If like me, you are a busy parent juggling an endless string of after school activities, you may also be faced with the dilemma of how to provide your family with healthy and nutritious dinners. The easy option of course is takeaways, on nights which are really busy, and admittedly there are times when this is appealing. The issue with takeaway is the cost, which for families on a budget can be high. In addition there is the question of nutrition, which is lacking in many takeaway meals.
Really well organised families will have a stock-pile of meals in their freezer, prepared in bulk and stored for this purpose. Sometimes I am quite organised. The problem lately seems to be that my busy times far exceed my organised times. So there is rarely a meal available in my freezer that I can call on in those hectic moments.
So the answer seems to me to be to invest in a slow cooker. While researching the kinds of features I would like to have and to going through reviews by people who have purchased a slow cooker already I discovered that there is more to buying a slow cooker than I first realised. I have also discovered that I may need to adapt some of my favourite recipes to get a similar result for those dishes the family loves now.
So what should you look for in a slow cooker?
The first thing to consider is the size of the cooker. How many people will you usually cook for? If there are just the two of you or if you are cooking for yourself do you often entertain? Are there times when it is practical to cook extra and freeze extra portions?
Popular sizes for cookers are as follows: 1 1/2 quart, 3 1/2 quart, 4 quart, 5 quart, and 6 quart with other sizes available as well. These closely convert to metric as: 1.4 litres, 3.3 litres, 3.8 litres, 4.75 litres and 5.7 litres. For my family of six I have found a 5 litre slow cooker to be a good size.
Standard features on most slow cookers include low and high heat settings. Most recipes which are cooked on high for four hours, can be cooked on low for eight hours. If you plan to set the cooker before leaving for work in the morning and you won’t be home until say ten hours later you may want to consider a slow cooker with an auto setting which will either turn the cooker off or switch it to “keep warm” mode at the end of cooking.
Do you like to brown your meat and caramelise and soften your vegetables. In that case there are slow cookers which can be used on the cooktop as well. These are perfect for browning food before setting the cooker.
Will there be times when you will want to transport your meal? If you plan to cook at home then take your meal to a function you may need to have a slow cooker with a sealable clip-down lid of some kind and easy to carry handles.
Do you want to be able to start cooking at a time when you are away? Perhaps you want to start cooking before you get up in the morning to have it ready for a midday meal. In this case a slow cooker which is programmable will be invaluable.
Whatever you decide one thing is certain. If you have never had a slow cooker before you won’t believe how indispensable this item will become in your life.
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