What's Cookin' discussion

Can someone please explain crock pots to me? Maybe I'm just doing it wrong. Tonight I made red beans and rice, and I thought that I could just throw everything in there in the morning and then eat it at dinnertime (whenever we decided to eat).

(I did cook the rice separately.)

But when we sat down to eat, the beans and andouille sausage had pretty much turned to mush (I cooked on low all day). That wouldn't bother me that much, but they also seemed to lack flavor.

Do you think this just wasn't an ideal dish for the crock pot? Or is it possible to cook things for too long in there? I didn't think it was (my mistake, I guess).

The only other time I've used it I remember also having disappointing results. I seem to have much more luck simmering things for long periods of time in my dutch oven over low heat.

I've eaten crock pot meals that other people have made that have been great...

What am I doing wrong?

Never done that dish in a crock pot...so I couldn't tell you (never actually made period)... but I would try something like a stew maybe and see if you get similar results. I found this great stew recipe a few weeks ago...not originally written as a crockpot recipe but it really good done that way.

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/stews/musta...

I do brown the beef prior to tossing in the pot but everything else just toss in and let cook all day on low. I also put more onions and mushrooms in than it calls for and less potatoes but that's just my tastes and use whatever kind of beer you want or substitute water I suppose.

Or use whatever recipe you normally would for stew or a soup maybe...that would probably be a better test for the crockpot.

Andouille is if I'm not mistaken already cooked so slow cooking it was perhaps overkill...that's probably why it was mushy. Without the recipe I couldn't say about the flavor issues.

Right - I used dried beans which I soaked overnight, and the andouille sausage was raw :(

I think I just need to pay more attention. I have this idea that you just put everything in the pot, and then eat whenever you feel like it. I'm sure that works for some crock pot dishes, but this one wasn't the most forgiving for that.

We received a crock pot for a wedding present and I've tried a few recipes. Often they do take more fuss than I'm willing to devote. I do enjoy chicken legs (on the bone, with or without skin) and a few cans of cream o whatever soup and long grain rice. That on low all day turns to a nice, comforting hot dish in the evening.

Sally: I got rid of several crockpots over the years, but have fairly recently begun using one again. I can cook a meal for myself, eat as much as I'd like (love the leftovers) freeze the rest and make another something and do the same things!
Instead of chicken legs, I do use turkey thighs..crockpot them..add two cans golden mushroom soup, a couple of glugs of white wine, as many baby bella's as floats your boat, as much garlic salt on the thighs,,, cover, turn it on low and let it cook for hours and hours on low.

Used to make it in the oven...3-4 hours in a 250 degree oven if you have no crockpot. Make a big pot of rice...Remove thighs from crockpot..let cool..remove skin...remove mear from the bone..mix it all together. Add some crumbled cheese (your choice) pop in the oven til cheese melts. Yummy!

Or..forget about the oven thing...just spoon turkey over rice and enjoy! Quick to preoare and so worth waiting for!

I think that the problem was the recipe. Most crock pot recipes are just that -- throw everything in and wait for 8 hours. Like you, I find that means mushy food.

Go to your library or bookstore and get out Cook's Illustrated's "Best Make Ahead Recipe" or get a subscription to their magazine/website "Cooks Country." Both have excellent recipes for crock pots. The yields are HUGE and you can freeze portions (my favorite aspect) and they actually taste good.

And don't be freaked out when you see tapioca and soy sauce in a beef stew recipe. It actually does make it taste beefier!

Sandi, I just came across a yummy looking recipe for turkey and mushroom risotto crock pot style that sounds remarkably similar to what you just described. I must make this tomorrow. It's fate!

I like the crock pot. I make things that are meant to cook for a long while in it, like soup and stews. Swedish meatballs are good too.

Thanks for all your tips, everyone! I'm definitely going to try again - I'm sure it's just a matter of getting a better feel for the crock pot, and understanding how long things can be left (or not) to cook in it.

I do love my crock pot and use it quite often, but the truth is many things do turn out a little mushy. It is certainly not like something cooked in the oven. The trade-off is convenience, you come home and dinner is waiting.I have even done a meatloaf in the crock -pot and it works very well. You may want to try for larger cuts of meat as they tend to hold their shape and texture, such as a pot roast or pork loin.

In one of the books BunWat recommended (which are great!) the author says the best cuts for slow cooking are the toughest - they don't get overcooked as easily and with the time involved they add the most flavor and do become tender.

