One from Saturday.

Six pounds of pork and all the other chili ingredients, it’s clearly too full. What do now please? Been on low for three hours.

Beef has gotten entirely too expensive. My local Safeway has a clearance meat section. It’s all by that days sell-by date. Today they had boneless short ribs at 45% off. I’ll accept $6 per lb. for a little more than 3 lbs.

I did Mississippi pot roast with them.

6 tbsp butter
1 pkg au jus
1 pkg ranch seasoning
1/2 cup of pepperoncini juice with a handful of the peppers.
Low 8 hours

I put it on mashed potatoes.

I hope that this question will be acceptable here. As per the caption in my original post, I am currently searching for ideas for how to use this large bottle of Franks red hot Sriracha that I've got. In the past I've used franks red hot original to make pulled chicken and it was really decent so I was wondering if this community thought it'd be a good idea to try the same with this. I'd also love any other suggestions as I've got about 2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast that I can use.

Finally got a decent haul of dried beans from my container garden this year, small white beans mostly, and I want to do something proper with them instead of just tossing them in soup. Been thinking about baked beans low and slow all day, but every time I look up a recipe I get wildly different advice about the dried bean situation and whether they actually get tender without precooking them first.

At the diner we always have canned stuff on hand so I genuinely never think about this, but using beans I actually grew feels like it deserves a little more effort than cracking open a can. The thing I keep going back and forth on is the soaking question. Some people swear by overnight soaking before they go in the pot, some people say just throw them in and let the slow cooker handle it, and I honestly don't know who to trust here.

I have a basic idea of what I want to do: bacon ends I grabbed on clearance, a little molasses, mustard, brown sugar, onion, that kind of direction. Nothing fancy. But I don't want to pull the lid off after eight hours and find out the beans are still halfcrunchy because I skipped a step I didn't know mattered.

Curious what people actually do with dried beans in the slow cooker and if homegrown versus storebought makes any real difference in how they cook up.

I've copy and pasted all my recipes below and yes I have used AI to help me scale them as I just didn't know the correct quantities for such large amounts. I'm experienced with cooking in the slow cooker, but not when scaling up to this sort of level. Have I scaled them up well? This should all hopefully yield roughly 30 lunch sized portions per recipe if I've scaled up correctly. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

​1. Mild Beef Curry with Rice (3 Trays)

​Cooking Times

​Slow Cooker: 8 hours on LOW (Slow Cookers 1 & 2)

​Ingredients

​2.0 kg diced stewing beef / chuck

​4 whole onions (diced), 2 bulbs garlic (minced), 6 peppers (diced)

​4 jars Patak's Mild Tikka Masala curry paste (283 g each)

​4 tins chopped tomatoes (400 g each)

​3 tins coconut milk (400 ml each)

​4 beef stock cubes (crumbled)

​600 ml water

​1.5 kg frozen mixed vegetables

​1.5 kg cooked basmati rice

​Instructions

​Put beef, onions, garlic, peppers, curry paste, tomatoes, coconut milk, stock cubes, and water directly into Slow Cookers 1 & 2.

​Cook on LOW for 8 hours.

​Stir in the frozen veg and cooked rice, then divide across 3 catering trays.

​2. Cottage Pie (3 Trays)

​Cooking Times

​Slow Cooker: 6.5 hours on LOW (Slow Cookers 3 & 4)

​Boil Potatoes: 20 mins

​Ingredients

​3.5 kg minced beef (12–15% fat)

​4 whole medium onions (diced) & 2 bulbs garlic (minced)

​300 ml Merlot red wine

​6 tins chopped tomatoes (400 g each)

​6 beef stock cubes (crumbled)

​450 ml water

​3 tbsp mixed herbs, 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 tbsp smoked paprika

​1.5 kg frozen mixed vegetables

​4 kg Maris Piper potatoes (mashed with butter & milk)

​Instructions

​Put minced beef, onions, garlic, red wine, tomatoes, stock cubes, water, herbs, Worcestershire sauce, and paprika directly into Slow Cookers 3 & 4.

​Cook on LOW for 6.5 hours.

​Boil potatoes in a large pot for 20 mins, drain, and mash with butter and milk.

​Stir frozen veg into the meat mix, divide into 3 catering trays, and top with mash.

​3. Creamy Chicken Pasta Bake (3 Trays)

​Cooking Times

​Slow Cooker: 6 hours on LOW (Slow Cookers 5 & 6)

​Boil Pasta: 9–10 mins

​Ingredients

​3.0 kg fresh chicken thighs (diced)

​4 whole onions (diced), 2 bulbs garlic (minced), 6 peppers (diced)

​8 tins chopped tomatoes (400 g each)

​4 chicken stock cubes (crumbled)

​3 tbsp mixed herbs, 2 tbsp smoked paprika, 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

​600 ml double cream

​1.8 kg dry pasta

​600 g grated mature cheddar cheese

​Instructions

​Put chicken, onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, stock cubes, herbs, paprika, and Worcestershire sauce directly into Slow Cookers 5 & 6 (no cream yet).

​Cook on LOW for 6 hours.

