Slow Cooker Chatter #19

[mrsmac]

I had a look at a couple of cheapy cookers today. Both were only 5kg and I wasnt sure about the settings.
Is it normal for them to just have low and high?

I will be looking at some better brands and try find one with the warmer/timer setting.

Mine has warm as well but it has a timer. I think the basic ones just have high and low. I got mine from Bing Lee and it was about $80 from memory, they usually will do you a good deal.

[Sair]

I got the Breville Banquet Meal Maker for about $80 at Kmart. It has High, Low and Warm. I figure I don't need the timer although I can see how it would be nice. I don't work though so I can get home when ever I need to if I am out to turn off the SC. Size was more of an issue for me because the 4th person in our family is on the way and if I get my way there will be a family of 8 in a few years time so 6.5lts was very important!

[christy]

Well I've got my potato, leek and bacon soup in today.

I went to the butcher and got a bacon bone to put in the pot and only a little bacon.

Today I went for a vegetable hiding spree so I have in my soup:

6 cups chicken stock
1 ham bone
1 cup water
100gm bacon chopped
6 potatoes large chopped
2 leeks chopped
1/2 cauliflower chopped
1 zucchini chopped
2 cloves of garlic, just smashed
pepper (salty enough)

We're all super sick atm so I thought I'd do a dose of veges for everyone. The girls didn't eat the chicken vege soup I made last week but "White Soup" is one of Matilda's favourite soups and if you use bacon bone, you can't taste the other veges in it. I am going to go out to the garden & chuck in a handful of baby spinach as well. Blended up we call it "herbs" in our house *wink wink*

[Sair]

Mmmmm sounds great Christy, I am on way way over to have some

[Heaven]

Oooh....I am feeling so inspired from reading this!! I don't have a slow cooker but I'm going to get one now!

So, I don't cook, lol. DH usually does. Not that I'm a bad cook I just never really have and DH likes to do it so he does. I figure seeing as he knows how to do it and likes it he can probably do it better so let him do it. Anyways, I'm feeling like cooking stuff lately!! And I think, when the baby comes DH isn't going to be wanting to come home and cook dinner, he'll want to see me and the baby and I'll probably want him to help out with the baby. SO a SC sounds good. I could put the stuff on during the day so it's ready for dinner when DH gets home. AND I could also make him things to take to work, we always run out of ideas for work so this would give him more variety.

Anyways, my questions. Does this sound like a good plan?

Is it really that easy? Would even i be able to do it?? lol

Do you use your SC in summer or is it more of a winter thing?

Is it energy efficient? Having it on for so long does that use up more energy than cooking something in the oven, or because it's on low is it better?

Thanks guys, I'm so excited now!! I could become a good cook yet!! DH will be so impressed, lol.

[christy]

Okay....

Does this sound like a good plan? Yep, we use it to make larger portions and then we freeze some if needed or we save it for lunch

Is it really that easy? Would even i be able to do it?? Yes

Do you use your SC in summer or is it more of a winter thing? I use it in summer, but not as much. I do things like roast chook etc so I can have it with salad. I make some soups over summer, but mainly we make curries etc

Is it energy efficient? Having it on for so long does that use up more energy than cooking something in the oven, or because it's on low is it better? I have no idea, sorry!! Our electricity usage has been going down, but I use it when I work so I have been using it heaps more over the past quarter.... dunno.

[Bloom]

In today's slow cooker is left over roast pork, onions, carrots, pumpkin, rosemary, tinned tomatoes, stock and it will cook away till I get home. Then I will add diced capsicum and some broken up spagetti. This is my minestrone style soup! Yumo.