So, it's Winter and it's cold, which means the Slow Cooker's been dusted off and put to work.
I've made a few things so far this Winter, but forgot to take any photos or post about it...anyway, this one is a Country Chicken Casserole.
Now, the general rule is to brown the chicken and the onions to kick things off, then put them into the cooker and let it rip.
Not me. Even though the dish turns out a little pale, I figure that the slow cooker's there to do a job, so why should I have to brown things in oil. I just throw everything in and hope for the best. Things must turn out OK though because MONT always comes back for seconds.
OK
For this casserole:
10 chicken drumsticks,
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 stick of celery sliced.
... and whatever other veggies you have in the fridge... mushrooms, beans, peas etc...
Now, some recipes call for a can of celery or cream of mushroom soup, or even a can of chopped tomatoes to give you a nice sauce. Frankly I think you should just do whatever suits you. If you like tomato based dishes, then add a can of tomatoes. If you like a creamy based casserole, then add a can of cream of mushroom soup, or whatever you like.
Me?
Well into half a cup of water I added a Massel veggie stock cube, a slurp of white wine, a teaspoon of gravox, pepper and salt and a teaspoon of mixed herbs, then I poured it over the chicken and veggies, put the lid on, turned it to "high" and left it alone for four hours.
I then removed the chicken and stirred in a large dollop of cream, returned the chicken, and let it simmer for another half an hour.
Done
Eat.
Yes, it is a little pale, but it sure tasted good!
Your casserole looks and sounds delicious! I have only had our slow cooker for about a month now and absolutely LOVE it! It's the best time saver and everything always comes out so tender. I haven't experimented with much other than a curry and a few casseroles (using some flavour base sachets) and a roast lamb. P.S I visited your friend's blog yesterday and tried to leave a comment but couldn't work out how...
ReplyDeleteAmanda, I love my slow cooker. I can't believe sometimes just how easy it is to get a scrumptious meal out of it...considering what I threw in just 4 or so hours before.
ReplyDeleteI've got my slow cooker on now. (used to be known as a crock pot but don't want to appear old fashioned!)
ReplyDeleteI'm doing a piece of corned silverside, as it always turns out well....not so my other attemps at meals. I always feel let down by the finished product tho my daughter in Melbourne does such wonderful tasty meals. Where do I go wrong??? Maybe I'll give your recipe a try Lesley and with a little karma it may be a success !
White Dove, years ago I used to have an old orange coloured crock pot that I eventualy donated to an op-shop. I hated it because it was so darn hard to clean! This one is much easier as the pottery insert comes out and can be put in the dishwasher to clean.
ReplyDeleteAmanda, I've found the slow cooker recipe base for Mild Chicken Curry is really delish!. I don't brown the chicken and onion though, just throw everything in and let it be for 4 hours on high. The result is surprisingly delish!