15 September 2012

Mr. Strange

Percy St., Charleston, S.C.
We still have some "fixer uppers" around Charleston. Enough to keep people dreaming. Nothing a new porch and complete renovation wouldn't fix.

I received a free magazine called Cuisine at Home in my mailbox yesterday and was tempted by a slow cooker pot roast recipe. I don't have a crock pot but I walked through the thrift shop this morning and spotted a perfectly good looking crock pot on the shelf and lugged it home. Then I had to walk by the grocery store and get all the ingredients.

I left it simmering all day while I was out and came back to the house smelling scrumptious. Yum. I've always been suspicious that meat wouldn't be as rich and browned in a slow cooker but it looks pretty good. Let me know about any crock pot successes I should try. Fall is coming and I may feel like cooking again. 



10 comments:

Catalyst said...

Not sure about successes but do NOT try to make a chocolate cake in one!

Kate said...

Fixer-upper? This one looks pretty hopeless unless someone more imaginative and creative and I can work on it. Looks like too much work for me.

Anonymous said...

If you try a pot roast, and you should, use a chuck roast. Be sure it has sufficient marbling. I don't put vegetables in the pot with the meat. They end up looking funny. Also, use one packet of Lipton onion soup mix. And only one cup of water. This meat turns out sooooo good.

Marcheline said...

I just got a slow cooker and am having SUCH fun with it! For soups, it's a no-brainer. Just add all the ingredients and your broth of choice, and let'er rip. For dishes where you want the meat to have a crisp/textured outside, just broil or pan-sear it before you put it in the crock pot.

One of my favorite things so far: Take a package of chicken thighs, and rub some oil and spices on the skin and stick them under the broiler, skin side up, until they're browned. Meanwhile, chop up some carrots, onions, and yellow and green squash, season them however you like, and put them in the bottom of the slow cooker. Once the chicken skin is brown and crispy, layer it on top of the veggies and turn on the slow cooker. In a few hours, serve it up with a glass of white wine.... deeeee-lish!

Charlestonjoan said...

I did use a chuck roast and added my veggies. I love veggies soaked in gravy so that worked for me. I was pleased and the house sure smelled good when I walked in after being out all day. I'll try the onion soup mix next time. Thanks much!

Charlestonjoan said...

The roast worked so I was looking at chicken recipes. Yours sounds good! Nice not to heat the whole house up too. I'm thinking a chicken curry recipe might be yummy. I never feel like cooking in the summer here but just slightly cooler and I am ready to go.

Charlestonjoan said...

Kate - sooner or later this will be fixed up. It is a historic house so they won't be able to take it down. I'll check back and it will be a sweet little single house.

Charlestonjoan said...

Hahah! No, I'll hold the cake for the oven :)

Pixel Peeper said...

This site is where I get a lot of my slow cooker recipes: http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

A few years ago, this lady made a New Year's resolution to use her crockpot every single day...and it sort of just snowballed from there.

My favorite recipe right now is this:
Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken
3 lb bag frozen chicken breasts
1 bottle Frank's Wings Buffalo Sauce
1 packet Ranch Dip Mix
1 Tbsp butter

Put frozen chicken, wing sauce, and ranch dip mix in crock pot.
Cook on low 6 - 7 hours.
Using two forks, shred the chicken breasts.
Add butter
Cook on low another hour.

This freezes well and is wonderful with some shredded cheese on rolls or in burrito shells. My son likes it so much, he asked for my crock pot when he moved away to college (he didn't get it...yet).

Happy cooking!

Charlestonjoan said...

Thanks Pixel! I will check it out. It's a good time to get cooking. Slowly.