amazing.

 

[Wyndru]

your really talking about 15 minutes max prep time for anything you make and it can provide meals for a week easily.

I think I need a bigger crockpot then lol. Mine (5qt.) will not feed me for a week, not even close, maybe 3 meals for my wife and I (6 servings). TBH I don't even think it will do 6 normal servings, probably more like 4.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

1) Brown and drain ground beef or turkey
2) layer in crock pot ground meat, cabbage leafs(chopped thick), canned diced tomatos & plum tomatoes, optional(shitake and oyster mushrooms)
3) add some beef stock
4) add in garlic, oregano, (optional onion)

6-8 hours on low.

Filling and delish

 

[HN]

*doh*

 

[blackdogdeek]

1) Brown and drain ground beef or turkey
2) layer in crock pot ground meat, cabbage leafs(chopped thick), canned diced tomatos & plum tomatoes, optional(shitake and oyster mushrooms)
3) add some beef stock
4) add in garlic, oregano, (optional onion)

6-8 hours on low.

Filling and delish

this sounds awesome.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

lol, when the casserole soups go on sale, and I mean a really good sale it's nothing for us to buy 20-40 of each.

Ditto that. When I find stuff I use a lot of like beef/chicken broth, cream of mushroom soup, etc I buy it by the case. One of the big supermarkets in my area is Shop-Rite and they have a "Can-Can" sale twice a year. Really insane prices on canned goods like soups and veggies. Not unusual for me to buy an entire years supply of 8 or 10 different items in a single trip.

 

[imported_noonedoes]

Pull Pork Sandwiches

4 pounds boneless country style ribs
salt, black pepper, garlic power, and onion powder
3 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1) Season the pork with the salt, pepper etc and bake in the over for for 30-45 mins until slightly brown and the juices are flowing out.

2) Draining the juices and remove the fat drippings (if left over night...the fat will solidify and you can just take it off)

3) Put the meat and the juices and the other ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

I use a potato masher to shred the pork and serve it with cole slaw.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Pull Pork Sandwiches

4 pounds boneless country style ribs
salt, black pepper, garlic power, and onion powder
3 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1) Season the pork with the salt, pepper etc and bake in the over for for 30-45 mins until slightly brown and the juices are flowing out.

2) Draining the juices and remove the fat drippings (if left over night...the fat will solidify and you can just take it off)

3) Put the meat and the juices and the other ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

I use a potato masher to shred the pork and serve it with cole slaw.

you can do this with any cut of meat. cheap shoulder or roast works just as well.

 

[KMFJD]

atot, can you deny the greatness that is the crock pot? put good stuff in, wait half a day, and in return receive something quite greater than the sum of its parts. surely, there is no greater combination of science and magic wrought upon this earth.

here is what i put in this past saturday night (in order):

10 celery hearts chopped
2 carrots chopped
10 mushrooms sliced
5 boiling onions peeled
3 garlic cloves crushed
3 lbs beef chuck roast
(mix the following 3 ingredients before adding to crock pot)
1 14.75 oz can of condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 1 oz packet of french onion dip mix
2 cups of water

cover and cook on LOW for 10 hrs.

this was supposed to be a roast but it turned more into a beef stew. the meat was completely melty at the touch so i used a couple of wooden spoons to break it up and let it sit more after the initial cook time. the only suggestion i would make is to cut the fat off first. it already has enough fat in it and the large extra amount was a bit much, even for my fat-loving self. still, i was overjoyed at the awesomeness. next i want to try a pork roast.

anyone have any good crock pot recipes i can shamelessly steal for my own enjoyment?

Add a can of Guinness instead of water

 

[spidey07]

Add a can of Guinness instead of water

Yes. Or wine and stock.

 

[jlee]

I'm lazy, I usually just buy the frozen pre-made crockpot meals. They are a bit salty though.

Do you buy frozen pre-made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches too?

 

[insanity2]

ox tail dude.. ox tail.

Braised ox tail is da bomb. If you think ox tail sounds nasty in general, I thank you for giving more for me to eat! Ya don't know what you're missing!

