Question on slow cooker meals?!
I have a slow cooker and I have used it to make mince dishes such as bolognaise etc while I am at work and things like that generally work out fine but if I do say chicken in sauce the chicken turns out really dry and horrible even though theres lots of liquid in there!. I cook on 'low' and am generally out of the house for about 9 or 10 hours - I keep reading about people who come home to tasty meals when mine mostly just turn out dry - help! Is it my slow cooker - I've got one of those rival crock-pots with the removable dish which works on stove tops and in ovens - its made out of stoneware - do other slow cookers have ceramic dishes!?Www@FoodAQ@Com
Answers:
I have had a slow cooker for over 30 years!. They are designed to be used for things that need long cooking!. Chicken never needs long cooking and that is why it is going dry! Try putting your chicken casserole into your ordinary oven and set the timer or, as previous answer, buy a timer and use it with the slow cooker!.
I tend to use mine for casseroles using the really cheap cuts of meat that have to be cooked long and slow to be tender e!.g!. shin of beef!. Shoulder of pork also comes out very well as do things like steak and kidney pudding which benefit from the long slow steaming!. You will have to find a traditional butcher though as supermarkets rarely sell the cheap cuts! Lamb shanks cooked in the slow cooker arwe the best yet!
There are several good cheap recipe books for slow cookers which will give you ideas as well!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
I tend to use mine for casseroles using the really cheap cuts of meat that have to be cooked long and slow to be tender e!.g!. shin of beef!. Shoulder of pork also comes out very well as do things like steak and kidney pudding which benefit from the long slow steaming!. You will have to find a traditional butcher though as supermarkets rarely sell the cheap cuts! Lamb shanks cooked in the slow cooker arwe the best yet!
There are several good cheap recipe books for slow cookers which will give you ideas as well!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
try putting the slow cooker on a timer !.!.!.the chicken is being cooked for far too long,no wonder its drying out
you can get a timer that plugs into the wall socket and your slow cooker plugs into that!.!.chicken only needs an hour or 2 at the most
hope this helps!Www@FoodAQ@Com
you can get a timer that plugs into the wall socket and your slow cooker plugs into that!.!.chicken only needs an hour or 2 at the most
hope this helps!Www@FoodAQ@Com
Yes, I set my timer to switch on and off (chicken on slowest setting 2 hrs) just before I know I`m coming home!. My friend wraps hers in tinfoil, keeps its more moist I suppose, but cooks it for much longer!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
Have a look on the Old Style forum at http://www!.moneysavingexpert!.com for loads of advice and support for slow cooker users!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
ive got the same crock pot as you, dark brown!. chicken is always very nice, but NOT chicken breasts, they are dry in general and because the way the 'rival' cooks, it asks for the meat to go on toop of the veg, not underneath it, therefore it sits on top without liquid on it!. you dont hae to do what the reciepes tell you, i sometimes put the meat at the bottom!. try some legs and thighs, coat the skins with some marinade, put them in with just some onions and potatoes and put the chicken at the bottom, see how you get on!.
I cooked a whole chicken in it the other day, the leg meat was out of this world but i still didnt like the breast!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
I cooked a whole chicken in it the other day, the leg meat was out of this world but i still didnt like the breast!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
Mine is ceramic, but not stoneware!. I can't use it on the stove!. I can't image why your chicken comes out dry being cooked in liquid!. Have you tried a different chicken recipe!? Maybe it's the quality of chicken you buy!. I really don't have a clue!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
yea it happens when it sits in sauce happened all the time best thing to do is if you can don't add the sauce untill half way thru because it makes the sauce watery to be sitting there and its drying out the meat because its sitting in all that heated sauceWww@FoodAQ@Com
Chicken doesn't actually need that long to cook!. Thats why when you go for your christmas dinner it's usually quite dry!. It really only needs about 4hours on slow!.
The way I do it is to add a small amount of water to the bottom of the crockpot, maybe add a couple of garlic cloves , some herbs or a juice of a lemo (with the skin put in the cavity of the chicken) and cook on low around 6 hours!.
Oce it is cooked I leave the chicke to cool, take off all the meat and put the bones back into the crockpot with if I have it in a chopped carrot, celery and onion and cook on a low temp for 4 - 6 hours for lovely chicken stockWww@FoodAQ@Com
The way I do it is to add a small amount of water to the bottom of the crockpot, maybe add a couple of garlic cloves , some herbs or a juice of a lemo (with the skin put in the cavity of the chicken) and cook on low around 6 hours!.
Oce it is cooked I leave the chicke to cool, take off all the meat and put the bones back into the crockpot with if I have it in a chopped carrot, celery and onion and cook on a low temp for 4 - 6 hours for lovely chicken stockWww@FoodAQ@Com
I put my chicken breasts in frozen, and it turns out good every time!.Www@FoodAQ@Com