To Crock

Crock Pots

The purpose of this weblog is, in part, to encourage cooking and all that that entails, particularly the intimate interaction with the food as it changes form. To learn to cook is to watch the food change color, to hear it sizzle in the pan or bubble thickly in the pot, to taste the difference between something fried, roasted, poached, or braised, to smell fresh, bright ingredients turn mellow over time.

And so it gives me pause to suggest a method of cooking that limits the development of skill and good sense in the kitchen. That said, it is only fair to provide easy alternatives for those for whom eating out is neither economical nor wholesome. The compromise is in the crock pot.

This electric slow cooker is easy enough for the fledgling cook to use and produces results fine enough to please a picky gourmand. It can be as simple as putting the ingredients in, turning it on, and coming back 4-8 hours later for a tender, savory one-pot meal.

The principle is simple: the low, even heat gently cooks food over several hours so that you can turn it on in the morning before class and come home to a succulent one-pot dinner. Ideal for anyone on a budget, the crock pot can turn a cheap, tough cut of meat into a meal you could eat with a spoon.

Melt a brick of Velveeta with a can of Rotel chilies and some browned hamburger meat and serve at parties with chips. Make homemade applesauce with 5 or 6 peeled sliced apples, a dusting of cinnamon, and a 1/2 cup of water. All of the following recipes can be adjusted to taste and require only the assembly of materials and the flick of a switch.

Pork Chops, Apples, and Onions
1/2 onion
4 pork chops
2-3 sliced apples
1 tsp salt and pepper
Assemble ingredients in the bottom of the pan, top with the lid, and cook on low for 6 hours. On a cold day, this is as good as home.

Texas Beef Brisket
3 lb cut of beef brisket
4 T Liquid Smoke (or Worcester Sauce)
celery powder
salt and pepper
1 onion diced
Season both sides of brisket with salt, pepper, celery powder and liquid smoke. Set in pan and top with onions. Put on lid and cook on low for 8 hours. This is my mother’s recipe, and it renders its own rich mahogany gravy. Serve with a loaded baked potato or as a sandwich with sliced onion, pickles and white bread.

Coq au Vin
4 pieces of chicken bone-in (dark and white meat)
3 slices bacon
1 tub of mushrooms
1/2 bottle dry red wine
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
Arrange chicken on floor of crock pot and lay all other ingredients on top. Cook lid-on for 4 hours on low or until tender. This version of the classic French dish might make Julia Child blanch, but it is remarkably simpler than her complicated recipe.

*Note:
-Farberware makes a good 6 quart slow cooker, but check out consumer reports and find out which model fits your budget and cooking needs.
-Keep the area around the crock pot clear and pull it away from the wall, making sure the outlet is secure and sound.
-Check with dorm room and apartment safety guidelines before leaving a crock pot unattended.
-Always put food in before turning the crock pot on—some pots crack when food is added to a pre-heated surface.