 

[MrChad]

This is one of our favorite crock pot recipes - Sweet and Sour Cranberry Pot Roast

1 16 oz can tomato sauce
1 16 oz can whole cranberry sauce
1/4 cup dry red wine or water
3 shallots, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
3 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp prepared horseradish
1 tsp dry mustard
1 3-4 lb boneless chuck roast, trimmed of as much fat as you can

Add all the ingredients to the crock pot, cook on high for 30 min, then add the meat, spoon the sauce on top and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours. You can crank up the heat if you need to speed up the cooking time a bit (we've done it in an afternoon before on high).

 

[spidey07]

Braised ox tail is da bomb. If you think ox tail sounds nasty in general, I thank you for giving more for me to eat! Ya don't know what you're missing!

That's the thing with slow cooking. You can turn cheap meat into seriously great food. Generally the cheaper it is, the better it is for your crockpot.

Some fuckstick in this thread is using tenderloin in a crock pot.

 

[zinfamous]

I got some pork ribs on manager special for like 50 cents a pound. These are the ribs used for stock, not spare or baby back. Put them in with some sour kraut, white wine, chicken stock, tomatoes, brown sugar, spices on low for 10 hours. It was delicious served with roasted potatoes.

OH, that sound awesome.

One of my GF's traditional recipes:

saur kraut with brown sugar glaze, kielbasa, potatoes, carrots. But that's ~20 minutes on the stove.

That stuff is just grand with a nice, tall dunkelweiss or a more complex Belgian.

 

[zinfamous]

Pull Pork Sandwiches

4 pounds boneless country style ribs
salt, black pepper, garlic power, and onion powder
3 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1) Season the pork with the salt, pepper etc and bake in the over for for 30-45 mins until slightly brown and the juices are flowing out.

2) Draining the juices and remove the fat drippings (if left over night...the fat will solidify and you can just take it off)

3) Put the meat and the juices and the other ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

I use a potato masher to shred the pork and serve it with cole slaw.

First bold: go with shoulder, bone in. Cheaper, and preferred for pulled pork.

Second bold: D: dear god! you have ruined your pork!

 

[Wyndru]

Do you buy frozen pre-made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches too?

No, but I use this

 

[Triumph]

Wonderful thread, I hate cooking but love crock pot food like chili and stew. You tell me exactly what to do and I can do it. I'm going to try all these recipes.

1) Brown and drain ground beef or turkey
2) layer in crock pot ground meat, cabbage leafs(chopped thick), canned diced tomatos & plum tomatoes, optional(shitake and oyster mushrooms)
3) add some beef stock
4) add in garlic, oregano, (optional onion)

6-8 hours on low.

Filling and delish

Is there a reason you layer it? I just throw all the shit in there and stir it up.

 

[spidey07]

OH, that sound awesome.

One of my GF's traditional recipes:

saur kraut with brown sugar glaze, kielbasa, potatoes, carrots. But that's ~20 minutes on the stove.

That stuff is just grand with a nice, tall dunkelweiss or a more complex Belgian.

First time we tried it. It was VERY sweet, the meat. It really needed some acid/heat along with it (thanks maters). It was almost too sweet. Be sure we're keeping this one, will do again.

Think about it, it's piggy. Needs sweet and heat/sour.

If you cannot tell, I've got some german in my blood. Without the flavor/crunch of the potatoes it would be half the dish.

 

[szechuanpork]

need pics!

 

[the DRIZZLE]

you can do this with any cut of meat. cheap shoulder or roast works just as well.

It's good with a turkey breast as well. I don't like bbq sauce but I use most of the other ingredients plus some liquid smoke to make a lighter sauce.

 

[soccerballtux]

its extremely cheap too, and if you start including beans it's like eating for free.

 

[Iron Woode]

no one mentioned making baked beans in their crock pot?

I even make meatballs in mine.

Lamb stew is also good.

 

[sandorski]

no one mentioned making baked beans in their crock pot?

I even make meatballs in mine.

Lamb stew is also good.

Baked Beans is the only thing I use mine for, but I really should try some more dishes in it.