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Enjoy delicious, healthy casseroles, stews and one-pot dishes without the fuss
Whether you love to cook or you just want the luxury of having your dinner ready when you get home from work, slow cookers are a must-have appliance for almost every kitchen.
And they’re not just for the winter weather either. While they excel in producing hearty dishes, such as stews, casseroles and soups, you can also use your slow cooker for other year-round delights, such as bread, cakes and even yoghurt.
The best slow cookers are also a great way to beat the current cost of living crisis, as they’re an extremely energy-efficient way to cook. And it’s not just your smart meter that will breathe a sigh of relief, as using a slow cooker can also reduce your grocery bill.
Cheaper cuts of meats are perfect for the slow cooker, as cooking at low temperatures over a long period of time not only tenderises the meat, but also brings out the flavour. The same goes for veggies – you can stock up on root veg that will be perfectly cooked by the time it’s served.
Slow cookers come in a variety of shapes and sizes and with different technologies. You can get ones that are the ideal size for one person, or larger versions that can feed a whole family. They also come in a variety of price ranges, so if you’re on a budget, you’ll still find a good-quality slow cooker without breaking the bank.
We tested out some of the best slow cookers on the market. We made a variety of dishes in each appliance to assess how well they cooked the food, whether the machine was straightforward to use, its capacity and, of course, how easy cleaning and storage was.
Not only can slow cookers help you knock up some seriously delicious dinners, but they are also energy efficient, with energy company USwitch noting that they use a little more energy than a traditional light bulb to run. While they take a little while to cook food, they use just 1.3 kWh per meal cooked.
According to research by energy company Utilita, an electric oven is one of the most energy-intensive cooking appliances, costing on average £1.05 per day to run, whereas a slow cooker is typically five times cheaper to run.
There are many benefits to using a slow cooker, including that you can create delicious dinners with minimal prep and without spending hours in the kitchen. Once your ingredients are in, you do not have to check on or stir, because the pot warms up evenly and should never overheat.
Cooking for a long time at a low temperature is also perfect for tenderising meat and can preserve nutrients that are sometimes lost when cooking via other methods.
Slow cookers often have a number of important features that you should consider when choosing the right one for you.
Slow cookers work best cooking cheaper cuts of meat such as brisket, ham hock, pork or lamb shoulder and chicken thighs so bear this in mind when shopping for your slow-cooked meal.
The liquid in a slow cooker won’t evaporate as it would in a standard pot, thanks to the appliance’s tightly sealed lid. You can reduce the liquid in your pot by roughly a third so that it covers the meat and vegetables but make sure to not overfill your slow cooker as the food won’t cook as well.
If you have added too much liquid and need to thicken the sauce, mix a small amount of cornflour with some cold water and at it into your slow cooker contents at the end.
Use the low setting on your slow cooker so that whatever dish your making can benefit the most from a slow, gentle heat which makes investing in and using a slow cooker worth it. It also is the safest option, should you be putting something to slow cook overnight or if you nip out to the shops with the appliance on and cooking a dish.
If you’re looking to optimise a relaxed form of cooking and not have to stand by the pot, you’ll want to choose recipes featuring ingredients that can be added in altogether at the beginning and then left to cook.
The general rule of thumb is that if a dish usually takes:
The best slow cookers will help you create delicious meals with minimal effort. Our top pick is the Ninja foodi possiblecooker 8-in-1 slow cooker, it’s a wonderful all-rounder that will completely transform how you use your kitchen. The slow cooker function worked so well that every single dish we tested with the appliance cooked evenly and was served up at the perfect temperature. We also loved how quickly it cooked, even on slow cook function, it was much faster than a traditional slow cooker. We loved its versatility too, so if you don’t have much space in your kitchen but like a kitchen gadget, this is the one for you.
If you don’t want a slow cooker with so many functions, then we recommend the Salter chalkboard. It’s a basic machine with a fun design, perfect if you want to keep the family up to date with what’s coming up for dinner. And if you’re on a budget, then it’s worth looking at the KitchenMaster 5.5l, which is big enough to feed all the family but at a bargain price.
For more ways to make weeknight meals a little easier, read our guide to the best air fryers