5 Slow Cooker Recipes to Try in 2017

Slow cooking is a godsend to any busy household. If you think you’re too busy to enjoy home cooked stews, casseroles, curries and soups, think again. Throw some meat, vegetables and stock in your slow cooker in the morning and by the time you arrive home in the evening, you have a dinner ready to eat, packed with nutrients with meat succulent and full of flavour.

Trust us, once you try it, you won’t go back. Plus, it suits any cut of meat (chuck steak is the best meat for slow cooking and it's cheap as well!), and is therefore a really affordable way to eat well and with very little effort.

If you’re looking for a healthy slow cooker recipe, we’ve compiled some of the best right here. Grab a slow cooker, get inspired and plan your next meal – we promise, you won’t look back!

Jamie’s Cowboy Chilli Con Carne

Image and recipe courtesy of Jamie Oliver 

• 1 kg beef brisket or chuck steak, cut into 2.5cm thick pieces across the grain
• 250 ml hot coffee
• 1 large dried chilli, preferably ancho, chipotle or poblano
• 1 red onion
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 2 red, yellow or orange peppers, deseeded and sliced
• olive oil
• 1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 heaped teaspoons smoked paprika
• ½ heaped teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 fresh bay leaves
• 2–3 fresh chillies
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 star anise
• 2 x 400 g tins of plum tomatoes
• 1 ½ tablespoons molasses or muscovado sugar
• 1 x 400 g tins of beans, such as kidney, butter, pinto
• soured cream, optional

Don’t be intimidated by the list of ingredients here. Once you’ve chopped the meat up, it’s literally a case of throwing everything into the slow cooker and leaving alone for the day. You will need to break the meat up with a fork before serving, but this beats any chilli con carne you’ve previously made with minced meat. It packs a punch in terms of flavour – and the special ingredient is the star anise. Serve with rice, nachos or flat bread.

 

Creamy Black Dhal with Crispy Onions

Image and recipe courtesy of BBC Good Food 

• 250g black urid beans (also called urid dal, urad dal, black lentils or black gram beans - available from large supermarkets) - yellow split peas also work well
• 100g butter or ghee
• 2 large white onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• thumb-sized piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp paprika
• ¼ tsp chilli powder (optional)
• small bunch coriander, stalks finely chopped, leaves reserved to serve
• 400g passata or chopped tomatoes
• 1 fat red chilli, pierced a few times with the tip of a sharp knife
• 50ml double cream 

This easy slow cooker recipe relies on the flavours of the cumin, coriander and turmeric to be absorbed in to lentils. Like with most south Asian recipes, the longer you leave this in the slow cooker, the better as the spices really infuse into the dish.

After you’ve fried the onions, garlic and ginger with the butter, you can throw everything into the slow cooker with 500ml of water – but don’t add the cream until right to the end. Serve with naan, rice or baked potatoes.

 

Chicken Satay Curry

Image and recipe courtesy of FiveHeartHome

• 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts
• 1 cup can of coconut milk
• 4 heaped tablespoons chunky natural peanut butter
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (more or less, to taste)
• Handful of chopped peanuts, for garnish
• Fresh coriander, chopped, for garnish
• Rice, rice noodles, or lettuce leaves, for serving

Arrange chicken breasts in the bottom of a large slow cooker. In a medium bowl, stir together coconut milk, peanut butter, garlic, honey, soy sauce, lime juice, rice wine vinegar, and red pepper flakes; mix until (mostly) smooth. Pour this over the chicken.

Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours, or HIGH for 3 to 4 hours (or until chicken is tender but not overcooked, depending on the strength of your slow cooker). Reduce slow cooker temperature to WARM. Remove chicken from slow cooker, cut into chunks, and shred. Return shredded chicken to slow cooker to allow it to absorb sauce and heat through.

Serve chicken and sauce over cooked white or brown rice, cooked rice noodles, or stuffed inside large lettuce leaves, as wraps. Garnish with chopped peanuts, fresh cilantro, and additional red pepper flakes, if desired. 

 

Mushroom Stroganoff

Image and recipe courtesy of Amuse Your Bouche 

• 600 g mushrooms (leave any very small ones whole, and half or quarter the larger ones and then dice them)
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 onion halved then thinly sliced
• 250 ml vegetable stock
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp sour cream heaped
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 4 tbsp fresh parsley chopped

Add the first five ingredients to a slow cooker, and mix well. Cook on high for 4 hours.

After 4 hours, stir in the sour cream, and season to taste. Serve with a carb of your choice, topped with plenty of fresh parsley.

 

Betty’s Lancashire Hotpot

Recipe courtesy of All Recipes, image courtesy of Hairy Bikers 

• 750g (1½ lb) lean lamb cubes
• 50g (2 oz) plain flour (seasoned with salt and pepper)
• 2 onions, sliced
• 450g (1 lb) potatoes, peeled and sliced
• 2 celery stalk, sliced
• 1 carrot, cubed
• 100g (4 oz) swede, cubed
• 30ml dry sherry
• 1/2 teaspoon English mustard
• 1 large pinch ground nutmeg
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon chopped rosemary
• 1 teaspoon chopped thyme
• 400ml (15 fl oz) beef stock
• 15g (1/2 oz) butter + 1 clove chopped garlic

Coat the lamb with flour. Layer the lamb and the vegetables (except the potato slices) in a slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper.

Add in the bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, mustard and nutmeg.

Cover with potato slices then pour in the stock and sherry. Spread with garlic butter and sprinkle with ground black pepper.

Cover slow cooker and cook on High for 3 to 4 hours.

Serve with pickled red cabbage.... Delicious!

Do you have any good slow cooker recipes you want to share with the B&M community? Inspire us and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram!