Slow Cooker overnight

pollyanna24

Wasn't sure what to put as the title of this thread...

I'm not cooking food overnight, but all the recipes I can find for beef goulash need the beef browned and the stock and tomatoes etc pre cooked for a bit before tipping the lot into the slow cooker.

I don't fancy doing this at the same time as rushing to get out the door in the morning, so was going to do the prep the night before and turn on in the morning ready for that evening. Will this not be a good idea?

bouicca21

Try it without browning - just chop stuff up and chuck it in. I doubt it makes a lot of difference, and a food scientist friend assured me it didn’t. The most important thing, I suspect, would be to make sure the stock is hot.

elsien

I prep the night before, stick it in the fridge (don't want meat out all night) then quickly plug it in on a timer switch before I head out to work. I don't like the idea of no off switch, in case I'm delayed, and also don't like soggy veg.

MrsFingersCrossed

I use my slow cooker all the time and quickly realised there's no need to brown or pre-cook anything. I literally just chuck it all in and it is always delicious. When I worked I would put all the ingredients in the pot and keep it in the fridge overnight. In the morning just put the pot back in the slow cooker and turn it on to slow and it would be ready when I got home. Always tender and delicious and a lovely homely smell to welcome me back.

Prinzessilein

Sealing your meat has two purposes..

One is aesthetic - it browns the meat, making it look tastier....in a goulash you will have plenty of gravy to cover any slightly pale meat!

The other is to seal in the juices, keep the meat moist....you are slowcooking your meat...it will stay nice and tender and juicy!

If you are making stock from 'scratch' then by all means prepare this the day before, and store it in the fridge.

No need for any fuss and bother...bung it all in, in the morning and enjoy your perfectly cooked dinner at night!

MovingForwards

I've never browned anything before sticking it in the slow cooker.

I sliced and diced the night before, put everything in tubs then threw the lot in the slow cooker before heading off to work the next day.

pollyanna24

Thanks everyone. The recipe I found was frying onions and peppers and adding tomatoes and everything before putting in the pot.

I have a fussy 8 year old, but we have a rule where we try something "new" each week and I don't want to scare her off, but I think I will give it a go just sticking everything in the pot in the morning.

sooty&sweep

Hi
I regularly preloaded my slow cooker the night before & put it in the fridge over night.

I add hot stock in the morning to get it going.

Personally I don't like onions cooked from raw in the slow cooker so I dice & microwave the onions first.

Jen

PipneyJane

sooty&sweep wrote: »

Hi
I regularly preloaded my slow cooker the night before & put it in the fridge over night.

I add hot stock in the morning to get it going.

Personally I don't like onions cooked from raw in the slow cooker so I dice & microwave the onions first.

Jen

Hi Jen. Please give more details about microwaving your onions. I’m intrigued.

To the original poster, as others have said, it’s perfectly ok to prep the night before and put the pot in the fridge. Just don’t add your liquid or switch the slow cooker on until you’ve put the pot back into it. (Being pottery, a cold pot will not appreciate contact with something hot, rather than a gentle warming.)

To whomever said they worried about stuff overcooking, a cool slow cooker should not boil dry ever. If yours does, then you have a problem with the seal between the lid and the pot. If that’s the case, then put a layer of foil between the pot and the lid and seal the edges. Also, use a bit more liquid than specified in the recipe, and start saving for a decent replacement.

This is one occasion when I’d recommend the brand leader, Crock Pot. I had a cheap slow cooker which we bought off the internet for £20. It was notorious in our house for boiling dry. The foil trick helped but, even then, wasn’t perfect. Eventually, I gave in and paid the 50-ish quid for a Crock Pot and, by comparison, it is wonderful. It has a great seal - the lid sits flat on the pot and forms a seal with the condensing steam. I have never boiled it dry. If I’m late and it has exceeded the programmed cooking time, it swaps to “warm”.

(For the record, I used my slow cooker every Monday last winter, when I was working 63 miles from home and had to eat, change and get out the door for choir practice within half an hour of getting home.)

- Pip

sooty&sweep

Hi Pip,

I simply peel & dice the onion & then put in a bowl & microwave on full power for 2 - 3 minutes depending on the amount of onion.

Recipes often say fry the onion first but I don't want the additional fat. I don't find frylight to be sufficient to stop them catching.

You don't get that lovely fried onion taste but if they're going in a casserole I don't think you can tell.

Jen

Lizbetty

PipneyJane wrote: »

Hi Jen. Please give more details about microwaving your onions. I’m intrigued.

To the original poster, as others have said, it’s perfectly ok to prep the night before and put the pot in the fridge. Just don’t add your liquid or switch the slow cooker on until you’ve put the pot back into it. (Being pottery, a cold pot will not appreciate contact with something hot, rather than a gentle warming.)

To whomever said they worried about stuff overcooking, a cool slow cooker should not boil dry ever. If yours does, then you have a problem with the seal between the lid and the pot. If that’s the case, then put a layer of foil between the pot and the lid and seal the edges. Also, use a bit more liquid than specified in the recipe, and start saving for a decent replacement.

This is one occasion when I’d recommend the brand leader, Crock Pot. I had a cheap slow cooker which we bought off the internet for £20. It was notorious in our house for boiling dry. The foil trick helped but, even then, wasn’t perfect. Eventually, I gave in and paid the 50-ish quid for a Crock Pot and, by comparison, it is wonderful. It has a great seal - the lid sits flat on the pot and forms a seal with the condensing steam. I have never boiled it dry. If I’m late and it has exceeded the programmed cooking time, it swaps to “warm”.

(For the record, I used my slow cooker every Monday last winter, when I was working 63 miles from home and had to eat, change and get out the door for choir practice within half an hour of getting home.)

- Pip

Thanks for this! My slow cooker is a Morphy Richards one and tends to spit hot water after it's been on a while, I wasn't sure if this was normal but it tends to cook REALLY quickly, things burn around the sides so I daren't leave it. I'll be trying the tin foil trick and opting for a Crock Pot next time I think :T

Lucy