Slow Cooker

Prompted by posts on here about making bread in the slow cooker, I decided to try this today.
Unfortunately, I made a stupid mistake, and didn't notice for nearly an hour that I had turned the control too far, so it was on 'keep warm' instead of 'high'. Oops
That meant that it was over-prooved, so it lost a lot of its rise.

Even so, whacking it up to full at that point has still resulted in a very edible bread, and I have already given in to the temptation to eat a slice of it, still warm, with butter.

I will definitely do this again but without, hopefully, any more stupid mistakes.

Mine is ceramic, too.
By the time I have been out for 7 or 8 hours, (cooker left on low; I only have high and low settings) my food is just starting to catch around the edges.

Sallywally1 I used a plug in timer(like the ones you use with lamps etc to come on and off)

I have a small slow cook and set the timer to come on when needed if I'm out, then to turn off if needed, or vice versa.

Its always worked for me no prob.

Maybe test it out one day when your in the house see how it goes.

34Welshy
MamaCaz ... It sounds as if mine has a fault, if you had the opposite with yours. Is yours a heavy ceramic dish?

Yes.

Ps it was a surprise as my old one was much slower.

Callistemon ... So you do all your cooking on high? So a stew would take approx 4 hours?

High at first for an hour (perhaps less) to get it going, then turn it down to medium.

Last year's Christmas gammon, done in my then new slow cooker while I went out shopping, just shredded!

I roasted an Irish topside beef joint one Sunday and it was so tough and unpalatable that the next day I diced it and put it in the slow cooker for hours with vegetables.
It was very good.

MissAdventure ... Well it was diced Irish beef, but as I said the potatoes were still a bit hard after 10 hours. It was OK after the extra 2 hours on high. But 12 hours seems a long time.

Callistemon ... So you do all your cooking on high? So a stew would take approx 4 hours?

Fennel ... I did wonder if it was a fault with the seal but as others have said theirs are loose too.

MamaCaz ... It sounds as if mine has a fault, if you had the opposite with yours. Is yours a heavy ceramic dish?

I don't sear (though I did when I first got the slow cooker).
I don't pre-heat the cooker.
I only add a small amount of liquid unless making something that would also need a lot of liquid if cooked in the oven.
The lids are loose, and food actually spits out once it is hot enough.

I have two slow cookers of different sizes.
Both are Cookworks, OP, so I was surprised to hear how slowly yours cooked, as mine are the opposite - even on 'slow', they both get hotter than I ever expected. In fact, if I was, say, out at work the whole day, I would be very reluctant to put them as the food might be cremated by the time I got home again!
Perhaps that was a design fault that they have since tried to correct, but now gone too far the other way?

To make the cooking quicker put a towel over it.
In the old days they even put a piece of duvet over it.
Another idea - seal the lid with thick flour and water paste.

I dont think I've ever cooked anything on low in either.

I bought a Morphy Richards Sear and Stew last year and it is much faster than my old one which had a ceramic pot.
It was more expensive but I had a voucher for some reason and I think it's the same price in the Black Friday sale this year as the normal price I paid last year

That's really not good.
What a shame.i wonder if something is amiss with it, too.

I think I would try and get a refund or replacement if I were you.

It's not fit for purpose if it's taking that long, unless it was maybe a tough piece of meat?

MissAdventure I lifted the lid once in all that 10 hours. Tried it again at 10 hours, that's when I turned it up high.

Maybe mine is faulty ....

Oh, that is a long time for it to be cooking.
The lid on mine just sits, I think they all do.

Did you lift the lid at all during cooking? That adds to cooking time (although I have to fiddle, if I'm around)

My last slow cooker was the cookworks one, and I've never found it to cook too slowly.

Thank you everyone for your replies. Well I cooked my beef stew in my new slow cooker (Cookworks £15) But I wasn't impressed with the cooking time. I had it on low for about 10 hours overnight and the meat was still a bit tough and the potatoes not soft (I placed the veg in the bottom too) So turned it up high for a further 2 hours. I've noticed the lid just sits on the ceramic insert and is loose. Is that the case with them all? I know it was cheap but it has good reviews.

absent I do not sear and have not had any problem with the meat looking any different. Searing just caremelises the juices from the meat on the surface of the meat - and as soon as they are in the casserole with the gravy and cooking that is all dissolved off the meat and into the gravy.

Searing is a myth in that it doesn't seal in the juices. What it does do is brown the meat so that it looks more appetising. If you don't do it before putting it in the slow cooker, it tends to be greyish and unappealing.

I didn’t want one so slow we’ll have starved to death by the time anything is cooked, MissAdventure!

Tweedle
A couple of years ago a gransnetter posted how she made bread in her slowcooker.

I have successfully made several types of bread (wholemeal, white, ciabatta etc) as per the Gners instructions.

I use bread mixes from aldi that are suitable for a bread machine.

Just follow the instructions, but and this a plus for me, miss out resting/proving stages.

Put mixture into a prepared loaf tin (that fits comfortably into your slowcooker)

Screw up several balls of tinfoil and place on bottom of slow cooker.
Add couple inches of water
(I use hot water)
Place loaf tin on top
Cover with lid.
Cooking time about 3hrs.

I'm not sure how that would work as bread needs a high temperature instantly.

That's why it is better in the oven than a breadmaker.
(Ducks for cover)

Mine has a metal inner so, I sometimes sear the meat but, rarely. I just put everything in, pour on the stock and leave it.
I saw a recipe yesterday for making bread in the slow cooker. Has anyone tried it and, if so, was it a success?

Well, you wanted a slow cooker..

My new slow cooker is here. Unfortunately, there’s a flaw in the coating of the dish so it’ll have to go back for a replacement, which could take three weeks. How annoying!

I love my slow cooker, use it every week. I think there's a trend at the moment for slow cooked meals - winter coming on.
The first one I had - 20+ years ago or so - recommended browning the meat off first. But my current one doesn't need that.
The only thing to add - I read a warning about re-heating in a slow cooker. Some don't bring the contents up to bubbling point so could be a health risk.
Callistemon - like you I would love to be able to use one of those cast iron stove top to oven casseroles but far too heavy for me now.