It took several attempts and sad, frowny faces, but I've come to love my crock pot. Over the years, tough old hens and deer roasts have become delicious meals that my family requests often. If you are interested, there are several cookbooks with "Fix-it and Forget-it" in the title. The authors are Phyllis Good and Dawn Ranck. I've tried several recipes and haven't been disappointed yet. Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook: Feasting with Your Slow CookerFix-It and Forget-It Diabetic Cookbook: Slow-Cooker Favorites to Include Everyone!Fix-it and Forget-it Recipes for Entertaining: Slow Cooker Favorites for All the Year Round

Some things definitely do better in a crockpot than others. Personally, the thought of potentially leaving food in the temperature "danger zone" for hours doesn't excite me. Because I hate mushy rice, I wouldn't even consider making rice in a crockpot, but barley holds-up well. Lamb Shanks & Barley. Sauerbraten. Bean soups & chili. Even confit would cook well in one.

RE: Mushy rice... On the other hand, Congee lovers probably find the crockpot quite a boon for cooking breakfast as they sleep.

I love my crockpot. However, you do have to be careful not to overcook things. I make soup in it all the time during winter (lentil and vegetable mostly). I put it on in the morning before I go to work and it's ready when I get home. Also, on winter weekends, I make lamb shanks with spices, vegetables and prunes cooked in stock with red lentils as a thickener: a sort of Moroccan tagine-y thing. (Very yummy. I think it's a Nigella Lawson recipe).

Valerie wrote: "Can someone please explain crock pots to me? Maybe I'm just doing it wrong. Tonight I made red beans and rice, and I thought that I could just throw everything in there in the morning and then eat ..."

you may have kept them in too long or set the crockpot at too high a temperature for the amount of time that you cooked them, how much liquid did you use, maybe too much liquid. It could have been a number of things that went wrong. I bought a new crockpot from the dollar store and it does not cook like my old one, it cooks much too fast.

I find there needs to be one more lower setting. I've come home to overcooked food too many times...or food that's scorched from cooking too high without stirring. Valerie...you probably could have foregone the soaking of the beans. That may be why they overcooked so much. As far as seasoning...the veggies that go into RB & R would probably disintegrate over that period of time, but their flavors shouldn't have completely died.
I understand the concern about food coming up to temp quickly enough...I think that gets worked out by the hours the food is held above 140°. Still, you have a valid point.
I find going with a lower temp, say 200° with my dutch oven works a lot better...but there are times you don't want to heat the whole house that long!
What a dichotomy!

There are crockpots, which will cook on high in the beginning, and then on low after the cooking temp is achieved, which elminates the worrries of leaving meats too long at low temperatures. I don't have one of those. I dont feel I need it.

I brown meats before crocking them, often. I also cook briskets and roasts in a crock pot, along with carrots, onions, etc., all day. They come out great. I cook beans in crocks, but not canned; I start with dried pinto beans, plenty of water, and cook on high for an hour before leaving home, and then turn them to low for another 8-9 hrs. They are perfectly done.

I think my crock pot cost about $12 almost 15 yrs, ago, so it's not a matter of having to buy expensive pots, I'd think, but I'm sure there are differences in the quality of temp settings of good pots and low-quality pots.

I cook stews, soups, and use it for con queso dishes. I find it maybe the most useful and consistently predictable cooking device in the kitchen.

I am, I admit, a bit at a loss to understand why others are having difficulty. My daughter, who is a notoreously bad cook, even makes great meals in her crock pot, which she sets in the morning and returns to ready-to-eat meals in the evening. Brisket is her favorite---or maybe it is the favorite choice of my son-in-law.

Will wrote: "There are crockpots, which will cook on high in the beginning, and then on low after the cooking temp is achieved, which elminates the worrries of leaving meats too long at low temperatures. I don..."

It's not so much leaving the meats a low temps AFTER the cooking has really commenced, as much as it is that it takes a long time for the mass of food in the crock pot to get above 140°. Depending on what's in the crock, it can take hours for the center of the crock to get into a safe zone. The danger zone is 40° to 140°. I think the older crocks worked better.

This blog is funny...and I've gotten some good recipes from it. Stephanie tells us what can go wrong and how to avoid it. She's authored cookbooks as well!
I DO believe that she has a wide variety of different sized crockpots...

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/