When people imagine gourmet chefs, they think of pans, knives, stoves, and a lot of fire. Not too many of them imagine a crock pot. You might think that the crock pot is a joke of a cooking tool, that when compared to the microwave, the oven, or the stove, that it just doesn’t stack up. But this is just not so! Let me show you a few things that you can cook better with a crock pot.
Making Chili
Chili is the perfect dish to cook when you’re camping or when the weather is so cold that you’re wondering just when it’s going to end. It’s easy to make, too. All you need is some ground beef. Throw it in the bottom of the pan and cook it up, leaving the juice for added flavor when you add the beans and the other ingredients. Just stir the ingredients together and let them simmer for a while, and you’ve got a tasty pot of chili big enough for the whole family.
Cooking Shredded Pork
There are so many things you can do with a few pounds of shredded pork. You can make tamales, you can make sloppy joes, or you can make yourself the messiest, most awesome sandwich by stuffing it between two fat hamburger buns.
But the way you get yourself some pork that’s tender enough to shred at the slightest touch is by using a crock pot. Buy yourself a big piece of pork and let it soak in the crock pot for most of the day, and by the time you’re ready to complete your dish, your pork will fall apart at the slightest poke of a knife. It’s easy.
Spaghetti and Pasta
Although it’s recommended that you boil the actual pasta in a pot, crock pots are still an excellent way to prepare the sauce. When your pasta is finished boiling, drain it and set it aside, and then turn to the crock pot with the ingredients for your sauce.
The first thing you need to do is cook the ground beef in the bottom of the crock pot, just like you did to make the chili. Next add some tomato sauce and whatever other ingredients or seasonings you like to add to your pasta sauce. While the meat is cooking with the sauce you should boil your pasta, and then once that’s done, you can add it to the mix by draining it and dumping it right into the crock pot. Let the pasta mix with the sauce and pretty soon you’ll have yourself a meal.
Cooking Chorizo
Another easy meal to prepare with the crock pot! Just get some chorizo and mix it in the pot with some eggs, and cook it like you would cook a pack of ground beef, stirring slowly until everything is cooked through. Once it’s done sprinkle some shredded cheddar on the top and let it melt by replacing the lid. When it’s finished, you can scoop some out and eat it with flour tortillas. It’s delicious!
I know the crock pot can take up a lot of space, and maybe it has been lying around gathering dust in your apartment for some time now. But don’t relegate it to the back of the cupboard or throw it away without at least giving it a chance to prove itself! Try a few of the suggestions that I mentioned, and you might be surprised. You might decide that you’re a crock pot chef after all.
Many shoppers choose a Rival programmable crock pot because it’s a popular brand, but other brands like Sunbeam, All Clad, and Proctor-Silex all make quality products, too. Click over to crockpotsdepot.com to get an idea of what’s out there.