Slow Cooker
204 recipes found

Bolognese
This is the recipe I'd hoped to submit to the "What you want to be remembered for" competition, but I didn't make the deadline. My grandmother often used to make us "tuco," the italo-argentine version of ragu, and in her hands it was a multi-layered, deep but very fresh dish, a complex stew of fresh vegetables and spices completed by the flavours of beef. It is a multi-layered bolognese, and over time I realized had elements of curry-making in the sense that you start out sweating the onions, garlic and spices in oil to create a base layer, and build up on that. This takes some time and devotion, but it makes for a pretty magnificent bolognese. I love it best over the classic long pasta shapes, spagghetti or linguini. I hope you enjoy it!
Breakfast reform
Thanks to Jessica Tom I have just tried cooking teff to make her wonderful pudding recipe (really great, btw). At the market I had found both teff flour and teff grain. Going with teff grain (right choice), I was then struck by how really tiny these grains are. I was also a little suspicious that they would taste...well, you know, good for you, but really not that good. But, the flavor and texture both deliver....and I mean good for you and really good tasting! I think I have just made a new best friend!

Slow Roast Duck
This roast duck recipe is delicious and foolproof. The slow roasted duck emerges from the oven mahogany and almost impossibly crisp and crackling.
Overnight Boston Butt Recipe
For this recipe, you season the roast and then cook it low and slow. When you wake up you have a delicious Boston butt that melts in your mouth.

New Year's Day Ham and Beans
My mom makes this recipe every year for good luck, and now I do too. It's simple but everyone loves it.

Port Wine Glazed Ham
My cousin gave me this recipe. Though extremely simple, it is the best way that I've found to cook a ham. The Port improves and opens the flavor of the ham.
Doce de Abóbora: Sweet Butternut Squash compote with cloves
This doce de abóbora recipe is a dessert/compote that is reminiscent of the smells and tastes of my childhood in Brazil. There are many possible variations.

Braised Pork With Red Wine
This easy recipe can be made in a saucepan, Dutch oven or slow cooker. The long simmer gives the pork shoulder, an inexpensive but versatile cut, a chance to absorb the robust flavors of red wine, carrot and garlic that it’s cooked alongside. Serve it over egg noodles and topped with parsley for a hearty, satisfying dinner.

Slow Cooker Chipotle-Honey Chicken Tacos
These may be the easiest tacos you ever make, but you’d never know it. The recipe hinges on just two ingredients: canned chipotles and honey, which slowly caramelize together for a glossy and incredibly tasty sauce. You may hesitate because there's so little liquid in the slow cooker with the chicken, but don't worry. That's how it's supposed to be. It allows the sauce to get a little sticky, which is exactly what you want. (Get the pressure cooker version of this recipe here.)

Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Chicken
This spicy, saucy chicken takes almost no time to prep in the morning and only 5 minutes to finish before eating. At its simplest, the recipe is a meal-in-a-bowl stew, and the toppings are key to making it feel special. You could serve the chicken over rice or a whole grain, or use it as a taco or enchilada filling (use a slotted spoon to serve the chicken, if it is very saucy). You can also add 1 cup of frozen or fresh corn, or a drained 15-ounce can of black beans or pinto beans; just add them at the end along with the fresh cilantro and scallions. The level of heat in jarred salsas can vary, so taste yours first to ensure it is to your liking. If you want more spice, leave some of the jalapeño seeds in, or use hot canned green chiles instead of mild ones.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Ragù With Herbed Ricotta
This recipe has a comforting lasagna vibe, as the spicy chicken-and-tomato sauce mingles with the rich, herby ricotta. Make the sauce as hot as you like: Begin with 1 1/2 teaspoons red-pepper flakes for a fairly mild spice level, then add more at the end if you want more heat. You’ll notice there isn’t much liquid when the chicken and vegetables go into the slow cooker, but have faith: The juices released during cooking end up making a not-too-thick ragù that is perfect for saucing pasta. In fact, because some chicken has more moisture than others, you may end up with more liquid than you’d like. If that happens, turn off the heat so the sauce cools a bit and is not bubbling, then vigorously stir in two egg yolks before you add the pasta. This adds glossy thickening power, just like it does in carbonara.

