Delia Smith...tut tut tut!!

HOLsale

lellie wrote:

To be fair a slow cooker is no different to leaving a saucepan on a very low hob!

but a slowcooker is designed to be safely left on all day

i wouldn't leave my hob on all day unattended, even on low :eek:

thriftlady_2

I can't bear Delia either,but it was her recipe for bread in How to Cook that got me started with breadmaking,although I've found an identical recipe in Marguerite Patten's Postwar Kitchen.

Delia never encourages you to adapt or experiment with recipes.It's all 'this is what you do,and then,and then'.

Having said that,I'm afraid I agree with her about slow cookers!! I think they're good,but I could manage without mine.I don't go out to work though,I'm sure I would use it more if I did.

Heth_2

I really love Delia recipes. I don't really care that she doesn't encourage you to adapt them, I'm a good enough cook to adapt then myself if I need to or want to. We don't have a slow cooker, and if we are home late, which happens quite often with us both working full time and commuting, we just cook some pasta which is cheap, filling and healthy. If I want to do something slow I'll do it at the weekend in my lovely le creuset casserole either on the hob or in the oven depending if i'm going out.
I know some of her recipes are expensive to make so wouldn't really suit people who cook on a budget to survive, but for others cooking is a real pleasure and on a special occasion I would willingly spend alot on ingredients to make a special meal.

mummysaver

As a recent slow cooker convert, I now wouldn't be without it - the family think it's worth it for the fantastic beef stew alone! I can throw in some chopped onions, carrots, potatoes, beef and stock in the morning, then when everyone arrives home starving I can just microwave something green and thicken the gravy - fantastic!

If I cook stew in the oven I need to top up the liquid during the day, and I'm sure it uses more electricity.

On the Delia point, I have to say the a slow cooker isn't really a "necessity", but then I guess a couple of pans for the hob and oven and something to stir with, a sharp knife and a cloth for picking up hot pans are the only necessities for cooking really!

I do like Delia's recipes though - I know that she doesn't encourage variation, but I've never had anything turn out wrongly but following her recipes to the letter! So saying I don't use her books often, generally I rely on my ancient edition of the Good Housekeeping recipe book, passed on from a great aunt!

leonie_2

Heth wrote:

If I want to do something slow I'll do it at the weekend in my lovely le creuset casserole either on the hob or in the oven depending if i'm going out.

I have to agree, using the Le Creuset makes me smile.... lol i'll get my coat...

penrhyn

Le Creuset are not ordinary casseroles, they are mouth blown low carbon cast iron casseroles, which need to be slowly warmed,but not by ordinary warmth, gently coddle on a wood fuelled Aga, but not with ordinary wood, it should be the finest hardwood taken from non sustainable south american rain forests.

Taxi for Penrhyn.

thriftmonster

I find that the earlier Delia books are the best- the old Cookery Course is so much more useful than the How to Cook which IMO is all full of salsas and trendy/ expensive ingredients

FZwanab

My Gas oven has a slow cook way of using it on the dial for gas marks. I think it could be cheaper to run than a slow cooker as gas is cheaper than electricity to use, does any one think this could be right?.

Heth_2

dinkydee wrote:

My Gas oven has a slow cook way of using it on the dial for gas marks. I think it could be cheaper to run than a slow cooker as gas is cheaper than electricity to use, does any one think this could be right?.

We have only one gas appliance, the oven (electric storage heaters - I hate them) and have spent next to nothing on gas over the past year, so it seems pretty cheap to me. We use the hob every day and usually have the oven on to warm plates if not cooking in it (Probably a bit of a luxury but the dining room is so cold I don't want my food cold before I've finished eating it).

Curry_Queen

penrhyn wrote:

Le Creuset are not ordinary casseroles, they are mouth blown low carbon cast iron casseroles, which need to be slowly warmed,but not by ordinary warmth, gently coddle on a wood fuelled Aga, but not with ordinary wood, it should be the finest hardwood taken from non sustainable south american rain forests.

Taxi for Penrhyn.

You've been watching too many M&S ads :rotfl:

Made me giggle though