A crock pot is an essential kitchen item.
A crock pot, or slow cooker, reduces stress and allows budget-friendly cooking that the whole family will enjoy.
All I can say is, “That’s a crock!”
I have yet to find a magic recipe to make in the crock pot that my whole family will enjoy. Usually, crock pot recipes contain vegetables. I find that after cooking vegetables for 8+ hours, they come out mushy and and an odd brown color.
Mmmm?
I’m also not sure how a crock pot is budget friendly. Usually you have to buy a side of beef to put in that thing.
Meanwhile, I have yet to find a crock pot recipe that reduces stress. Just this morning I was dressed and ready for work and found myself zesting an orange for a new crock pot recipe that hopefully someone, anyone in my family would like. As I found my whisk and combined the zest, salt, pepper and brown sugar, I realized I was officially running late for work. I also realized that my sink was now full of a dirty cutting board, zester, knife, and bowls.
Reduces stress? No. Crock pot cooking for me simply transfers the stress to the morning.
My new recipe also called for onion and garlic. After chopping those lovelies, I found my eyes watering. I wiped my runny eyes and THEN I remembered that I was wearing makeup. Great. Now I had raccoon eyes.
So let’s summarize what crock pot cooking looks like in my house:
- me chopping a side of beef at 7 am
- me smearing my makeup after I chopped the onions and garlic
- me running late for work after all this chopping and smearing I did at 7 am
- a kitchen full of dirty dishes
And don’t forget to throw in my children and husband hovering in the background going, “Ewww! What’s that? I hope that’s not for dinner!”
Do you like your crock pot?
Image courtesy of John Kasawa / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
I’m fortunate to have a family that isn’t too picky. Therefore, I kind of like my crock pot, but I only use it Sundays (and even then, not very often). Mornings around my house are crazy enough with us ALWAYS running late, I wouldn’t even get an onion on the cutting board, let alone chopped up before I was late for work.
I did recently make some yummy crock pot apple crisp, that was great because my house smelled yummy for a few days. Of course, washing the sucker out at the end was a nightmare with all of the sticky apple and sugar cooked onto it. So, yeah… crock pot love/ hate thing going on here.
Raina@mamacitaspinstheglobe recently posted…Close To Home
See, maybe the trick is I should use it on the weekends? I’ve just been wishing the crock pot magically has a yummy dinner waiting for me after work!
Don’t do it on the weekends-then your next post will be about how it drove you insane because you had to smell it cooking all day! I do it the night before, stick it in the frig and then put the crock in the pot before I leave for work in the morning. Also, don’t forget the crock pot liners or you’ll be scraping 10-hour cooked on gunk out of the inside.
Rabia @ TheLiebers recently posted…Calming Caddy
Sometimes I’ve chopped thigns the night before, but I never thought to go ahead and put everything already in the crock the night before. Thanks for the tip!
I have a recipe for your crockpot. Does your family like bbq ribs? If they do, buy an appropriate amount of country-style cut beef. You can find it in Meijer or Kroger. Thaw it. Put some Sweet Baby Ray’s Original BBQ sauce on the bottom of the crockpot. Layer the beef and sauce into the crockpot. Cook for 6 or 8 hours or whatever your desired time is. The result is a delicious equivalent to BBQ ribs that is so simple!
You can add onion too but I think the sauce is enough. Also, you will need a larger container of the sauce. My family LOVES it! I usually do a side of fries or corn or something they will eat. 🙂
Ashley recently posted…Sweet Beatrice
Sounds good! Ladies, you are making my heart sing. Obviously there are other people out there not making gourmet recipes in the crock pot. 🙂 My go-to, and one I can’t whine about, is a package of bratwurst and a bag of fresh sauerkraut mixed together, cook on low for 8 hours, and serve on hot dog buns. Works for us! It’s just pretty much the only crock pot recipe I had (until now–thanks!) that worked for us.
Sometimes I like my crock pot, but I do go with the super simple…boneless ribs+bbq sauce+6 hours on low=voila (oops, just looked up and noticed the above comment…ok, so it works with boneless too) Another easy one is boneless chicken breasts and a can of cream of chicken soup. I make my tomato sauce in it too. I do not make any “cook these three things and then add them” recipes.
Andrea recently posted…Our power hour
Oh, yes, I stay away from the “cook the ground beef” or “boil a pound of noodles first” type of recipes for sure. Why cook *twice*?! I like ribs and am going to try it per your suggestion and Ashley’s! Thanks for passing along simple and doable!!
Oh, I feel your pain. Crock Pots are so much more work for me. I am single mom with one kid, so cooking a Crock Pot full of food is a huge waste of my time, since it’s unlikely my picky 5-yr old is not going to be overjoyed at corned beef & cabbage or any other soupy mess for dinner. And I don’t cook much during the (busy) week – why on earth would I try to do it in the morning? I use my Crock Pot on the weekends, when I have a dish that I want to make *for me* and I make sure I prepare something kid-friendly for the kiddo.
I, too, usually end up preparing corn dogs or hot dogs for my kids because they won’t eat whatever crock pot concoction I’ve tried. Glad to know that’s normal for you, too!