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore With Mushrooms and Bacon
Cacciatore means “hunter style” in Italian, and this is a slow cooker riff on that classic Italian braise, which usually features chicken or rabbit with lots of peppers, tomatoes and wine. In this recipe, the mushrooms, bacon and wine give the finished dish a deep and delicious savoriness. The bacon does triple duty: It provides most of the fat in the recipe, it suffuses the dish with smoky flavor, and its little crispy bits hold up nicely over the long simmer. As the dish cooks, the vegetables release their juices, which don’t evaporate in the slow cooker, so this may be a more stew-like cacciatore. This makes it delicious served over pasta or polenta or in a bowl served with a hunk of crusty bread to sop up the juices. To serve it as a hoagie or submarine sandwich, use a slotted spoon to scoop the chicken and sauce onto the rolls.

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
This tangy, mildly spicy white-bean chili is as warming and comforting as a traditional chili, but in a lighter, brighter form. Plenty of green chiles — fresh and canned — provide kick while creamy white beans mellow it all out. To decrease the heat level, remove and discard the seeds from the jalapeño before you mince it. A large handful of chopped cilantro added at the end brings freshness, but if you don’t care for cilantro, pass it at the table along with the other toppings or omit it entirely. Continuing the spirit of customizing your chili, you can make this in the slow cooker or on the stovetop. Use 3 cups chicken stock in the slow cooker and 4 cups on the stovetop, where liquid is more likely to evaporate.

Slow-Cooker Dijon Chicken With Barley and Mushrooms
This glossy, risottolike dish is inspired by the French bistro classic of chicken in tarragon-mustard sauce. Here, those flavors are transformed into a whole-grain, one-pot weeknight meal: The barley, mushrooms and chicken cook together first, then just before eating, finish with a bag of frozen peas and a tangy mixture of crème fraîche (or sour cream) and Dijon. Make the dish vegetarian by omitting the chicken and using your favorite vegetable broth, but add about ½ cup more liquid, to substitute for the chicken juices.

Slow-Cooker Curried Sweet Potato Soup With Coconut and Kale
This creamy Thai-inspired soup is all about balance: When the contrasting flavors are in harmony, it is outrageously delicious. (It is also vegan if there’s no fish or shrimp in your curry paste.) Supermarket curry pastes are a great shortcut to flavor for weeknights, but salt and spice levels can vary greatly among brands. So taste at the end, and adjust: You may need to add curry paste, sugar or lime juice to your liking. Chile-lime flavored peanuts, available at some grocery stores, are particularly good for topping — snap them up if you happen to see them. Otherwise, roasted salted peanuts will work beautifully.

Mississippi Roast
An Internet darling of a pot roast recipe, a favorite of mom bloggers and Pinterest, Mississippi Roast is traditionally made by placing a chuck roast in a slow cooker and simmering it beneath a stick of butter, a package of ranch dressing mix, another of “au jus” gravy mix and a handful of pepperoncini. And you can certainly cook it that way. The raves are justified. But replacing the packaged mixes is no real chore, and it results in a luscious tangle of deliciously tangy beef that goes beautifully with mashed or roasted potatoes or egg noodles, or as a hot-sandwich filling. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of your roast and the effectiveness of your slow cooker. But six to eight hours generally does the trick. (If you're in the market for a slow-cooker, our colleagues at The Wirecutter have spent a great deal of time testing them. Check out their guide to the best on the market.)

Slow Cooker Pasta e Fagioli
This simple stew of long-simmered beans and tiny pasta is one of the world’s great comfort foods. Like many cucina povera classics, it is both affordable and adaptable, designed to use what you have. White beans, such as cannellini, are typically used, but just about any medium-size dried bean, like borlotti (cranberry) beans or even pinto beans will do. Beans have a wide variation in cook times, so start checking at 6 hours if you can, and know that some batches can take up to 10 hours. Fresh or frozen green beans popped in at the end of the cooking time add a welcome texture and sweetness, but feel free to omit them or to use whatever you have: shredded cabbage, broccoli rabe or fresh or frozen spinach would all work beautifully. This recipe feeds a crowd, and if you plan to have leftovers, cook the pasta separately and stir it into each serving, otherwise the pasta will soak up all the broth as it sits and become too soft.

Pressure Cooker Sticky Tamarind Baby Back Ribs
These gingery sweet-and-sour glazed ribs are tender and intensely flavored — and pretty much impossible to stop eating once you start. The sauce also works well on spare-ribs if you’d like to substitute those here. Just reduce the cooking time by a few minutes on the pressure setting, or as much as an hour if using the slow cooker setting. This is one of 10 recipes from Melissa Clark’s “Dinner in an Instant: 75 Modern Recipes for Your Pressure Cooker, Multicooker, and Instant Pot” (Clarkson Potter, 2017). Melissa Clark’s “Dinner in an Instant” is available everywhere books are sold. Order your copy today.

