Want to improve batch cooking....

paddy's_mum

To do a 'pure' roast, I always use the oven.

Slow cookers are superb for pot roasts, casseroles, soups, stews etc.

Again, I really do recommend a good book on how to use a SC. As with most kinds of cookery, there are a few very basic rules which if followed, almost guarantee success.

joedenise

Agree with Paddy's Mum get a good book on how to use the SC - you can borrow one from the library to save the cost of buying one.

When I do a whole chicken in the slow cooker I just put it in the SC without any liquid; the chicken produces enough of it's own juices. Sometimes I put it on a bed of carrots & onions and then use those as the basis of a soup.

Denise

Kildare

Thanks! Will take myself out this weekend to look for books & pans!

Linda32

If you have a big Sainsburys near you. They do really good big pans.

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/shop/gb/groceries/home/all-cookware-44#langId=44&storeId=10151&catalogId=10241&categoryId=281854&parent_category_rn=281806&top_category=281806&pageSize=30&orderBy=FAVOURITES_FIRST&searchTerm=&beginIndex=0&facet=

Hope the link works. I've got one of the pans on the left.

Meekie

Hi
Thanks I've been enjoying this thread and the ideas.

I have a few meals which I batch cook every two months or so but I make around 16-20 portions at a time, enough for 8-10 meals for me and OH. This is in a huge saucepan which I got ten years ago in ikea for about £20.

The meals all go in the freezer ideally in plastic take away tubs- using the same size tubs for everything makes more efficient use of the space.

My big batch cooked meals are beef chilli/ bolognaise, bean chilli and lentil ragu (Good food recipe, Google it and use like pesto) . My beef chilli and bean chilli are both really bulked up with veg so I'd reckon they are about 50:50 veg to meat and I think it makes them tastier. I generally add whatever veg I have in, but would always have carrot and onion. If making a really big pot, it saves a lot of time buying frozen onion and sticking the whole bag in. I'd also consider frozen peppers, peas or sweetcorn. I think mushrooms, celery, lentils and a handful of oats can also be a good addition and really help bulk it out.

When I actually come to plan the meals, I will add them to the meal plan in various ways, for example, the beef can be used as bolognaise sauce with pasta, chilli with rice, in wraps as fajitas or enchiladas and in tacos. I haven't ever done a keema, as others suggested but will give it a go! This system creates plenty of variety while saving a lot of time and money.

Using a saucepan allows me to make more than I could fit in my slow cooker. I think the sc is brilliant for beef stews, pork goulash and for cooking chicken thighs and drumsticks. It cooks gammon quite well too but I've had mixed results with a whole chicken. I find the chicken breast becomes overdry in my machine so I now just roast the whole chicken to get the nice breast meat. Typically I would do this on Sunday, make stock into soup on Monday and have leftovers in fajitas or added to pasta on Tuesday or Wednesday. I've also been known to remove thighs and drumsticks before roasting and I'll use them another day in a slow cooker recipe.

Current sc favorite is Spanish chicken- thighs or drumsticks, olives, chorizo, tinned tomatoes, sprinkle of herbs, splash of red wine. Another lovely sc meal is a lamb stew but as lamb is so expensive this had become a treat for us rather than a batch cooking staple. Put cubes of stewing lamb into the sc with some flour, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ground cloves, prunes or dried apricot and cover with stock (I use veg stock) and cook for 6-8 hours. Serve sprinkled with fresh coriander, toasted almond slices and Couscous or rice.

To go back to batch cooking, I never really freeze big meals like lasagne as they seem to take forever to heat up, even if thoroughly defrosted and they take up a lot of room in the freezer. The little plastic tubs can also be stuck in the microwave. My batch cooked meals can all be microwaved from frozen if I forget to leave them out. This is also brilliant if you have a few more mouths to feed at short notice.

Do others have favorite sc recipes they could share?

MallyGirl

I do variations on both of your SC recipes. I also do lamb massaman curry if I manage to find a YS leg of lamb. It is a much healthier version as you only need 1 can of coconut milk in a SC - and if you leave to cool the fat sets on top and can be removed which makes it healthier again.

suki1964

This is my batch cook pan

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/shop/gb/groceries/christmas-christmas-day-food-christmas-kitchenware-all-kitchenware-and-appliances/sainsburys-col-3l-ciron-shallow-casserole-dish-cream

If you look in store they often have no longer wanted colours reduced, mine was £15 and I use it at least five days a week. Even stick a roast in it

I also have a large stock pot from IKEA that takes a large gammon and I make soups in it

Meekie

Ooh Mallygirl, I've been looking for a good lamb curry recipe- could you send more details?

maman

Meekie wrote: »

Hi
Thanks I've been enjoying this thread and the ideas.

The meals all go in the freezer ideally in plastic take away tubs- using the same size tubs for everything makes more efficient use of the space.

I'd reckon they are about 50:50 veg to meat and I think it makes them tastier. I generally add whatever veg I have in, but would always have carrot and onion. If making a really big pot, it saves a lot of time buying frozen onion and sticking the whole bag in. I'd also consider frozen peppers, peas or sweetcorn. I think mushrooms, celery, lentils and a handful of oats can also be a good addition and really help bulk it out.

To go back to batch cooking, I never really freeze big meals like lasagne as they seem to take forever to heat up, even if thoroughly defrosted and they take up a lot of room in the freezer. The little plastic tubs can also be stuck in the microwave. My batch cooked meals can all be microwaved from frozen if I forget to leave them out. This is also brilliant if you have a few more mouths to feed at short notice.

Good post meekie.Thank you.:)


I've found that (once frozen) the take away tubs stack neatly on their sides and fit my freezer drawers perfectly.


I don't think I'd want to go back to Bolognese, chilli or curry just made with meat and onions. I really like the taste of the sauces made with loads of veg and it's much healthier and more mse than all meat.


I buy frozen mushrooms for casseroles and sauces. If you have a Farmfoods near you bags of many frozen veg are 4 for £3. Quality is good and price per kg reasonable.


I rarely freeze a complete meal either. I think it's more versatile just freezing the sauce part then I can make it up as I want. On this week's plan is cottage pie using a pack of savoury mince another week we might just have mince and tatties. I do the same with Bolognese either with spaghetti or a lasagne or a stuffed marrow.


I always put, at least one, HM ready meal on the meal plan then if we go out unexpectedly that can stay in the freezer and all the fresh stuff gets used. Only this week we had people who came for coffee and were still here at lunchtime so I grabbed 2 packs of Bolognese from the freezer and it was defrosted and ready while the pasta cooked.

Nicki

Have you looked at any of the once a month meals websites. As the name suggests these give instructions for how to make 30 days worth of meals in a single days cooking. You can personalise some of the sites for the number of people you are cooking for and individual likes and dislikes. The biggest problem is finding enough freezer containers for what you've made!