Slow Cooker Cookbook

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View books by Catherine Atkinson.

A misleading title....... - Rated
If you're looking for a book which gives recipes in which you cook everything in one pot (as the title suggests), then look elsewhere. Many of the recipes would more easily (and quickly) be prepared using a pan and the hob. Many of them involve a fair bit of preparation before using the slow cooker.
I feel a little deceived..........

Great Cookbook - Rated
I'd like to completely agree with the comments below in saying this is a great cookery book. I've had my slow cooker a year now, and it took me 6 months to even get around to using it. I was mainly worried about leaving an electric cooker on while I went to work (I imagined I'd come home to a burnt out kitchen!). But it's really easy, just chuck in veg and some stock, maybe some pulses, stick it on the low setting and it's ready when you get home. There's no need to fry the veg first, and if have to work late, nothing drastic will happen. Tea takes about 5 mins to prepare in the morning and costs almost nothing. Slow cookers use about as much energy as a light bulb so they're extremely energy efficient, and it means you can use the cheapest meat and veg as you will get the fullest flavour from the slow cooking. One tip - you don't need as much liquid as you think

Right, that's my rave about the actual appliance over - now on to the book! Although the paragraph might seem irrelevant, what I mean is I find the slow cooker is so easy to use, I didn't really need a recipe book for stews. Literally just cover the veg with stock and leave it on 'low' for the day. It's very easy to experiment and end up with a tasty meal - it's just a case of choosing the veg.

This book shows how versatile the slow cooker can be. What I love about this book is the fact that it shows you what else you can do with the cooker. I'd never thought of lowering in a loaf tin and pouring water around it (like a bain-marie I guess) for pates, or doing steam puddings in there. It can also be used for chutneys and sauces which is handy.

There's a great introduction with a double page spread on each major food type poultry, meat, pulses etc saying the best ways to cook them. It also says to use the recipes as a guide, rather than a rulebook. Where one recipe says 4 hours on high, you could substitute that for 8 hours on low. Obviously some recipes need more careful consideration such as poultry to make sure it's cooked properly, but the book explains everything very clearly. The amounts are shown in imperial, metric and American, and fat and carbohydrate etc percentages are shown at the end of each dish. There are lovely bright photographs too. In fact, I would be really pleased to receive this as a present - it would make a great gift if someone you know has recently bought a slow cooker.

How to get the most out of your slow cooker - Rated
If you are pushed for time, and all you want is to be able to chop a few ingredients and toss them in the slow cooker then this is not the book for you. Admittedly the slow cooker is marketed as a time saving device, however the object of cooking (for me personally)is to actually enjoy the final product, and this book enables you to do just that; get the maximum use and enjoyment out of an appliance that is capable of so much more.

The book itself is superbly laid out, with an introduction to slow cooker history, followed by informative sections on useful equipment,and cuts of meat/vegetables and how to prepare them - essential if you are a novice. There is a wide range of recipes here, with varying degree of difficulty and preparation time, all accompanied by photographs of the finished product. Another plus point is the inclusion of the fat/calorific content etc. of each dish, great for dieters and the more health conscious. Considering the content, this book is excellent value for money.

All the recipes I have tried are clearly explained, and have been so far a complete success. The slow cooker cookbook contains some delicious meat/soup dishes, all of which require easily obtainable ingredients. But the real delight for me was the revelation that it also makes divine pâtés, desserts (steamed puddings to die for) and layered terrines which are simple to make, yet look extremely impressive.

Overall I found this book a godsend, and I'm sure you will too if you are prepared to spend a little extra time - and I mean that literally, the recipes are still in the "no fuss" category. It is informative, the results are fantastic, and consequently my slow cooker is no longer gathering dust, as it inevitably would be if I were still tossing in the same old ingredients! If you want to get maximum use out of your appliance, experiment with a new range of mouth watering dishes, then look no further!

Defeats the object! - Rated
This is a beautifully presented book with some excellent recipes BUT most of them involve quite a bit of initial preparation and then need ingredients added an hour or so before the end of the cooking time. For me this defeats the purpose of a slow cooker. If you want to pop some basic ingredients in the slow cooker before you go to work, returning to a hot ready-to-eat meal, this book is not for you!