Table Of Content

THE NEW Slow Cooker COMFORT CLASSICS REINVENTED AUTHOR BRIGIT BINNS PHOTOGRAPHER KATE SEARS 4 K O O C W O L S W E N E H T CONTENTS 5 T H E N E 6 The New Slow Cook W S L O W 19 Beef C O O K 51 Pork & Lamb 87 Poultry 123 Seafood 143 Vegetables 185 Legumes & Grains 214 Basic Recipes 217 Basic Techniques 218 Index The New Slow Cook Slow cookers today remain as popular as they were at their debut some forty years ago, a testament to their versatility, their ease of use, and to the comforting dishes that have impressed home cooks for generations. But today’s cooks also want healthy ingredients, fresh flavors, and crunchy textures to be a part of their slow-cooked meals. When they first appeared in the 1970s, slow cookers and garnishes, salads, or other fresh components to were widely promoted as time-savers. The earliest heighten the flavor and appeal of everything you serve. models allowed home cooks to come home after a You will also find tips on seasoning for maximum effect, full day’s work and serve a delicious homemade meal on how to layer ingredients for even cooking, on why that tasted as if they had spent hours stirring a pot browning some ingredients before they go in the cooker on the stove top. Today, the latest generation of slow contributes more complex flavors, and on how to choose cookers offers that same appealing convenience, plus the best slow cooker for your household. new options that expand their versatility beyond what Many of the recipes that follow are innovative updates was possible in those early days. of classic slow-cooker dishes, such as a meltingly tender Decades ago, cooks typically tossed a few ingredients beef stew garnished with crisp frisée dressed in a bacon- into a slow cooker, switched it on, and were content shallot vinaigrette. Others are brand new, such as a with whatever emerged when the selected time had Mediterranean-inspired honey-braised pork loin dressed elapsed. And indeed, without fail, slow cookers still up with succulent fresh figs, spicy arugula, and crunchy produce fork-tender meat just as they did in the past. pistachios. Slow cooking recipes often skip fish dishes, But they can also turn out uniformly soft textures, watery but here salmon is simmered with memorable results: flavors, and dull colors, qualities perhaps overlooked the fish, perfumed with herbs, becomes tender and in the past in favor of the slow cooker’s convenience. succulent. Vegetables, too, are often ignored, but not Today’s cooks—and diners—want more. in these pages: French ratatouille cooks gently in the steady heat of the slow cooker and emerges with the In the following pages, you will discover how to ensure colors of its summer vegetables still bright and appealing. your slow-cooked dishes have bright, fresh flavors, colors, and textures. Not only will you understand the All of the recipes in this book deliver the fork-tender importance of selecting the best meats, fish, beans, texture and kitchen ease that were hallmarks of recipes grains, and vegetables for the slow cooker, but you will for early slow cookers. But they are also deliciously also learn how to prepare those ingredients to draw out contemporary, rich in the robust flavors, crunchy the most flavor, as well as how to use aromatics, herbs, textures, and bright colors of the modern table. The Benefits of Slow Cooking 9 Nowadays, home cooks routinely struggle to balance their busy lives with the need to put nutritious, tasty meals on the table. Many of them know that the slow cooker is a time-saver, t h e but they may not know that it is also remarkably versatile and very budget friendly. n e w s l o w c o Slow cooking has a long history, stretching from the they achieve with a slow cooker are often superior o k fire pits of prehistoric man to the cocottes of twenty- to what they can accomplish with conventional oven first-century French chefs. This cooking technique or stove top methods. For example, when poultry exposes food—often tougher cuts of meat—to low and meats are braised at the low temperature that temperatures for long periods of time, with moisture is possible in a slow cooker, the natural collagen in playing a critical role, usually through the presence their proteins breaks down slowly, resulting in foods of stock, wine, or other flavorful liquids. that are particularly tender and juicy. The term slow is relative, depending on the main And because the temperature of a slow cooker ingredient. For example, for a lamb shank it can remains steady, scorching is not a threat and the mean a full day of simmering. For fish fillets or green integrity of the ingredients is maintained: the foods vegetables, it may be no more than an hour or two of keep their shape, the juices are preserved, and the cooking. The uniform, gentle, moist heat that defines flavors of the ingredients are pure. The slow cooker slow cooking can be achieved in a heavy lidded pan— is also far more versatile than some cooks realize. In typically a Dutch oven—on the stove top or in the oven. addition to the familiar stews and other braises, it is But only an electric slow cooker can consistently and also ideal for preparing everything from bouillabaisse safely hold food at 200°F (95°C) over many hours, to polenta to risotto. rendering meat, poultry, vegetables, dried beans, Finally, slow cooking is economical cooking. It is and grains exquisitely tender and succulent. It offers perfect for chuck, round, shoulder, shank, ribs, and big rewards for the busy home cook, who can prepare similar tough cuts whose connective tissue requires dinner quickly and easily early in the day, leave it to low, moist heat for the best flavor and texture. All of cook unattended while he or she is away, and then them cost a fraction of what their luxury cousins, steaks, serve it hours later for dinner. Plus, many recipes tenderloins, and chops, fetch at the butcher shop or for the slow cooker yield satisfying one-pot meals, supermarket, and they are often just as satisfying. removing the need to prepare two or more side Add color, texture, and flavor with a fresh salsa or dishes to round out the menu. relish or a dollop of cool crème fraîche and a sprinkle But the slow cooker offers more than convenience. of fragrant basil or dill, and your penny-wise slow- Even cooks who look forward to—or have the time cooked supper will have everyone at the dinner to—spend hours in the kitchen agree that the results table asking for seconds.