Your Slow Cooker Can Save You Big On Time And Money
Go to: Previous Article Next Article
Bringing home the proverbial bacon and having to fry it up as well, is never as easy as it sounds. The return trip from work is generally a tired one that most people make on sore feet and with weary shoulders. A slow cooker is a great way to put a phenomenal and healthy dinner on the table even when you are tuckered out from the daily bread-winning. Because everything is all set to get served up right when you return home, there is never a temptation or need to purchase fast food on the go. Great meals are simple, healthy and cost less than many dining out alternatives.
Most slow cooker recipes are easy. There is not a whole lot of measuring or planning required. In fact, with a formidable selection of seasoning and fresh vegetables on hand, you can make a meal out of just about anything.
When you purchase groceries is is always a good idea to keep recipe ideas for the slow cooker in mind. This mean purchasing meats that can be slow roasted such as thick pork chops, boneless country style ribs, pot roasts and even whole chickens. It always helps to have an assortment of onions, garlic, celery and even baby carrots and small potatoes on hand. For easy seasoning ideas you can throw different flavors of bullion and a couple boxes of onion soup mix into the cart as well. This is a great way to flavor your sauces, stews and the different stews that you intend to make.
Even on a busy morning it is possible to spare an extra twenty or so minutes in order to make a fabulous, inexpensive creation. Many well know slow cooker recipes can be put together in a matter of a few simple minutes. There are some that take more preparation, but even these require less effort than most home cooked meals. Most important of all, there is almost always minimal clean-up.
One recipe favorite requires that you season defrosted pork chops with salt or seasoned salt and cracked black pepper to taste. These can then be dusted with a light flour coating and dropped in a hot frying pan that has lightly been coated with oil. Once browned on each side they can be added to the slow cooker with one can of stewed tomatoes, several whole, peeled cloves of garlic, chopped onions and several roasted red potatoes. Because the recipe calls for pork, it is important to set the cooker on high to ensure thorough and even cooking. By the time that you return home from work, the meal should be done.
Many individuals are not aware that a slow cooker has the ability to roast an entire chicken to golden perfection. The chicken should be washed and then gently dried. The skin is then rubbed with unsalted butter or even olive oil. It should then get stuffed with a mixture of garlic, onion and celery. For a complete meal red or white roasting potatoes and baby carrots can be added as well. Use cracked black pepper and seasoned salt, rosemary and thyme to season the entire contents of the pot and then place the cooker on high. The chicken and vegetables will slow roast in natural juices and the butter or oil rub will ensure that the meat takes on a golden brown color.
You can place red meat or pork into the cooker with onion soup mix or beef or vegetable bullion along with a vast mix of vegetables. A wide variety of colorful bell peppers can be added for a more flavorful dish. What you find when you return home will be tender, well seasoned meat that is ready to go onto the serving platter. Browned ground beef can be combined with onions, spices and garlic as well as stewed dices tomatoes to create a light but hearty pasta sauce. If you add frozen tortellini, ravioli or other stuffed pasta to the cooker and let it simmer all day on low, dinner is done by five.
If you soon grow tired of potatoes these can be eliminated from most recipes. Pre-measure rice and water into the rice cooker and set this beside the slow cooker. When you return home, set the rice cooker from off to on, and your meal will be ready to enjoy in twenty minutes or less.
Article Source: Articlelogy.com
- Credit Cards A big selection of Cards in all flavors: Bad Credit Cards, Secured Cards, Prepaid Cards, Credit Cards for Canada, Low Interest Cards, etc -
Word Count: 743
Reduce Your Debts Without Bankruptcy. See How Much You Can Save. Free Debt Analysis
