slow cooker sesame-orange chicken

slow cooker sesame-orange chicken from page 130 of Against All Grain.

This recipe was so so so good. I loved it. And it worked perfectly in my instant pot (on low). This is one to make frequently!

Notes: this is great also if you substitute the honey with 2-3 TBSP of Swerve.

Pot Roast in the Crock Pot

My Instant Pot *low* function cooks a little too low, unfortunately. I'm glad I kept my old 6 quart crockpot, as it can hold more and does better at sensitive slow cooker stuff.

I had two 2-lb chuck roasts and wanted to do them both at once. I used this recipe as a guide (http://www.food.com/recipe/crock-pot-best-chuck-roast-356560) but did not add the mushroom soup since it has wheat & dairy. I put in a few yukon gold potatoes and some carrots, and onion and celery too. I may have put in a small amount of cabbage, I forget. I put all that on the bottom and then put the meat on top. I did sear the meat, and then the two roasts were slightly overlapped since they were bigger. I think I added coconut milk to this to replace the mushroom soup, and it turned out fantastic. I couldn't taste any coconut, but it was the best pot roast I've had in a long time. I served it to the Parkers and there wasn't anything left at the end of the meal.

Next time I would like to add mushrooms too.

Overnight Breakfast Casserole

From Against All Grain/Meals made simple cookbook, p. 62.

Use more potatoes, fewer eggs. I had to put it under the broiler at the end since the top wasn't cooked in my instantpot. Also, I did it on medium for 6 hours. It may cook faster in a standard crockpot that has a wider base. David thought it was bland and he missed the cheese. I used ground pork intead of sausage because that's what I had, so next time I should get some italian sausage and add in more seasonings. I also used regular unpeeled potatoes instead of sweet.

I thought this was yummy and a nice change on standard crockpot dinners of x over rice or soup.

Thai Beef Stew

http://againstallgrain.com/2014/07/07/crockpot-paleo-thai-stew/
Crockpot Thai Beef Stew

I used a different red curry paste, and this was good. (it was actually a blend of two). I used only about 3 oz of it because I know from experience the one linked in the original recipe is extremely mild. I served it over rice.

Easy Beef Stew (pressure cooker or slow cooker)

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/20-minute-beef-stew.html
Pressure Cooker Beef Stew

I made about 2/3 the amounts listed here, but it all fit easily in my 4 qt pot. I think the full recipe would fit in the 4 qt. I did 20 minutes of high pressure, and then let it sit for another 10-15 without heat before depressurizing (since my husband wasn't home). I think that was helpful time. The stew was fantastic. I highly recommend. Also, I think it is a bit meat heavy.

Update:
I now use a 6 qt electric pressure cooker. Don't sear the meat. It just wastes time and I don't ever get a good sear anyway. Just dump in the meat. Here is a modified recipe based on the link above and this one: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/beef-stew-vi/

2 lb stew meat
salt and pepper
1/3 c gf flour mix (Trader Joes)
4 c. beef broth
4 carrots, sliced
4 celery stocks, sliced
2 small or 1 large onion, chopped
1 T herbs de provence
3 large potatoes, cut into bite sized chunks
2 garlic cloves
1 T tomato paste

stir flour into meat w/ salt and pepper. Or, whisk into 1 cup of the broth. Add all ingredients. Stir and cook in slow cooker for 4 hrs on high, or 8 hrs on low. Or, set pressure cooker for 30 minutes (or push stew button). And let depressurize naturally for a bit after (if there is time.)

Sweet Shredded Pork

http://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/2008/09/cafe-rio-sweet-pork.html

I did not follow the recipe exactly because I had no coke (only 7 year old diet pepsi from my car trunk that tasted beyond strange and I threw it out), so this is rated based on a moderated recipe.

2 lbs pork
1/2 c brown sugar
1 cup red enchilada sauce (or so)
1 can diced green chilies

David does not like sweet pork very much. I liked the enchilada sauce and green chilies mixed with pork, but it would do better without the sugar unless you follow the recipe exactly to get cafe rio-ness.

But it makes an awful lot of pork for two people when one of them does not care for sweet pork.

Slow Cooker Brown Rice

I don't have a rice cooker because we don't have rice enough AND I have too many appliances as it is. I made rice in the slow cooker though and though it is SLOW it is really convenient.

2 parts water
1 part brown rice
2-2.5 hours on high.

It was perfect rice.

Italian Minestrone Soup

Italian Minestrone Soup
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2011/11/italian-minestrone-soup-in-slow-cooker.html

David really liked this. And me too. And it was easy. It barely fit into my 3 quart crockpot, except I transferred it to another pot on the stove when I added the pasta. It MIGHT have held the pasta, but I was in a rush to finish so didn't want to wait for it to cook in the slow cooker.

This serves 4 adults, just barely.

Enchilada Chicken Chili

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2010/01/enchilada-chicken-chili.html

This was good, and I managed to fit it all into my 3 qt crock pot!

Falafels

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/05/crockpot-falafel-recipe.html

This method of cooking falafels was not very successful. They tasted pretty good though. I would not do it in a crockpot next time. They cooked unevenly. I wanted to make falafel that was not deep fried, but I could always just do it in a skillet with a couple tablespoons of oil.

I served the falafel with leftover hummus and some yogurt sauce I mixed up quickly.

Pork and Poblano Tamale Pie

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pork-and-Poblano-Tamale-Pie-357537

This was so good. I was really taken with this recipe in every way, and that's pretty rare so I gave it an unheard of 5. I was in a rush and didn't want to let it simmer for as long as the recipe said, so I turned it into a partial crockpot recipe. I put the raw pork in a 3 quart crockpot with the garlic, green salsa, and chicken broth. I put in on low while I was gone (6 hrs). It was super tender when I got back, and then I finished the recipe. After sauteing the onions and adding spices, I threw everything together and only simmered for 10-15 minutes while I mixed the cornbread batter and then put it in the oven. This would have been fine in a casserole dish, but I just left it in the skillet I used since it happens to have a metal handle and is ok for oven use.

For the pork, I used a strip of "country style pork rib" that I chopped up. It wasn't boneless, but I removed the bones after I turned off the crockpot.

I consider poblanos to be a very mild pepper. So don't worry about the heat. If you are a wimp (like my mom), use fewer poblanos and more bell pepper.

Notes from 3/27/10:

-Don't skip the corn puree step, even it your equipment doesn't seem to work well. It makes a big difference in the texture of the final product.

-And don't skimp on meat.

-And don't use all wheat flour in the cornbread topping. If adding wheat, do 50/50 mixture with white.

-And don't leave the poblanos in the oven too long. They get tough and are impossible to peel. Bake them at 500 for 15 minutes or so, and call it good, even if not charred. Alternatively, char them on the stove to over open flame.

-It is possible to leave the skins on the peppers, but then you have skins floating around in the dish. It is less appetizing. I prefer the skins removed even though roasting takes extra time.

Taco Soup

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/02/original-taco-soup-crockpot-recipe.html

I made this recipe with dried kidney beans that had been soaked overnight and then frozen. DH wasn't too excited about the corn, he didn't think it added to the dish. I didn't use the seasoning packets, but tried to instead add the ingredients that are in the packets (like onion, garlic, dill, chili powder, cumin, etc).

I don't think I'll use this version again. So many taco soup recipes call for a zillion cans, and I wanted to make it more from scratch. Dried beans are much cheaper.

It was good (though not as good as it could be) and is great with tortilla chips. Marra Brothers chips are the best if you go to JJ&F in Palo Alto!