Slow Cooker recipes

We're Cornwall's energy advice charity and here to help householders in Cornwall stay warm and healthy in their homes. Part of our work is helping people find ways to save energy and money and a great way to start saving energy is in the kitchen.

Using a slow cooker can save energy, time and money. With minimum effort, you can make filling, tasty and budget-friendly meals for you and your family.

We hope this recipe booklet helps you to make the most of your slow cooker. You may like to search online for new recipes!

We’re here to help. Just give us a call or drop us a line.

advice@cep.org.uk

www.cep.org.uk

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you put raw meat and raw vegetables in a slow cooker?

Yes, you can put raw meat in the slow cooker with the vegetables. The slow cooker will cook over a long period of time which helps the meat to go tender. We recommend cooking meat for around 6 to 9 hours on LOW. Remember to always check that the middle of the meat is hot and cooked before you eat.

Can a slow cooker be left unattended?

Yes, slow cookers are designed to be left unattended.

Can you put frozen meat in a slow cooker?

Yes, just add an extra 1-2 hours to the cooking time

Can you use frozen vegetables in the slow cooker? Yes you can!

Should the bottom and legs of the slow cooker get warm? Yes. Although plastic is an insulator, it will heat up somewhat but it will not melt.

How much energy can I save? Using a slow cooker can be very energy-efficient. For example, to cook a roast chicken in an electric oven will cost about £1 in electricity, compared with only 25p in a slow cooker.

Top Tips

You can use the cheapest cuts of meat to save money. Talk to your butcher about offers they have and what they would recommend for a slow cooker.

Don’t worry about buying expensive fresh spices, the cheaper dried spices work perfectly.

Add grated carrot, courgette or a can of lentils to make a dish go further. Courgette may make the dish more liquidy. If you add dried lentils they will absorb moisture, so add some stock or water with them.

You may wish to pre-cook your meat or onion first, but there's no need to if you don’t have the time.

Try and avoid milk and cream in the slow cooker as it will curdle after being left for a long time.

Freeze leftovers for a quick meal another day. Make sure you reheat the food thoroughly before eating.

You don't need to keep checking your meal in the slow cooker, as it will lose heat each time you take the lid off. You can give it a stir once or twice if you like.

Root vegetables can take longer to cook than meat and other vegetables, so put these near the heat source, at the bottom of the pot.

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Sweet & Sour Chicken

Page 20 Baked Fish

Page 22 Chocolate

Slow Cooked Whole Chicken

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Serves 4 - 6

Ingredients

1 whole chicken, washed (remove bag containing giblets from inside the chicken)

1 onion, peeled and quartered

2 carrots, cut in 5cm pieces

Salt and pepper to taste

1-2 tbsp gravy granules

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Baked Potatoes

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Serves 4 - 6

Ingredients

4-6 large baking potatoes

olive oil (optional)

salt and pepper (optional)

Can be served with grated cheese, baked beans, curry, chilli, tuna mayo, fish, or stew. You can even remove the skins and use the baked potato to make tasty and fluffy mashed potato.

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

1. 2.

Tomato

Pasta Sauce

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 red onion

2 garlic cloves, crushed

400g tin chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato purée

salt and pepper to taste

basil leaves (optional)

This is a great recipe for using up any spare vegetables in your fridge, such as:

2 peppers, chopped

1 aubergine, chopped

6 mushrooms, chopped

1 carrot, grated

¼ courgette, grated

Method

Chop the onion and vegetables (if using) into 1cm dice and put them in the slow cooker.

Add the garlic, the chopped tomatoes and s the tomato puree, salt and pepper.

Cover with the lid and c

If you have a blender, you can blend until smooth, otherwise, leave it as a chunky sauce. Chop the basil and add on top.

Serve with cooked pasta, top with grated cheese.

