ADAPTING RECIPES FOR SLOW COOKER

ADAPTING RECIPES FOR SLOW COOKER

Any dish that is cooked with moist heat does well in a slow cooker; here’s how to adapt recipes:

Reduce liquids by half. Or, another rule of thumb is that 1 cup of liquid is enough for any recipe.

Because liquids don’t boil away in a slow cooker. You’ll have more liquid at the end of cooking instead of less.
Reduce most steps in recipe by adding all ingredients to the slow cooker at once.

Add milk, sour cream or other dairy products during the last hour of cooking.

Cook pasta and rice before add to the cooker.

Dried beans should be boiled 10 minutes before adding to recipe.

The flavor of leaf or whole herbs will intensify, so start with half the recommended in a conventional recipe. Add ground herbs and spices during the last hour of cooking.

To thicken juices or make gravy, remove the meat from the pot, leaving the juice. Prepare a smooth past of ½ cup flour or cornstarch and ½ cup water. Pour mixture into cooker, stir well and cook on high until boiling (about 15 minutes).

Most uncooked meat and vegetable combinations will require cooking at least 8 hours on low.

One hour on high temperature setting equals about 2 to 2-1/2 hours on low.

Use these guidelines for cooking time:

If a conventional recipe says cook 15-20 minutes, slow cook on low 4-6 hours or on high 1-1/2 to 2 hours. If conventional recipe says cook 35 to 45 minutes, slow cook on low 6 to 10 hours or on high 3to 4 hours. If conventional recipe says cook for 50 minutes to 3 hour, cook on low 8 to 18 hours or on high 4 to 6 hours.