My friend Susanna asked me to convince her to get a slow cooker. The photo is of a vintage crock pot. I actually own this model, inherited from my aunt. Some household items should always be vintage - cast iron pans, lamps, milk glass, and any furniture made of wood - but I was surprised to find that a 40-year-old crock pot holds its own against contemporary models. This old orange dinosaur cannot produce a bad meal. I also have a more modern stainless-steel version, with a dozen settings and fancy fixtures, but the two-temperature Rival is a proven workhorse. I’ve never made anything bad in it. The community at Crossfit South Brooklyn often holds pot lucks, and the winter editions typically produce a veritable Crock Pot Derby. I like the rowing machines lurking in the background, like small-appliance stalkers. On the other hand, slogging through slow cooker recipes online is something of a chore. There is so much garbage: ersatz pot roast made with a combination of condensed canned *and* dry soup mix, cocktail wieners with grape jelly and bottled barbecue sauce, and hundreds of gloppy crock pot dessert recipes. Don’t make any of those. Susanna, and any other of you who don’t own one: buy yourself a nice crock pot, even though you have a tiny kitchen and it will take up precious storage space.  Once you have it, run through the following recipes, a kind of Paleo Crock Pot 101. All these recipes use relatively inexpensive cuts of meat, which is exactly what belongs in a slow cooker. Moreover, the second and third days of eating crock pot recipes are, quite simply, revelatory. 1. Short ribs Short ribs are brilliant in the crock pot. If you have never made them, in fact if you don’t even know what they are - don’t worry. I didn’t either until about three years ago. I’d never even HEARD of them until then. I grew up on tunanoodacasserole and London broil, bitches. If you did too, don’t sweat it. Just go to the butcher, get some beef short ribs, and cook them in your crock pot. You will not regret it. 2. Brisket Another thing I’m not is Jewish. I never had brisket until I moved to New York in 1999 to cohabitate with my Jewish s.o. Unlike kugel, a food which does not, in my opinion, deserve a drachma of regard, brisket is both delicious and perfectly good for you. Since I didn’t grow up eating brisket in the American Jewish style, I’m not particularly attached to it as a preparation method. The link I provide is an excellent variation. An actual Jewish person wrote the recipe, if such things matter to you. 3. Beef Shanks in Red Wine I told you about this recipe in January. I made it myself and proclaim it one of the best slow cooker recipes I’ve ever made. 4. Lamb Shanks A no-brainer. A cheap cut that emerges absolutely delicious. I have to eat these in private. 5. Crock Pot Carnitas I’m repeating myself, but I like these.  6. Rob Israel’s award-winning Slow Cooker Pot Roast I missed the January 2012 CFSBK paleo pot luck because I was busy having a life-changing experience in my home town with a houseful of people I had been avoiding since 1987. I heard tell, however, that Rob’s pot roast took home a prize, and I wasn’t surprised; every good pot roast recipe I’ve made has come from him. Note from Rob: The key to this roast is the even blend of the wine, stock and tomato sauce. I’ve done braises that emphasize each one of these three components, but I discovered that the even mix is a beautiful, rich sauce… and the thyme and paprika are a perfect compliment.  Ingredients 3-4 pounds chuck roast, brisket or short ribs: all three taste great in this 1 cup chicken stock 1 cup red wine 1 cup tomato sauce- unflavored, plain tomato sauce 1 medium onion chopped  into medium chunks 3 large carrots chopped into medium chunks 6 medium sized celery stalks cut in half 1 TBSP Paprika  1 TBSP salt to taste (start with one and add more) plus kosher sprinkled on meat 1 TBSP white pepper (plus some sprinkled on meat when browning) 1 TBSP thyme 5-8 whole garlic cloves cut in half  Preparation Pour stock, tomato sauce and 1/2 of the wine  into crock pot. Set temp to high. Add salt, pepper, thyme and garlic.  Heat large skillet medium high, sprinkle some extra salt and pepper (not part the above measurements) on meat and sauté in skillet until all sides are browned.  Deglaze pan with left over wine and pour into crock pot.  Place meat in crock pot.  Place onions, carrots and celery in crock pot around the sides of the meat (in the broth not on top). You need enough liquid to cover the meat, so add equals parts stock, wine and tomato sauce if meat isn’t covered all the way up the sides. Cook on high for about 2-3 hours. You want to get the heat up and get it bubbling. Then turn down heat to low and cook for an additional 4-8 hours. If you need to leave it on all day and can’t change temperature just start it on low and leave it there. The high temp at the beginning just helps makes sure you will cook the meat thoroughly and the first two hours is just getting the liquid up to a cooking temp.  When meat is tender, it’s ready to eat. Cooking it longer is not a problem. Pull out celery stalks and disregard, they are for the ‘stock,’ not for eating. If you like eating celery (I don’t) you could alternatively chop the celery and leave it in for eating like the carrots and onions. I like serving this one over steamed spinach, kale or broccoli. Slow Cooker Recipe Wish List These are recipes I myself haven’t tried, but would like to. Perhaps you’ll beat me to it; if you do, drop me a line with your review! 1. Bigos - nostalgia for Poland, which is odd because I was a vegetarian when I lived there. 2. Everyday Paleo slow cooker recipes - chicken is dodgy in the crock, but Sarah generally knows what she’s talking about, so I’d make any of the recipes on her site. 3. Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore - yeah, I just ragged on crockpot chicken. Whatever, I’d make this. 4. OK one more: Slow cooker kimchi chicken

My friend Susanna asked me to convince her to get a slow cooker.

