Lots of potatoes in slow cooker

denat

Just got a slow cooker in Tesco for E15.00 and have been researching recipes etc.. Haven't used it yet.

I love spuds and wonder how best to cook them with a stew in this device.

Would it be ok to just pile, say, a kilo of spuds (peeled and cut to an appropriate size) on top of the meat and other veg at the start of cooking and expect them to cook in the steam, or should they be covered in liquid?

Have searched US and British sites for an answer but they don't seem to eat spuds in the quantity we do!

The closest I got to an answer was someone who said potatoes would go brown if not covered while cooking but did not say if they cooked properly.

Thanks

Faith

I don't have a slow cooker, but from reading other threads on this forum, I believe potatoes are usually put in first, on the bottom.

Dizzyblonde

Faith wrote: »

I don't have a slow cooker, but from reading other threads on this forum, I believe potatoes are usually put in first, on the bottom.

Very true. For some reason vegetables take a lot longer that meat to cook in the slow cooker and need to be immersed in liquid. Meat can sit on top and cook perfectly.
I find that slicing potatoes to around 1.5 - 2cm thick works best, and I always put them on the bottom.

denat

Thank you for replies.

Yes, I've read that veg should be on bottom immersed and can certainly see how this works with onions, carrots etc.. I suspect that potatoes would end up in a total mush and while they'd be great for thickening the sauce, extra boiled/mashed spuds would be required.

There are 2 reasons I'd like to cook all the potatoes in the SC: 1. I'd like to have a completely one pot meal and 2. I'll be cooking for just two people and i want to ensure SC is 1/2 to 2/3 full as recommended.

Anyway, I hope to try during the week and will let you know how I get on.

Dizzyblonde

denat wrote: »

I suspect that potatoes would end up in a total mush

The weird thing is, they don't go to mush. I use Roosters which often go to mush if I boil rather than steam them, but in the slow cooker they don't break down.

CDfm

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

The weird thing is, they don't go to mush. I use Roosters which often go to mush if I boil rather than steam them, but in the slow cooker they don't break down.

Post a good stew recipe and Im buying a slow cooker.

Dizzyblonde

CDfm wrote: »

Post a good stew recipe and Im buying a slow cooker.

BEEF STEW


1lb of rib steak, cubed, or steak pieces

2 carrots, sliced or diced

2 medium onions, diced

2 sticks of celery, diced

You can also add turnip if you like

A heaped dessertspoon of flour

2 red Oxo cubes

A good pinch of mixed herbs or some fresh parsley and thyme

A tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce

Salt and black pepper

A squirt of tomato puree

A handful of barley

Hot Water


You can chuck it all in the slow cooker, toss in the flour and pour on the hot water and stir.

Or you can brown the meat then put it in the slow cooker. Fry the veg for a few minutes to soften it slightly, stir in the flour then sprinkle on the oxo cubes, pour on the water and stir. Put it in the slow cooker.Add seasoning, puree,Worcestershire sauce, herbs and barley etc. Cook for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. If you slice your potatoes and put them on the bottom, it's a one-pot dinner.

Argos have a 4.5 litre slow cooker half price at the moment for around €27

Dizzyblonde

Also:
MEATBALL CASSEROLE

I lb of lean steak mince
2 sliced carrots
2 sliced onions
Half a tin of tomatoes
Sliced potatoes
A dessertspoon of flour
Pinch of mixed herbs
Salt and black pepper
A beef Oxo cube mixed with a pint of hot water
Olive oil

Season the meat with salt and pepper and shape into meatballs. Roll them in flour, then brown them in the oil.
Remove them from the pan and add the carrots and onions. Fry gently until they start to soften. Stir in the flour, then add 3/4 of the stock and the tomatoes. If it's a bit thick, add the rest of the stock. Add some more salt and pepper and the herbs. Put it all in the slow cooker with the potatoes on the bottom. The meatballs will be on top but that's ok, I stirred them gently a couple of times while it was cooking.

I cooked it in the slow cooker on high for 4 hours, then turned it down to low for the last 2 hours because it was ready early, but 4 1/2 or 5 hours on high would do it. Or you could cook it in the oven for an hour and a half.

denat

Thanks for recipes Dizzyblonde. There seem to be 1000s available on web but many are American and seem to use ingredients that are either unavailable here or not to my taste.

As regards the Beef stew, if all ingredients are thrown into the SC and mixed together, rather than pre-prepared on hob, how much water would you advise to add?

Dizzyblonde

denat wrote: »

As regards the Beef stew, if all ingredients are thrown into the SC and mixed together, rather than pre-prepared on hob, how much water would you advise to add?

I don't measure, but I'd have a full kettle boiled and slightly cooled and I'd add enough to cover the ingredients. If you use a heaped dessertspoon of flour, stir in half a kettle of water and see how thick it is. You might need to add more water to thin the soup. It also depends on how thick you like your stew to be.

denat

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I don't measure, but I'd have a full kettle boiled and slightly cooled and I'd add enough to cover the ingredients. If you use a heaped dessertspoon of flour, stir in half a kettle of water and see how thick it is. You might need to add more water to thin the soup. It also depends on how thick you like your stew to be.

That makes sense - thanks very much.

I'd forgotten that slow cookers don't thicken stuff much during cooking so I suppose you end up with roughly the same consistency you start with.

I like to mash stew into potatoes on the plate but want stew fairly thick to start with.

Thanks again and won't bother you any more until I've actually tried this.

Seaneh

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

BEEF STEW


1lb of rib steak, cubed, or steak pieces

2 carrots, sliced or diced

2 medium onions, diced

2 sticks of celery, diced

You can also add turnip if you like

A heaped dessertspoon of flour

2 red Oxo cubes

A good pinch of mixed herbs or some fresh parsley and thyme

A tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce

Salt and black pepper

A squirt of tomato puree

A handful of barley

Hot Water


You can chuck it all in the slow cooker, toss in the flour and pour on the hot water and stir.

Or you can brown the meat then put it in the slow cooker. Fry the veg for a few minutes to soften it slightly, stir in the flour then sprinkle on the oxo cubes, pour on the water and stir. Put it in the slow cooker.Add seasoning, puree,Worcestershire sauce, herbs and barley etc. Cook for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. If you slice your potatoes and put them on the bottom, it's a one-pot dinner.

Argos have a 4.5 litre slow cooker half price at the moment for around €27

That's like the easiest recipe ever.

I'd roll the beef in the flour and brown it first but thats just me, would help the flur start to cook out and will give the finished dish a darker colour, but it really wouldn't change the taste much.