Medium Rare Beef in Slow Cooker?!
I have a 1.1 kg cut of beef for the two of us. I will be using potatoes, carrots, garlic, veggie broth (that I made), celery and onions when making this. Served with a side of green beans and gravy!
My questions is... how do I make it not so dried out and over cooked? We want it a bit red in the middle, but every time I make this in a slow cooker, it smells delicious, but its always over cooked and dried out.
I also just got a digital thermometer, will this help me?
Answers:
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Essentially, you can't. A slow cooker is intended for braising tougher cuts of meat over many hours to make them tender. Given your results, I suspect you're using cuts intended for dry heat methods, like grilling or broiling, rather than braising or stewing. If you want to make a piece of meat that is rare or medium rare, then you need a high heat method that is going to cook the meat properly, and you'll never achieve that in a slow cooker. Roast the meat in the oven...the outside will caramelize and the drippings will make excellent gravy. If you can tell me what cut of beef you're using, that would help quite a bit.
One other note: if you are using a cut like 7 bone or chuck and getting those results in a slow cooker, then the odds are you're not leaving it in long enough. That seems contradictory, I'm sure, but it gets tougher before it gets meltingly tender.