3 recipes that will make you love your slow cooker again (2024)

Editor's note: This story was originally published Dec. 12, 2016. We're bringing it back because we still love slow-cooker dishes.

Slow Cooker Mustard Marsala Chicken

Author's note: The chicken can also be cooked on low for six hours in the slow cooker. Ask your butcher to break the chicken down into eight pieces.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 chicken (about 4 to 4 1/2 pounds), broken down into 8 pieces

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/2 cup shallots, diced

1/2 cup Marsala wine

1/2 cup dry white wine (I prefer a pinot grigio or chardonnay)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

8 sprigs of fresh thyme

1 fresh bay leaf

3/4 cup chicken stock

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons flour

Chopped fresh parsley, for topping

Directions

Evenly distribute the salt on the chicken. Make sure to cover both sides. Set aside.

Turn the slow cooker on to the warm setting.

Add the oil and butter to a large skillet and bring to medium-high heat. In two batches, brown the chicken, about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes per side. Place the chicken into the slow cooker and cover.

Reduce skillet heat to medium and add the shallots. Cook for 1 minute. Add the wines, vinegar and herbs to the skillet. Scrap up the brown bits on the bottom of the skillet. (Yay! You've deglazed a pan!)

Once boiling, add the chicken stock, Dijon, ground mustard and sugar. Stir well and bring to a boil.

Pour the liquid into the slow cooker. Rearrange the chicken as needed to have all the pieces slightly covered. Turn the slow cooker to high, cover and cook on high for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Remove the chicken, place on a platter and cover.

Add the flour to the slow cooker and stir. Continue to cook for 15-30 minutes.

Serve the chicken shredded or whole, covered with the Marsala mustard sauce. Top with freshly chopped parsley.

Makes 6 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 616, Fat 39 g (11 g sat), Cholesterol 212 mg, Sodium 1,075 mg, Fiber 1 g, Carbohydrates 10 g, Protein 42 g

Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja Stew

Author's note: Ropa Vieja is a traditional Cuban meal of braised tomatoes and beef, generally served on a bed of rice. This recipe is a "stew" version of this meal. It does not use the traditional flank steak, but bite-sized cuts of sirloin. Feel free to use stew meat instead. If you want to repurpose this meal, remove the meat and bell peppers from the stew and use in tacos, quesadillas or omelets the next day. This stew is freezer-friendly.

Ingredients

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 cup white onion, diced

5 garlic cloves, crushed

1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes (be sure to purchase the one with no salt added)

3 cups low sodium beef stock

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons kosher salt

3 teaspoons cumin

2 pounds sirloin steak, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Cilantro, chopped

Directions

Place the peppers, onion, garlic, tomatoes, stock, oregano, salt and cumin into a slow cooker. Stir well.

Add the steak and stir. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

Add the vinegar and stir. Serve warm with tortillas, topped with a generous amount of chopped cilantro.

Makes 6 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 372, Fat 22 g (9 g sat), Cholesterol 118 mg, Sodium 818 mg, Fiber 3 g, Carbohydrates 10 g, Protein 33 g

Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats

Author's note: This recipe is a nice base for slow cooker steel cut oats. It is less sweet than normal oatmeal. Add more syrup or sugar if you prefer it sweeter. Get creative with the flavors and the toppings used. For example, add a cinnamon stick and dried cranberries. Other toppings to try would be coconut flakes, nuts, chocolate chips.

Ingredients

1 cup steel cut oats

3 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup raisins

4 cups water

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup cream

Directions

Place all ingredients into a slow cooker. Stir well. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Makes 6 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 291, Fat 8 g (5 g sat), Cholesterol 23 mg, Sodium 96 mg, Fiber 4 g, Carbohydrates 50 g, Protein 5 g

When it's time to bring the slow cooker back to the kitchen

I recently purchased a slow cooker because my old one died two years ago.

When this appliance stopped working, I didn't feel the need to immediately purchase another. My two small kids napped in the afternoon, and I stayed at home during the day.

There was plenty of time to cook.

Two years later, my daughter began kindergarten and my job as food writer and photographer became more demanding. Add on two school pickups and a handful of after-school activities, and dinner preparation became stressful or non-existent on some days.

The slow cooker needed to come back to my kitchen.

Up to this point, I had a lack of appreciation for the slow cooker. Recipes for this device tend to include ingredients I actively try to avoid: cans of condensed cream of (fill in the blank).

When I was using the slow cooker years ago, many of my Pinterest fails were results of bad recipes that had appeared to have gone through zero testing -- the worst kind of meal, in my book.

Once I committed to purchasing a slow cooker, I was determined to only use it for tasty recipes, not ones that ended my day on a gross note.

On the day I purchased my new kitchen contraption, I got a hankering for mustard Marsala chicken. But there was a problem.

It was gymnastics night. There was no way I would have the physical or mental energy to make dinner when we got home, especially after a day of work. My golden hour of cook time was noon -- six hours from the time we needed to eat.

Then I remembered my newest kitchen toy. After a quick run to the market and a 20-minute prep, dinner was slowly cooking. It would be ready to eat when we came tromping home from gymnastics.

That night, dinner was gobbled up with smiles. I was also smiling, because there were leftovers. The Mustard Marsala Chicken was served on top of crème fraiche mashed potatoes (visit apleasantlittlekitchen.com for the recipe) the next night, and then on top of a bed of arugula with a squeeze of lemon juice and freshly grated Parmesan for lunch the next day.

This is what I've come to enjoy about the slow cooker. It doesn't have to create mediocre meals. They can be delicious with developed flavor. Readjust the relationship you have with your slow cooker. Stop making bad recipes in it and start making delicious ones.