The photo is of a vintage crock pot. I actually own this model, inherited from my aunt. Some household items should always be vintage - cast iron pans, lamps, milk glass, and any furniture made of wood - but I was surprised to find that a 40-year-old crock pot holds its own against contemporary models. This old orange dinosaur cannot produce a bad meal. I also have a more modern stainless-steel version, with a dozen settings and fancy fixtures, but the two-temperature Rival is a proven workhorse. I’ve never made anything bad in it.

The community at Crossfit South Brooklyn often holds pot lucks, and the winter editions typically produce a veritable Crock Pot Derby.

crocks

I like the rowing machines lurking in the background, like small-appliance stalkers.

On the other hand, slogging through slow cooker recipes online is something of a chore. There is so much garbage: ersatz pot roast made with a combination of condensed canned *and* dry soup mix, cocktail wieners with grape jelly and bottled barbecue sauce, and hundreds of gloppy crock pot dessert recipes.

Don’t make any of those.

Susanna, and any other of you who don’t own one: buy yourself a nice crock pot, even though you have a tiny kitchen and it will take up precious storage space. 

Once you have it, run through the following recipes, a kind of Paleo Crock Pot 101. All these recipes use relatively inexpensive cuts of meat, which is exactly what belongs in a slow cooker. Moreover, the second and third days of eating crock pot recipes are, quite simply, revelatory.

1. Short ribs

Short ribs are brilliant in the crock pot. If you have never made them, in fact if you don’t even know what they are - don’t worry. I didn’t either until about three years ago. I’d never even HEARD of them until then. I grew up on tunanoodacasserole and London broil, bitches. If you did too, don’t sweat it. Just go to the butcher, get some beef short ribs, and cook them in your crock pot. You will not regret it.

2. Brisket

Another thing I’m not is Jewish. I never had brisket until I moved to New York in 1999 to cohabitate with my Jewish s.o. Unlike kugel, a food which does not, in my opinion, deserve a drachma of regard, brisket is both delicious and perfectly good for you.

Since I didn’t grow up eating brisket in the American Jewish style, I’m not particularly attached to it as a preparation method. The link I provide is an excellent variation. An actual Jewish person wrote the recipe, if such things matter to you.

3. Beef Shanks in Red Wine

I told you about this recipe in January. I made it myself and proclaim it one of the best slow cooker recipes I’ve ever made.

4. Lamb Shanks

A no-brainer. A cheap cut that emerges absolutely delicious. I have to eat these in private.

5. Crock Pot Carnitas

I’m repeating myself, but I like these. 

6. Rob Israel’s award-winning Slow Cooker Pot Roast

I missed the January 2012 CFSBK paleo pot luck because I was busy having a life-changing experience in my home town with a houseful of people I had been avoiding since 1987. I heard tell, however, that Rob’s pot roast took home a prize, and I wasn’t surprised; every good pot roast recipe I’ve made has come from him.

Note from Rob: The key to this roast is the even blend of the wine, stock and tomato sauce. I’ve done braises that emphasize each one of these three components, but I discovered that the even mix is a beautiful, rich sauce… and the thyme and paprika are a perfect compliment. 

Ingredients

3-4 pounds chuck roast, brisket or short ribs: all three taste great in this

1 cup chicken stock
1 cup red wine
1 cup tomato sauce- unflavored, plain tomato sauce
1 medium onion chopped  into medium chunks
3 large carrots chopped into medium chunks
6 medium sized celery stalks cut in half
1 TBSP Paprika 
1 TBSP salt to taste (start with one and add more) plus kosher sprinkled on meat
1 TBSP white pepper (plus some sprinkled on meat when browning)
1 TBSP thyme
5-8 whole garlic cloves cut in half 

Preparation

  • Pour stock, tomato sauce and 1/2 of the wine  into crock pot. Set temp to high. Add salt, pepper, thyme and garlic. 
  • Heat large skillet medium high, sprinkle some extra salt and pepper (not part the above measurements) on meat and sauté in skillet until all sides are browned. 
  • Deglaze pan with left over wine and pour into crock pot. 
  • Place meat in crock pot. 
  • Place onions, carrots and celery in crock pot around the sides of the meat (in the broth not on top). You need enough liquid to cover the meat, so add equals parts stock, wine and tomato sauce if meat isn’t covered all the way up the sides.
  • Cook on high for about 2-3 hours. You want to get the heat up and get it bubbling. Then turn down heat to low and cook for an additional 4-8 hours. If you need to leave it on all day and can’t change temperature just start it on low and leave it there. The high temp at the beginning just helps makes sure you will cook the meat thoroughly and the first two hours is just getting the liquid up to a cooking temp. 
  • When meat is tender, it’s ready to eat. Cooking it longer is not a problem. Pull out celery stalks and disregard, they are for the ‘stock,’ not for eating. If you like eating celery (I don’t) you could alternatively chop the celery and leave it in for eating like the carrots and onions.
  • I like serving this one over steamed spinach, kale or broccoli.

Slow Cooker Recipe Wish List

These are recipes I myself haven’t tried, but would like to. Perhaps you’ll beat me to it; if you do, drop me a line with your review!

1. Bigos - nostalgia for Poland, which is odd because I was a vegetarian when I lived there.

2. Everyday Paleo slow cooker recipes - chicken is dodgy in the crock, but Sarah generally knows what she’s talking about, so I’d make any of the recipes on her site.

3. Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore - yeah, I just ragged on crockpot chicken. Whatever, I’d make this.

4. OK one more: Slow cooker kimchi chicken

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