Slow Cooker Aldi €18.99

unkel

Linky

This Sunday (15th)

This is the medium size version (3.5l), I bought the large one (6.5l) the last time around and it is working great. No excuses now not to make slow roast pulled pork :cool:

Slow cookers use very little energy, you'd earn back the price of the cooker easily in a year of using it regularly compared with using your electric oven

Simon_K

the best thing about the slow cookers is that you can turn them on in the morning and once you get back from work - voila! Dinner's ready

GoodBridge

Shortcut to slow cooker recipes: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056736930

vibe666

even better than that, i prep my veg the night before and leave it all pre-prepped in the fridge in the (removable) pot overnight and just drop the whole thing into the cooker in the morning on low before i go to work and it's all done by the time i get home.

d31b0y

How have I never found the cooking club before!

Looks like I am going to be buying a slow cooker this weekend. Most likely when the OH is in work so she can't give out to me for spending money (it's ok though, that pulled pork recipe will win her over)

irishproduce

Simon_K wrote: »

the best thing about the slow cookers is that you can turn them on in the morning and once you get back from work - voila! Dinner's ready

Is there no fire hazard?

Simon_K

It's electric, heats up to a certain temp and just stays at it.

gizmo555

Simon_K wrote: »

the best thing about the slow cookers is that you can turn them on in the morning and once you get back from work - voila! Dinner's ready

Or, turn them on at bedtime for the best porridge ever . . .

Oral Slang

vibe666 wrote: »

even better than that, i prep my veg the night before and leave it all pre-prepped in the fridge in the (removable) pot overnight and just drop the whole thing into the cooker in the morning on low before i go to work and it's all done by the time i get home.

Yeah, that's exactly what I do when I'm making a stew. I used to make it overnight & reheat when I got home, but this way means its piping hot when I get in. Need a larger size though as I make a stew for 2 days, so my potatoes don't fit in.

unkel

irishproduce wrote: »

Is there no fire hazard?

No, no fire hazard at all. The temperature never goes over 95C, so even if there is no fluids left in the pan, it will not get burned

One of the few electric appliances that you can safely leave on while leaving your house!

rubadub

Simon_K wrote: »

the best thing about the slow cookers is that you can turn them on in the morning and once you get back from work - voila! Dinner's ready

You can do it with some regular ovens too.

Even if you left a normal oven on full its unlikely to cause an actual fire, this came up in the cooking forum before. I have never seen or heard of a flame being produced in an oven under normal use (i.e. cooking normal food).

I have a deep fat fryer that I can use as a slow cooker, it goes right down to 60C

unkel wrote: »

One of the few electric appliances that you can safely leave on while leaving your house!

Most are pretty safe, most people will leave on clock radios, washing machines going, TVs, fridge etc. Michael McIntyre had a sketch taking the piss about it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VkNaAPHfyI

TPD

Simon_K wrote: »

the best thing about the slow cookers is that you can turn them on in the morning and once you get back from work - voila! Dinner's ready

I generally turn it on the night before, wake up to the tantalising smell, then return home to eat in the evening

unkel

rubadub wrote: »

I have a deep fat fryer that I can use as a slow cooker, it goes right down to 60C

Not really suitable for slow cooking. A deep fat fryer (like a conventional oven) switches on until it is a bit over the desired temperature, then switches off until it is below the desired temperature

A slow cookers is always on giving it one constant temperature

moc8827

thanks Unkel. Like the idea of a slow cooker and will have a look in Aldi on Sunday.

If anyone can't get to Aldi, there's one on Amazon below. Similar specs. Bit more expensive, but if you like buying from the comfort of your house!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Morphy-Richards-48710-Cooker-Stainless/dp/B0000C6XOJ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378900086&sr=8-1&keywords=slow+cooker

unkel

These come up cheaply in Argos regularly too. I remember a small one for as little as €13.99 (would suit a meal for two)

Realtine

Love Michael McIntyre

conzy

6.5 Litre one in Argos for €26.49

Picking it up this evening

moc8827

conzy wrote: »

6.5 Litre one in Argos for €26.49

Picking it up this evening

hmm interesting.
not sure i need that litreage, but only a few quid extra than the lidl one

would it take up much extra room in my kitchen i wonder

rubadub

unkel wrote: »

Not really suitable for slow cooking. A deep fat fryer (like a conventional oven) switches on until it is a bit over the desired temperature, then switches off until it is below the desired temperature

A slow cookers is always on giving it one constant temperature

Most friers do not go to a low enough temp. Most slow cookers are not always heating. Most of them will work on the same principle as the deep fryers, a heater and a thermostat turning them on/off. Your first link even says it has a thermostat. The difference is your linked one is 200W and so will seem to be be on a lot, as it takes longer to heat than a frier. Once up to temperature it will just need enough power to overcome heat loss. If its in summer it will turn off more, in a cold kitchen it will be on a lot. Some might have secondary elements attempting to match its heat loss.

