PTFE Free Slow Cooker & My Favorite Recipes

It's comfort food season. I don't know about you, but as the temperatures drop and we move indoors, I've found myself cooking a lot more and craving hearty meals. For me, that means it's time to fire up the slow cooker. 

Today, I'm sharing my favorite slow cooker recipes (and my tweaks to them). These are all taken from various bloggers and home chefs around the internet.

Southern Smothered Baked Turkey Wings Recipe via Divas Can Cook

I am NOT a turkey person. I know that's a weird thing to say right before Thanksgiving. It's bland and flavorless, and you have to do a lot of work to make it taste like something. But I've discovered in recent years that I DO like turkey wings -- done right. I love this recipe because of the great combination of spices, and because I can set it and forget it in the slow cooker. 

The *bomb* seasoning mix:

• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (yes, Cajun seasoning. It works!)
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

I actually add a bit more of everything the Diva lists above (except salt and sugar), but the flavor combo she's got is spot on. This recipe also makes delicious gravy that you can serve with dressing. 

Slow Cooker Short Ribs Recipe (Bone-in) and Slow Cooker Ribs Recipe via Tasty

I've always been afraid of cooking ribs at home -- I think because I worry about undercooking them. But a slow cooker eliminates the guesswork. Now that I have a technique I have confidence in, I can look out for sales on them and spice up my menu rotation with something a little special. 

The only work in both of these recipes is making the sauce from scratch, which I find a lot of fun. In a pinch, you could use store bought barbecue sauce for the regular ribs. 

Cajun / Creole Slow Cooker Recipes

Red Beans and Rice via Damn Delicious

There's no need to be intimidated by Creole food. The main thing to remember is that most Louisiana cooking starts with the Holy Trinity (aka mirepoix): celery, onions, and bell pepper.

I love the idea of making recipes with ingredients I normally buy anyway, like beans, (I substitute kidney beans if I don't have red -- sue me), bell peppers and onions. The only special addition I had to make was the smoked andouille, but now I just keep packs of that in the freezer .

This is written as a stovetop recipe, but 8 hours in the slow cooker works great. The flavors blend and take on complexity, and the texture is creamy and delicious. I feel like a professional chef when I make this one.

Slow Cooker Creole Chicken and Sausage Recipe via Pinch of Yum  

Staying in Louisiana for a moment, here's another favorite from the region. You'll need smoked andouille sausage, green bell peppers, black beans, diced tomatoes, and chicken breasts. I skip the cayenne pepper (because the andouille is already spicy), and I skip the brown sugar to make a little healthier. I haven't worked up the nerve to try her almond butter hack, but one day...

My PTFE-Free Slow Cooker

Before I continue our culinary trip around the globe, I want to share the Crock Pot I use [Amazon]:

A big thing I was concerned about when choosing a Crock Pot was the cooking surface. The insert on this one is made of stoneware, which is a PTFE-free material that's naturally non-stick. 

I didn't want to go smaller than a 6-quart, even though it seemed quite big, because you're supposed to leave room and not fill it to the top, and a 4-quart is limiting in that regard. The digital timer works in 30-minute increments. It's a bit annoying to have to push the up button 16 times to set it for 8 hours, but I guess the flip side is you gives you some flexibility in setting the cooking times. After the cooking ends, it simply goes into Warm mode until you unplug it. The lid and the insert are easy to clean. The cord is short, but that's by design -- for safety -- so make sure you have some counter space next to an outlet.

Italian Slow Cooker Recipes

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore via Well Plated

There's a little prep work on the front end, because you have to brown the chicken and cook the veggies a few minutes on the stove. But after that, dump it in the Crock Pot, set it and forget it. The only tweak I make here is to add red pepper. Adding some red wine would be yummy as well.

Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Chicken & Orzo via Creme De La Crumb

For the nights when you want a true one-pot meal, give this a try. Orzo is technically a pasta, but it cooks up just like rice. It goes right in the Crock Pot, so you don't have to make a separate side. 

You can use either boneless, skinless thighs, or chicken breasts in this versatile recipe.

Slow Cooker Meatballs (Italian Style) via  Dinner at the Zoo

Everybody loves meatballs, and slow cooker recipes like this are a great way to make them without worrying about drying them out -- particularly if you use ground turkey instead of beef, like I do. The only thing I don't like about this recipe (and it's not the author's fault) is that you need a lot of tomato ingredients, and they can get costly. This recipe takes diced tomatoes, AND tomato sauce, AND marinara.

Crock Pot Tips

• Cook on low, even if the recipe has an option for high heat for a shorter time.
• In a lot of these recipes, brown the chicken first for extra flavor.
• Don't salt too heavily at beginning. Flavors intensify the longer things cook.
• Do a taste test 3/4 of the way through. There's enough time left to impart more flavor if you need to add some herbs or salt at *this* point.

Chinese / Asian Slow Cooker Recipes

Spicy Slow Cooker Beef & Bell Pepper via Let the Baking Begin!

OK, I clearly need to beef up my repertoire in this area, but here's a recipe I really like. It's so easy and delicious that I feel it should be in one of those copycat takeout recipe cookbooks. 

Beef, bell pepper, onion, garlic, sriracha, and cornstarch -- that's all you need!

Southwest / Tex-Mex Crock Pot Recipes

Chicken Chili via Martha Stewart

This is another recipe that's written for the stove top, but I just cook it in the slow cooker on low for 6-7 hours. I love that I don't have to cut up the chicken first. Just let it get tender in the Crock Pot, and shred it with a fork at the end.

I make a couple adjustments. 1 use one adobe chili instead of two, I cut it into big pieces instead of dicing it so I can fish some pieces out if gets too spicy. (I love spicy-ish foods, but sometimes my stomach does not.)

I don't normally buy fresh tomatoes, but I use 2 jars/cans of diced tomatoes and drain them.

For the piece de resistance, I make cakey cornbread to crumble up in it.

Slow Cooker Taco Chicken Bowls via Budget Bytes

This is my fallback slow cooker recipe, because 1) I always have ALL of these ingredients on hand, and 2) the prep is super minimal. Even the corn can go in frozen.

I add red onions, even though she doesn't list them. I top with green onions if I have them, but I wouldn't buy them just for that purpose. 

Besides the easy prep and not being stuck in the kitchen for hours, the other thing I like about Crock Pot cooking is that it makes a lot of food. There's enough for multiple people, or for one person to have leftovers for several days.