Slow-Cooker Corn Pudding
Corn has always been an important crop for Native Americans, who cook it into porridges, breads and puddings. Over generations, various incarnations of corn pudding became especially popular in the South. In this version, fresh corn, scallions and jalapeño are held together by rich cornbread for a savory, sweet and spicy side that’s like a spoonbread crossed with a quick bread. While corn pudding is usually made in the oven, this slow-cooker version frees up your oven for other tasks. As the bread steam-bakes, the edges get caramelized and firm, and the center becomes soft and delicate. It’s spoonable, not sliceable, and its rich texture is best served warm or at room temperature. Jalapeños vary in heat level, so taste a tiny piece before deciding how much to add. To decrease the spice level, use one chile and remove the seeds and ribs before chopping it. To maximize the spice, leave the seeds in and use two.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Tortellini Tomato Soup
This satisfying soup is an excellent one-pot dinner to come home to after a long day. It takes only 10 minutes to throw it together in the morning and 10 minutes to finish it in the evening. If you plan to be away for eight hours or more, set the cook time for four hours, then set the slow cooker to auto-switch to warm for the remaining time. (This prevents overcooking.) If you’ll be home when the soup is done and can remove it from the heat, it’s best to cook the chicken for five to six hours. Add only the tortellini you will eat right away. Leftover tortellini will get mushy.

Slow-Cooker Black Bean Soup
Start your slow cooker in the morning and by dinnertime, you’ll have deeply spiced black beans that just need a quick blend to become a velvety and vegan black bean soup. While not essential, a smidgen of baking soda helps the beans soften so they end up almost fudgy. Blending some of the beans with their liquid gives the soup body; for a very smooth soup, purée the whole mixture. A little vinegar and a flourish of toppings keep it from being one-note. Leftovers will thicken overnight, so thin as needed with water or turn them into refried beans.

Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Pork
If you’ve spent any time on Pinterest or food blogs, you’ve likely come across a recipe for three-ingredient barbecue pulled pork that can be made in the slow cooker. Methods and ingredients vary, but the recipe almost always calls for boneless pork shoulder, some sort of dark cola (usually Dr Pepper or root beer) and barbecue sauce. Dubious? We were too, so we asked the members of our NYT Cooking Community Facebook page if anyone had ever made it and if they liked it. We received more than 150 very opinionated responses. Many readers have come up with their own clever twists, like using coffee or beer in place of cola, adding onions or chipotles, rubbing the meat with a spice blend and searing the meat before cooking. We tried cooking it a few different ways and found we liked this adaptation best. It calls for a few more ingredients and an extra step or two, but it’s got layers of flavor and it’s still mostly fuss-free. (You can find the pressure-cooker version of this recipe here.)

Pressure Cooker Spicy Pork Shoulder
You can make this spicy pork in a 6- to 8-quart electric pressure cooker if you’re in a hurry, or in a slow cooker if you're not. In either case, you’ll get tender bits of meat covered in a chile-flavored barbecue sauce that’s just slightly sweet. (You can also make it in a stovetop pressure cooker, by trimming a few minutes off the cooking time. Stovetop pressure cookers tend to cook at a slightly higher pressure, so food cooks more quickly.) Gochujang, a pungent Korean chile paste, and gochugaru, Korean chile flakes, is available at Asian markets and specialty shops, or see the ingredient list for substitutions. Serve the pork over rice or in slider rolls, topped with crunchy pickled sesame cucumbers and a little kimchi, if you want to spice things up. And, while you can make this from start to finish in an afternoon, you can also make this in stages a few days ahead, if that’s easier.

Slow-Cooker White Bean Parmesan Soup
Parmesan rinds are magic. After a long braise, that hard, waxy scrap infuses the entire soup with its rich, distinctive flavor. Here, they make a wholesome soup taste like an incredible indulgence. So don't ever throw them away. They keep in the freezer indefinitely. The wheat berries here are also a great match for the slow cooker. While they may not be the most glamorous grains, they hold their shape and take a conveniently long time to get tender. You can find them at many grocery or natural-foods stores, as well as online. But you can also substitute farro or spelt (whole grains but not pearled). Just note that they'll cook faster and may end up quite soft after an 8-hour cook time.