Note: Remember, if you have a newer crock pot that cooks hotter, check the chicken at 6 or 7 hours. If your food burns, it was cooked too long. You must know if your crock pot cooks hotter.
Make your life easier with a Slow Cooker / Crock-pot . A valuable asset to any kitchen, not only in the throw it all in and leave to cook factor but also in the fact that you can use cheaper cuts of meats for delicious stews and soups.
By the time you are ready for your meal no messing about and extradirty preparation dishes to wash, just serve up.
There is no limit to what you can cook from Appetisers, Soups through Mains and Sweets. You can even cook over night if you prefer if the weather is warm.
PORK and BEAN SOUP
1 1/2 cups dried lentils and beans
700gm/ 1.5 pounds meaty ham bone or smoked hock
1 chopped onion
1 can diced tomatoes including juice
1 pkt vegetable soup mix.
Place beans and lentils into a bowl cover to ( 2 inches) above beans and leave overnight to soften, then drain and rinse.
Place into your cooker and add ham bone or hock and the onion and cover with 9 cups water, cook on high 4-5 hours until beans are tender
Remove hock and remove skin and bones when cool enough to handle,chop meat and place back in cooker
Add tomatoes ,soup mix, ( S&P}, if desired,stir and cook on High for about an hour until veg is tender.
Makes approx 3 litres /13 1/2 cups
Serve with chunky bread,rolls or toast
Copied from about dot com
Sweet and Spicy Crock pot Chicken
This simple recipe combines sweet and sour sauce, barbecue sauce, and chicken in a five ingredient recipe with a fabulous flavour. The chicken becomes meltingly tender when cooked this way. You can add any other vegetable to this recipe; I added a chopped green bell pepper the last time I made it. Sliced carrots, zucchini, or any Asian vegetable would be delicious too.
Ingredients:
2 lbs/ 1kg approx,. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced/ or minced garlic
1 onion, chopped
1 cup purchased sweet and sour sauce
3/4 cup purchased barbecue sauce
1-2 Tbsp. cornstarch / cornflour, if needed
2 Tbsp. water, if needed
Combine all ingredients in 4-5 quart / 4-5 Litre slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours until chicken is thoroughly cooked. If you'd like a thicker sauce,
mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl and add to the liquid; cover and cook 10-15 minutes until thickened. Serve over hot cooked rice or couscous.
Note: Remember, if you have a newer crock pot that cooks hotter, check the chicken at 6 or 7 hours. If your food burns, it was cooked too long. You must know if your crock pot cooks hotter.
Cooking a whole Chicken
1 Chicken or 2 very small
1 Onion
1 Carrot
1 potato
Always use a defrosted chicken and pat dry with paper towel before placing in the cooker.
If desired place above vegetables in the base of cooker first but you do not have to use them at all.
Place Chicken, Do not add water or stock as the chicken will make its own juice.
Cook 6-8 hours on high, slow cooker temperatures can vary so check at the 6 hour mark and continue if needed
Always make sure the chicken is cooked right through the middle.
Pea and Ham Soup
I always save my Ham bone from Christmas to make my first pot of Pea and Ham soup
I don't check it's weight so will take a stab at the amount you will need
You can purchase Ham bones but in honesty as the price gets more expensive the amount of meat left on the bones is minimal
However you will still get good flavour out of the bones.
Ham Hocks are more expensive but supply more meat.
Ingredients
500-700grams Ham bones,Hocks.
6 cups/ 11/2 litres water or chicken or vegetable stock
500grams dried split peas, now I like 1/2 yellow and 1/2 green but you can use all of either.
1 Large Onion chopped
peppercorns or pepper (if desired)
Note* here I never add salt until after if it needs it ,
You can add chopped carrot,celery or capsicum/pepper
Method,
Always rinse your split peas you never know where they have been LOL
Now you do not have to pre-soak, but I prefer to even if only for 2-3 hours or you can soak overnight.
Add all these ingredients to your crock pot/ slow cooker
Set on High 6-8 hours or Low approx 10 hours.
Now you can remove your bones and meat after about 4 hours if you wish it can be easier to separate the meat from the bones without all the peas stuck to it but that is your choice.
Pop the meat back into the Pot.
When this is cooked to your liking you may need to mash the peas a bit you could even vitamise.
Serve with crumpets ,bread or toast.
Now this leads me to the true Aussie dish
Pie Floater
Heat your Meat Pies of choice
Place each in deep bowl for each person
Pour over Pea soup to almost cover pie
Add a splosh of Tomato sauce /Ketchup
You don't know what your missing until you try this!
Corned Beef / Silverside
Last weekend I cooked a 1 Kilo ( 2.2LB ) piece of Corned Beef in my slow cooker very differently to the way I have in past.
Prior I had placed my meat on some veg and placed 1-2 cups of water or stock and the usual vinegar, sugar, spices etc.
I had not always had a lovely tender piece of meat at the end of the cooking process, some areas were a bit dry.
So this time I scoured the www for different ways and then adapted to what ingredients I had on hand.
I had a beautifully ,scrumptious piece of corned beef and this is what I did.
Using what ever size piece of corned meat you choose for your family that fits comfortably in your slow cooker / crock pot. Rinse under cold water.
Cover this with boiling water, yes boiling water! I would approximate maybe 6-7 cups
I always add vinegar but decided to use some Apple Cider Vinegar I had in my cupboard, I used 1cup but do not add this much ordinary vinegar
Just a splosh if you use ordinary,
I added a large onion, roughly cut into wedges
A Tablespoon Sugar
Cracked black pepper ( optional )
Do not add salt.
Cook on High maybe 6-7 hours test for doneness with a fork if you feel it is not tender enough cook longer.
I then left mine on Low until I was ready to serve.
That”s it.
You can add all sorts of things to this but do not go out and specifically buy it, cloves,bay leaf,peppercorns,potatoes,carrots.
If you have None of the ingredients fine just cook it in the water.
Cheers
Home made Chicken Schnitzel
Damper is a traditional Australian bread prepared by Swagmen & Drovers in the Australian Bush.Traditionally baked in the coals of a campfire.Originally made with flour and water. Damper is an iconic Australian dish. It can also be made while camping and at home in your oven. I was given the opportunity to bake Damper in coals while cooking on a Station for the Stockmen and at that time cooked my first stew in a camp oven under beautiful bright stars on a clear dark Australian night.