A fav in my house, especially this time of year is Southwest Chicken Chili:
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can S&W low sodium black beans
1 can Green Giant mexicorn
3 FROZEN chicken breasts
Throw in soup, drained mexicorn, and rinsed black beans into crock pot and mix together. Set frozen (only use frozen) chicken breasts on top, cover and cook on low for approx 8 hours. Pull out chicken, chop and throw back in and mix it up. Serve with some diced red onion, a little sour cream and shredded cheese on top if you like.
This is one of the easiest crock pot recipes I’ve ever made, and also one that my family asks for over and over.
I like easy and with only a handful of ingredients! Plus, as a bonus, I can throw in the can of black beans that Will got while trick-or-treating this year. 🙂
I never got the hang of a crock pot. My potatoes never cooked through. And I agree, everything had to be kind of a stew mix of stuff. I’ve heard that desserts work the best…crumbles and pie type things. Looks like you got a couple good recipes here, though. Maybe you could chop/prepare all the stuff at night, then throw it in the next am?
mare recently posted…Election Day
I’ve done the chop the night before thing and it does usually work better for me. Of course, I’m just bitter that dinner doesn’t magically cook itself, crock pot or no crock pot. 🙂
Katy @ Experienced Bad Mom recently posted…My Crock Pot is a Crock Alright
Katy, I love your wit. I use my crock pot, but not for cooking. I use it to keep mashed potatoes or some other side dish warm during holiday meals or potlucks and that is it!
Linda Kinsman recently posted…Titanic-Pigeon Forge Thanksgiving Giveaway
Hahahhahha, this made me laugh, cause I hate using mine too and realluy use it when people come over to keep a soup or something warm that I didn’t even make in the flippin’ pot! I also hate how crock recipes ask for the most random ingedients, i.e. one sprig of fresh rosemary. Okay even though they’re sold in a bunch, this one sprig is all I’ll need to cook something for 8 hours?
Not Winning Mom of the Year recently posted…Crazy’s Here!
I LOVE my crockpot and I use it once a week. Now granted, some recipes are not so easy. But, I have one that is a staple to our diet. It takes 5 minutes to prepare, and even my picky eaters like it. No chopping, just dumping.
Try it!
Crock Pot Chicken Stroganoff
3-4 frozen chicken breasts
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 packet lipton onion soup mix (dry)
1 16 oz container sour cream
1 can mushrooms (drained)
1/2 cup of water
1 bag egg noodles
Throw the frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot. pour all the rest of the ingredients on top (except the noodles.)
Cook on low all day.
About 10 mins before you want to eat, cook the egg noodles.
Shred the chicken with a fork (it should just fall apart easily)
Serve stroganoff over noodles.
It is delicious! It can be a little salty – do NOT add salt, and if you can find a low sodium soup or soup mix, that can help.
I have shared this recipe with many people who love it. And like I said, five mins to prep… TOO easy!
Good luck!
Alexa recently posted…Book Review – Growing Up in Heaven
Thank you! I have been so touched by the comments with either easy recipes or no judgement that I can’t get a handle on my crock pot cooking. This recipe definitely looks up my alley and good, too!
I have one — We grew up calling it beef and noodles
1 Chuck roast (frozen or thawed)
2 cans of cream of mushroom soup
1 pck. of onion soup mix (like liptons)
dump it all in, let it cook on low for 8+ hours
shred with two forks (it will fall apart)
add a small container of sour cream
serve over egg noodles
The kids might say they don’t want to try this, but saying if they take 2-3 bites they get desert to get them to try it, they will usually finish it. I have picky eaters and they really love it, but had to try it first!
Good Luck! Try Chicken, taco seasoning and can of salsa(or tomatoes, peppers, onions roughly chopped) for tacos too!
Looks good! And easy–just right for me. Thanks, Stephanie!
My poor, dusty crock pot hardly ever gets used. You’ve inspired me to pull it out. Happy SITS day!
andrea recently posted…Bob Marley on Christmas – It’s Our Tradition
Sorry you haven’t had a good experience with the ol’ crock pot. I like to use mine, but certainly in some cases, it’s easier just to cook the meal “normally”. 🙂
Check out the Crockin’ Girls. They have some awesome recipes on there. Some are super-simple and others are more complicated.
Maybe for you, it would just be starting off with the “pour these 4 ingredients in and walk away for 4 hours” recipes.
Happy cooking! 🙂
Laura recently posted…Homemade Granola Bars
Also, try crockpot365.com for some great recipes. Not mine, just a place I have found some really yummy stuff.
Rabia @ TheLiebers recently posted…Calming Caddy
I’m saving this page, there’s some good ideas here. I usually just make stew in mine, but the ribs sound good.
Funny timing, I never used a crockpot before yesterday, and I just happen to have two, which I cooked two different dishes simultaneously. I make myself out to be an expert now. 😉 I wouldn’t want to start it in the early morning though. I did it on a Sunday and made a chicken broth in one and a lentil soup in the other. I don’t think anyone needs more stress in the morning.
Lyza @ Chic Shades of Green recently posted…The Hostess With The— Oh Scratch That, They’re Bankrupt.