The deep fryer I have is 900W so it heats up much quicker, and then turns off, so its more likely to be in the off state than on at 90C. This can lead to higher temp ranges than some slow cookers. I tested mine and its about a 8C swing, it depends how full it is, if it was only 200W I would expect th swing to be a bit less too. This is not that much, I doubt anybody would tell the difference in a blind tasting. You can also put things into glass jars and cook them in a water bath, this means they are less effected by rise/falls in heat, also makes it easier to get food out as slow cookers are designed for this..

Many people have old fryers they no longer use for health reasons, or as they are messy & smelly. But some could be used as slow cookers if they go low.

1daisy1

Saw a slow cooker today in Tesco (Sligo)- there own brand €4.95.

It was on a normal white sticker, sorry didn't look at what size.

Malena72

Is the 3.5l one in Aldi big enough for 3 people's dinner? Also would there be steam everywhere! Do you have to put extra liquid in with the stew for example to allow for evaporation? Also if the stew is cooking all day while I'm at work is it more expensive on electricity than if I made a stew in a saucepan and cooked on the electric cooker for an hour or more?

foggy_lad

No steam escapes the pot and the food cooks at a very very low temperature so uses very little power. Because the steam turns back to water when it hits the lid it then runs back down into the pot so you only have to put in a very small amount of water for things like stews. The one in aldi should be big enough for dinner for 4 at least.

Malena72

Well, thanks for your reply! wasn't expecting a prompt reply!! So the other question: the 3.5l is that ok size for 3 people? can I roast a medium size chicken in it?

Simon_K

I'd go for a 6.5l instead, it's not much more expensive (argos).

Malena72

Thanks Simon!

foggy_lad

Malena72 wrote: »

Well, thanks for your reply! wasn't expecting a prompt reply!! So the other question: the 3.5l is that ok size for 3 people? can I roast a medium size chicken in it?

I have never done a chicken in one but the aldi pot should be ok for a small-medium sized chicken. You can see the size yourself when buying as there is usually one opened in the shop and you will be able to judge for yourself. I've been told that chicken is very nice when done with all the veg.

Malena72

Again thanks Foggy Lad....I'll have a look anyway! Kinda getting excited now!! Haven't much space for cook ware, so if that size seems ok I will go for it!

unkel

rubadub wrote: »

Most slow cookers are not always heating. Most of them will work on the same principle as the deep fryers, a heater and a thermostat turning them on/off.

That's what I thought. Until I did a bit more research and found out that I was wrong

Slow cookers are always heating in practice. The power is so low that they never reach the temperature that the thermostat is set to switch it off (possibly around 100C)

To find out once and for all, I'm running this experiment. I've had a beef stew in my slow cooker cooking since 9AM this morning. On low. So for over 8 hours now. It's been using 148W constantly. Mine is the bigger 6.5l one. Temperature is about 80C. QED.

I'm getting hungry now

BTW, so this slow cooker on all day cost me about 1.2kWh, so about €0,20 in eletricity. About the same as a conventional oven on full blast for...


...25 minutes

Malena72

Enjoy your stew! You're making me hungry, I can almost smell it!!

I bought the Aldi one on Sunday, didn't use it yet as I hadn't time in the mornings!

Simon_K

Yeah, its ridiculous isnt it. Not only do you not constantly check on the food, it's cheap to use the cooker as well ! I'm finally buying (another) one this week (6.5l), as I had to leave the old one in my home country.

washiskin

Makes a savage shoulder of pork in BBQ sauce too which ends up as pulled pork in our house.

unkel

washiskin wrote: »

Makes a savage shoulder of pork in BBQ sauce too which ends up as pulled pork in our house.

Yup see the link in my original post

B0jangles

Got this a couple of days ago and have already made bbq pulled pork (using aldi's own frozen pork chops as an experiment, turned out great) and a big pot of chaos ga.

Love my slow cooker I do :-)

slave1

Lads, just to point out that Aldi have some sauce mixes also for 99c which is great value, for those of us with the larger 6.5L versions you'll most likely need two of the mixes, just threw on a chicken curry for this evening, yummy

katy67

Hi

Thinking of getting a slow cooker for my wife. At the moment she is using a gas (bottle) cooker to make stew, ham and cabbage etc which normally takes about 2hrs or more.
Which would be cheaper/economically to run?
Gas cooker 2/3 hrs
Slow cooker, high temp-4/5 hrs or low temp 8/10 hrs

And also, in slow cooker how much liquid should she used for above receipes
She has been talking about getting one for ages but is afraid cos of the cost of running it (she's always watching her electricty useage) and plus how much liquid. Her birthday is coming up soon

unkel

Hi Katy, the slow cooker is far more economical to run. Even the big 6.5l one on high, it only costs about €0.03 in electricity per hour!