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

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INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Sausage Casserole Serves 4

Ingredients

2 red onions

1 sweet potato or 1 large white potato, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes

12 chipolatas or 8 pork or veggie sausages

400g tin chopped tomatoes

250ml stock made with a beef or vegetable stock cube

1 tsp dried thyme

¼ tsp black pepper

1-2 tbsp gravy granules

1 red pepper, sliced (optional)

1 stick celery, diced (optional)

6 mushrooms, sliced (optional)

1 tin baked beans (optional)

1 tbsp red pesto (optional)

Sausage Casserole

Method

Put the vegetables and sausages in the slow cooker. (You can brown the sausages first in a pan on the hob. This will give the sausages a nice texture but it's not essential.)

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

In a separate bowl or jug, mix the chopped tomatoes, red pesto (if using), baked beans (if using), stock, thyme, and ground black pepper and pour the mixture it over the sausages.

Cover with the lid and c LOW for 7 hours or on HIGH for 4 hours. You may wish to stir through some gravy granules at the end to thicken the sauce.

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INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Red Lentil Stew Serves 4

Ingredients

1 onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 carrot, diced

130g dried red lentils OR a 400g tin lentils

1 tin chickpeas

250ml vegetable stock made with a veg stock cube

400g tin chopped tomatoes

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp dried thyme

½ tsp cumin

Salt and pepper

200g small shaped pasta, such as macaroni

Fresh parsley (optional)

Red Lentil Stew

Method

Fry the onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons of the vegetable stock in a pan over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, until onion is translucent.

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

Put the cooked onion and garlic along with the carrot, lentils, chickpeas, vegetable stock, tomatoes, paprika, thyme, and cumin into the slow cooker, season with salt and pepper.

Cover with the lid and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours until the lentils are soft.

Stir in the dried pasta, cover with the lid and cook on LOW for another 30 minutes until cooked through. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.

Stir in fresh parsley and serve.

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INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Beef Bolognese Serves 4

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

12 ready-made fresh beef mince meatballs OR you can use 500g mince and shape them into balls for a cheaper alternative. Use grated cheese to bind them

400g tin chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato purée

1 tsp dried oregano or dried mixed herbs

1 dried bay leaf

salt and black pepper

¼ tsp dried chilli flakes (optional)

1 beef stock cube (optional)

Serve with spaghetti and grated parmesan or cheddar cheese.

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

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Sweet & Sour

Chicken

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 onion

2 carrots

2 red peppers

2 garlic cloves, crushed

500g chicken breasts or skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into chunks

1 Jar of Sweet & Sour sauce

60ml chicken stock made with a chicken stock cube

Rice to serve

Serve with rice.

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3.

Baked Fish

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 fillets white fish such as cod or haddock, or salmon

Seasoning ideas

Thin slices of lemon and dill

Garlic powder

Chilli powder

Curry powder

Garam Masala

Cajun seasoning blend

Pesto Butter

Baked Fish

Method

1.

Place a fish fillet on a piece of foil and season with seasoning(s) of your choice.

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

2.

Fold over the foil around the fish and fold up the edges. Make sure it is sealed so that the juices are kept inside.

3.

Place in the slow cooker - you can stack them.

4.

Cover with the lid and c

Serve with potatoes and vegetables.

INGREDIENTS STNEIDERGNI

Chocolate Brownies Serves 4

Ingredients

100g dark chocolate broken up into pieces

100g butter

100g white sugar

100g soft brown sugar

2 medium eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

25g cocoa powder

50g plain flour

Chocolate Brownies

Method

Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl (either in a microwave or over simmering water on a hob).

DIRECTIONS SNOITCERID

Line the base of your slow cooker pot with foil and then with parchment paper. Beat the sugars into the chocolate-butter mixture. Then beat in the eggs and vanilla extract. Fold in the cocoa powder and plain flour. If you wish, you can add marshmallows/walnuts/chocolate chips here.

Pour the batter into the slow cooker pot. Cover with the lid AND a piece of kitchen paper, held in place just under the lid. (The kitchen paper is needed to absorb any excess steam, and prevent the brownie from becoming soggy.)

Cook on LOW for 1½ hours. At this point, the batter should be cooked at the edges, but still quite squidgy in the middle, but not actually wet when pressed with a finger. Remove the kitchen paper and lid, and cook for another 30 minutes. Turn the slow cooker off and leave it as it is for an hour. Then take the slow cooker pot out of the base and leave to cool completely before cutting into squares and serving.

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