Slow cooker how-to

My_Feet_Hurt

Hi,

Please could someone explain to me how to cook more than just a casserole-type meal in a slow cooker.
I have just read on a `how to save money` thread that people cook meatloaf and lasagne in them...
Meatloaf - do you cook the mince first? I add an egg to bind it, do you still do that? How do you shape it?
Lasagne - again do you cook the mince? Do you put raw (dried) pasta in it at the start, or is it that you cook the mince part and then pasta-layer it and finish in the oven, or is it really all in the slow cooker?
The same for spagetti bolognaise...is it all in at the start?
And jacket potatoes! Really?
My slow cooker is a Cookworks one, and is about 8 inches deep and about 6 inches wide.
Hope you can help, I do cook a lot but it`s nearly always in the fan over.

Thanks in advance,

M

Katexx

I always brown mince off first before putting it in the slow cooker - even if I use lean mince I still feel like too much fat comes off it and it goes a weird texture IMO. Everything else I just chuck straight in though.

Out of those things the only thing I've made in my slow cooker is bolognese and I just brown the mince (sometimes with some onions too), drain it and then chuck everything in together.

squeakysue

I would make the mince for lasagne in the slow cooker in bulk and freeze in portions for chilli/bolognese too.

I never brown meat first

Not sure how a meatloaf would work but maybe you could assemble the meatloaf then put in a loaf tin/silicone loaf mould and place that in the slow cooker?

squeakysue

I also cook whole joints of meat....ham/chicken/lamb/pork and use them for various meals, meat is so tender and comes away from the bone so easily there is no wastage

rowsew

I do steaming in mine - the Christmas puds come out lovely - make the pud, put in appropriately wrapped bowl, put hot water into heated SC (v. important that it is pre-heated), turn a small cup upside down, put bowl on top, leave at least 4 hours on high. Also SC pulled pork (piece of pork, mix equal amount of tom. sauce and brown sauce together, slap on pork, add to SC, cook 3-4 hrs, use 2 forks to pull pork apart - use for dinner, in rolls, wraps etc.) rice pudding, the ever useful rubber chicken, etc. Have a look at the slow cooker thread here:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2197233

Chris25

The slow cooker recipe index is here, have a look at that too http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=490232&postcount=9 there's a recipe for lasagne under the Miscellaneous section