Slow and savoury
One misconception about slow cookers is that they are time-savers, says Judith Finlayson, author of about a dozen slow cooker cookbooks, including The 163 Best Paleo Slow Cooker Recipes, released this month.
Another is that slow cookers are only good for what Finlayson calls “dump-and-stir” food — combinations of canned goods, soups and other things to create meals low in fresh ingredients and taste but high in sodium and other additives.
But slow cookers excel, she says, as “very effective time managers. They allow you to do the work you need to do anyway but at times that work best for your schedule. And they save you the time of attention while things are cooking.”
The advantages of slow cookers haven’t changed. Many of the ingredients can be prepared ahead and stored in the refrigerator until assembly with other ingredients. They are safe to leave unattended all day and supper is ready when you get home.
It is important to control the liquid in slow cooking, Finlayson says. Because it does not reduce but forms as steam on the lid and drops back in, you can start with a little less liquid. Another trick she uses is to fold a tea towel over the top of the cooker, under the lid. This will absorb a lot of the liquid.
Finlayson says dried thyme and oregano and whole-leaf, stemmed herbs such as fresh thyme and rosemary can be added at the beginning and release their flavours slowly. Finely chopped fresh herbs should not be added until the last 30 minutes because their flavour will disappear over six or eight hours of cooking.
She doesn’t add salt until the end because she doesn’t want it to draw the juices out of the meat, or ingredients such as peas, corn or greens. Peppers also get bitter if cooked a long time.
Finlayson has three slow cookers — small, medium and large — for various uses. She prefers those with a removable crock for ease of cleaning and a timer to send the machine into “warm” mode after a specified time.
Also ensure the pot heats up and cooks quickly enough to keep the food out of the “danger zone” in which bacteria can grow. For this reason, she says, it’s worth investing in a goodquality machine.