About liquid - it doesn't matter much, just don't let it dry out!

The slow cooker is on sale again in Aldi now. €24.99 this time:

Linky

Vote 4 Pedro

I'll be getting the 6.5l version if someone can just confirm that this would be big enough for a family of 4,
Thanks for the alert, it seems a great idea now winter is around the corner.

moonshadow

6.5 l version is perfect for a family of 4 ,great yokes altogether.

zero19

Picked up that one today, looking forward to trying it out now.

katy67

unkel wrote: »

Hi Katy, the slow cooker is far more economical to run. Even the big 6.5l one on high, it only costs about €0.03 in electricity per hour!

About liquid - it doesn't matter much, just don't let it dry out!

The slow cooker is on sale again in Aldi now. €24.99 this time:

Linky

Thanks, must go to aldi tomorrow, hopefully they will be still there:)

Red Silurian

Can someone please explain how these things use less power than a conventional oven to get the same thing done? Sure they run on lower heat but for 5 times longer... Would the energy consumption not be the same, just spread out over longer periods of time?

unkel

Conventional oven - 3000w, it's on about half of the time, say roast takes 3 hours. Cost 3kw * 3h * .5 (half of the time) * €0.16 (cost of 1kwh of electricity) = €0.72

Slow cooker - 150W on low, always on, say roast takes 10 hours. Cost 0.15kw * 10h * 1 (all the time) * €0.16 (cost of 1kwh of electricity) = €0.24

QED

foggy_lad

Just remember to not take the lid off it at all. Some people like to check and stir the pot every so often but with a slow cooker you never lift the lid as it kills all yhe built up heat and steam.

Onthebus

Im going to buy one this week but Im wondering if there are any brands or features worth having?

Is it worth going for a bigger wattage?

Vote 4 Pedro

Just picked one up, I got one from Argos in the end and it looks great, can't wait to try it out...

Simon_K

I picked up one up in argos as well, great so far.

Vote 4 Pedro

Can someone either recommend me a good simple recipe or point me in the right direction to find one, something i can't mess up to easily,
I bought a 6.5l version (family of 4) and i want to try something nice to get this thing up and running so that everybody enjoys it first time,
something like a beef or chicken dish/casserole that will get it off to a good start as i bought it with a very doubtful family in tow.
Thanks in advance

Simon_K

There's a slowcooking section here on boards.ie


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055468379

bogman

Onthebus wrote: »

Im going to buy one this week but Im wondering if there are any brands or features worth having?

Is it worth going for a bigger wattage?

Breville in Argos would be my choice, larger models have higher wattage, mine's a 3.5l one and its perfect for 3 or 4, just prepared the first stew of the season
3 large onions halved
3 carrots & a parsnip sliced
6 potatoes
1lb diced lamb
Veg stock pot dissolved in the boiling water im adding to the mix

Switch on high for 30 mins and cook on slow for about 7 hours
Must add another carrot or two and the pearl barley, essential

unkel

I've a Halloween beef & pumpkin stew on since 10AM this morning

Onthebus

I drove to Argos having booked a slow cooker on their site and the first thing the guy asked was if I wanted to take out insurance costing 15 euro on the Breville 6.5L slow cooker which costs 35 euro!! This is before the box even arrived up from their stock room!

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/4237666/Trail/searchtext%3ESLOW+COOKER.htm

I heard several other staff members trying this on with other customers as I waited. One oriental customer was asking a staff member about a foot machine and said to her "So I dont have any guarantee if I dont buy this insurance?".
The staff member replid "No, you only have the manufacturers warranty",
"So no guarantee from Argos" asked the customer again
"No, only the manufacturers guarantee" replied the staff member
"Ok I'll buy the insurance" said the girl

I had to shout over and say "Thats wrong, Argos are obliged to guarantee what they sell and you can bring it back to them without buying any extra insurance if it fails"

I hate hearing professionals lie professionally especially when its to a foreign person with limited english!!

Grrr!

When my box arrived I asked to check the contents before I paid

The item was reduced from €58 to €35 and I was about to see why!

I was very disappointed with the build quality of the Breville, the stainless steel outside seemed light and flimsy and easily dented, the oval lid didnt fit the oval cooking dish that it was designed to fit??? perhaps it wasnt designed at all and merely being sold together? ;-)

In terms of a unit that heats there was no insulation on the outer shell of the unit to keep heat in around the bowl. I think it would be logical to have the outer shell made of something with heat insulating properties. The stainless steel shell seemed to be purely cosmetic for people who like shiny things in their kitchen. Im going to get my mother's slow cooker from the 1980s and check the design of it.

The actual bowl that you cook in on the Breville had flaws such as rough edges on the rim - it looked like it should have been thrown on the reject pile but instead got thru to argos!

Im going to get onto the consumer society about how Argos are pushing people into taking out their insurance and lying to them. And its not an excuse that they havent trained their staff!!!