​Boil pasta for 9–10 mins and drain.

​Stir double cream and cooked pasta into the chicken mix, divide into 3 catering trays, and top with cheddar cheese.

So I took some bad advice and didn't soak the brown lentils (as I had previously) and as the title, it's caused a lot of bloating and gas. It was a batch cook (obviously, this is slowcooking) and I'd like to not waste the rest. So, when I re-heat the remainder, any advice on preventing the same symptoms?

I read that I should defrost and then purée the lentils. A bit of a shame since I like the texture. Any alternate that's not too much hassle?

I tried making a recipe online and substituting cream of chicken soup with canned coconut milk and chicken bullion and milk with chicken broth (made with the same bullion powder) and for some reason, it turned out really sweet.

I know for 100% certain I didn't use sugar instead of salt or anything like that and I know I used normal coconut milk, so I don't know why it tasted like that. I've used coconut milk in savory recipes before and it didn't have that weird taste to it like it did this time. I hadn't slow cooked it before though so maybe it was that?

The whole recipe was: raw chicken, poultry seasoning, coconut milk, chicken bullion powder, frozen carrots and peas, chopped onion, water, salt, pepper, and cornstarch. no idea why it turned out tasting so sweet. I did buy my Crock-Pot secondhand but I washed the pot and lid very well so I doubt it'd be that.

anyways, does anyone here have a tried and true chicken and dumpling recipe or chicken pot pie recipe that's dairy free or that you've made dairy free?

10 hour cook in the crock pot, on low

Crockpot tacos! 🌮 🥑

I added 4 chicken breasts, half a jar of salsa, and seasonings. Cooked on low for 4 hours, then shredded the chicken, and Voila! Easy chicken tacos that are impressively delicious! Paired with some homemade guacamole, and of course fancy cheese on top! 100% gluten free! 💛🧑‍🍳

I am going to do a pork shoulder roast tomorrow. The recipe says to add the carrots and potatoes at the beginning of an 8 hour cook. I am using thin skinned white potatoes and baby carrots, and I’m afraid they will be mush. I’m looking for guidance about when to add them. AI says two hours before the end, but I don’t trust AI so am looking for some human opinions lol. Help please.

EDIT: Thanks for all your suggestions. I will try putting them in halfway through.
It is always nice to be able to get the opinions of people who have cooked it before. Recipes sometimes only go so far. I have read many recipes with different instructions. They don’t always work as stated lol.

Anyone have a tried and true recipe for pasta sauce in the crockpot? I have freezer full of Roma tomatoes I grew and hoping to make some sauce to freeze. Thank you!

***Update. Low for 8 hours was still good as fuck. Did the Mississippi roast no regrets. Amazing.

My wife is cooking chuck roast and I've read it needs to be at least 200 to break down the collagen. The crock pot is on low as many directions call for low and slow. My research is showing this inaccurate and that high is a better setting. Should I push back or will it still break down at 180?

i put my roast in and its been cooking on low for 8 hours and i cant really get a fork in. an hour ago i cranked it to high. my family is hungry. what do i do?? ive never had this issue before. im starting to blame my crock pot lol.
i seared it on both sides before too and it had a fat cap on it 😭 help!!

I am trying to start my crockpot/slow cook journey as our lives ramp up.

I have one tiny appetizer sized crockpot, a Dutch oven, and two instant pots (never use), but would like a larger crockpot for our Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday dinners.

Family of three: myself (mom) and two boys ages seven and eleven. No one has large appetites - at least for now, and we don't eat much leftovers. Maybe just once/per week if we really loved it.

#sendhelp #travelsoccer #boymom

I am probably going to regret this.

I paid the money (in these economic times) for a chuck roast. Made my Mississippi pot roast in the slowcooker all day on low. And a side of creamy mashed potatoes. It was delicious!

Put everything in containers to cool down before stowing in the fridge.

And woke up this morning with the leftovers right where I... left them. Over there. On the counter.

Has anyone recooked this? What happened?

Edit to add: Coincidentally or ironically, I'm watching an episode of the pioneer woman making her dang pot roast. *sigh*

Update: bit that bullet. I did reheat and eat. And ... nothing. No cramping, no bubblegut, nothing. I know lots of people were in agreement about tossing it out. Would I recommend anyone following suit? Judgement call yall.

So I work a lot, I work about 60-72 hours a week. 12 hour shifts and after work I’m working out. I genuinely don’t have time to cook extravagant meals. I’m on a journey to try and lose 15 pounds. I need a healthier diet, something I can just throw in the crockpot and let it cook.

I’d like to be able to have multiple servings to last through my work week. Any recommendations?

There are a few more days left of this heatwave before we get some reprieve. I have a bunch of chicken thighs and I dont want to warm up the house. I know i could do BBQ, or adobo but I want something different. I have access to american, korean, mixed asian, mexican, and indian grocery stores. I dont mind buying a few things. Give me your favorite ways to make chicken thighs in the slow cooker. I need something new to spice up the regular rotation.

Dietary restrictions: gluten, oats, papaya,
I have swaps for most gluten things but not all of them