Crock Pot Cooking Tips

MyDigitalpoint

MyDigitalpoint

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The following tips were published by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Atlanta and, from my standpoint are consideration that all of us have to keep in mind, check them out,

  • When cooking ground meats, it’s best to cook the meat in skillet first before cooking your meat in the crock pot.
  • If you’re attempting to delight with seafood, always put your seafood in the pot during the last hour of cooking. This will save the seafood from overcooking and having a rubbery texture.
  • When cooking large pieces of meat (roast, steak, tenderloin, etc.) you can brown the meat in a skillet prior to cooking it in the crockpot. By doing this you can add a little more color and help build more flavor into the meal.
  • If you want to spice things up and add tabasco or cayenne pepper be sure to keep that until the end of cooking period, after long periods of cooking they have a very bitter taste.
  • To avoid overcooking tender vegetables like tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchini among others save them for the last 45 minutes.
  • If your recipe calls for dairy products than save them for the final 30 minutes, unless it’s otherwise stated.
  • Liquids never actually boil in a crock pot, unless you’re making soup you should reduce the liquid by a 1/3 or ½ of what the recipe calls for.
  • In order for spices to be effective and bring out the most flavors in your meal, generally it’s best to stir in the last hour or else they will lose their flavor.
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Further reading on tips for making the best crock pot recipes can be found here,
http://www.chefs.edu/Student-Life/C...012/Tips-For-Making-The-Best-Crockpot-Recipes

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Thanks for sharing these tips. It is always beneficial to remember these tips. I always brown my stew meat on the stovetop before I place it in the crockpot.
 
Great tips and thanks for sharing. I've never cooked seafood in my crockpot but will remember to add it the last hour of cooking .
 
I didn't know you were supposed to reduce liquids for crockpot recipes - I just stopped trying those kinds of recipes because they failed. Maybe I will retry some of them again. Thanks for the tip! :)
 
The tip on adding seafood at the end is very useful indeed. I also use it to cook chickpeas to make hummus in large quantities for parties. Foods that take a long time to cook like beetroot are also ideal.
 
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