These days, electric pressure cookers are the hot culinary appliance. And while I love the ability to cook and braise quickly, slow cookers will forever be at the top of my kitchen helper hit parade (as I type this, I have two running in my kitchen).
Happily Liana Krissoff, one of my favorite cookbook authors, is also a devoted slow cooker fan. Her brand new book, Slow Cook Modern, is the most useful and practical take on making dinner in the slow cooker that I’ve ever seen. It’s also a ridiculously beautiful book.
There are a lot of things that are brilliant about this book. First is the fact that all the slow cooker recipes are designed to cook for 8 hours. That means, you can set up your slow cooker in the morning, go to work, and actually come home to a meal (if you have a long commute time, make sure to use a slow cooker that will switch to ‘Keep Warm’ after a pre-programmed amount of time). So many slow cooker recipes are written to cook for 3-4 hours, which is not at all useful for people who work outside their homes.
The second thing that’s really inspired about this book is that every soup, stew, braise, and roast comes paired with a side recipe, as well as suggestions for other sides in the book that would go nicely with that dish. These sides are worth the price of admission alone.
All the recipes are organized by what you need to do the in the morning and what you’ll do just before serving. There are pages with ideas for what to do with leftovers. There are a handful of recipes for slow cooker stock. There’s a chili base that I want to make this week. There’s even a recipe for slow cooker quark that I’ll be sharing on Friday! So much goodness!
I feel like this is a book that I could spend the next couple years work through and exploring. I can’t wait to dig in (and the two eggplants in my fridge mean that the Eggplant Tian on page 28 will be happening this week).
Thanks to the lovely folks at Abrams, I have a copy of this brilliant book to giveaway this week. Let’s do this one the old school method.
- Leave a comment on this post and share your favorite slow cooker dish.
- Comments will close at 11:59 pm eastern time on Sunday, September 17, 2017. Winners will be chosen at random and this post will be updated with the winner.
- Giveaway open to United States and Canadian residents.
- One comment per person, please. Entries must be left via the comment form on the blog at the bottom of this post.
This giveaway is now closed. The winner is #66/MaryKay Lawrence. Congratulations MaryKay!
Disclosure: Abrams provided both review and giveaway copies at no cost to me. No additional compensation was provided.
Pulled pork shoulder with chipotles and Dr. Pepper : )
Beef stew and fruit butters.
I love making chicken tacos in the slow cooker! I make a huge batch and we eat leftovers for days.
Rosemary Garlic Pork Chops!! YUM!
The Liana Krissoff/Rinne Allen partnership has to be one of the most under-appreciated things in the food world these days. Their books are just so perfect – accessible, creative, practical, beautiful. I just love them and wish they would get a little more attention!
I will return to my teaching job next week and I will appreciate my slow cooker helping me out with meal preparation. I make lots of soups in my slow cooker. I especially like to make white chicken chili.
Just made a delicious and scrumptious beef daube provencal in my slow cooker this week. The beef was so tender and juicy… oh my gosh so good. I also made some chunky vegetarian chili in my slow cooker this week. I love using my slow cooker. It is my favorite thing to use in the kitchen. So easy peasy!
vegetarian chili–make the dry beans in the crock pot and then add all your veggies and seasonings!
I do a thai chicken thigh recipe – it’s one I do and then freeze as it’s big batch and my hubby and I are empty-nesters now. But still love it. Hope I win – as a busy teacher I need a 8 hour cook time!
Pork carnitas ! I would so love to win this book ! ???
I found a recipe for slow cooker ratatouille that I really like. But slow cooker chili may still be my favorite.
I love split pea soup in the sow cooker
Oh my goodness I LOVE a good pot roast in the slow cooker. With carrots and potatoes cooking with the meat – YUM!
I love making a taco chicken chili in the slow cooker- so good!!!!
My husband’s chili
My favorite thing to make in the slow cooker (or instant pot) is carnitas!
chicken stock!
I have actually never used a slow cooker, but would love to experiment with the one my husband had when we got married. This would be a great kick in the pants to start!
Any kind of roast or chicken that is going to be shredded. This book sounds amazing, especially the longer cooking recipes! And, I had to google quark 😉
Sausage and cabbage stew. (I mostly make it up as I go.)
I just adore making apple butter in my slow cooker. It is the perfect vessel for it!
I love a slow cooker! A whole chicken waiting for me when I get home is amazing! Now I have choices for dinner!
I use my slow cooker mostly to make applesauce, pulled pork, and shredded chicken.
Chicken Fricot!
I like to make chicken stock with veggies & chicken carcus. Also love a good pulled pork.
Pork roast with carrots and potatoes!
Buffalo Chicken Soup!
Mouth watering pulled pork!
Does a natural dye recipe count? 1:1 ratio of yarn to jewel weed fronds is my favorite ?
That’s really all I’ve used my ancient slow cooker for but this book might inspire me to get a new food safe pot now, especially to make quark (just got the Classic German Baking book, filled with recipes using quark),
Big batches of seasoned, shredded chicken that I can freeze for use later in recipes like chicken burritos and enchiladas, chicken salad, chicken stew, BBQ chicken sandwiches, etc. Also like to do overnight breakfast casseroles with sausage and eggs. It’s great to wake up to a hot and hearty meal!
Jambalaya!!
Hawaiian pulled pork – or chicken with 40 cloves of garlic…
I’m still working on a favorite.
I’m trying to develop my own version of chili. Yes, that elusive chili.
Although I guess technically not classic chili as mine has beans in it because I *like* beans. But I waffle between beef chunks, ground beef and a combination of beef and pork. Also what kinds of beans. I’ve done as few as one and as many as four different kinds.
Why do this? Well, I can’t tolerate the “heat” any more, plus store bought chili has a lot of sodium. So to control both the sodium and the amount and type of peppers, I am working on making my own.
And I’ve found a slow cooker is best for this.
I’ve also done a family lentil soup recipe in the slow cooker more than once.
Oh, and I’m still working on perfecting pulled pork but it’s not nearly as close to perfected as the chili. I will say this. Don’t do the pulled pork that requires soda like Coke or Root Beer. It’s awful.
Although I live alone I still love my slow cooker because I cook for loved ones often. I also use it to make fruit butters and bacon jam. I love coming home to the wonderful aroma of dinner. This cookbook sounds like a dream.❤
Pulled pork carnitas….yum. The house smells so good, the food is so good.
My favorite is chili, easy, tasty and quick.
Stew always is a pleaser. Thanks for the chance.
Chile Verde Pork is my fave to make. I want to try making a plum butter in a crock pot though, I’ve heard it makes the process easier.
Hard to choose, but pulled pork, chili and apple butter are all up there!
The thing I make most is a sweet potato and black bean chili. But I’d love more ideas!!
Lazy slow cooker reduced onion jam!
I use my slow cooker mostly for making chicken stock with bit of vegetables and chicken bones I’ve thrown in my freezer, but I also like making red beans: http://recipes.oregonlive.com/recipes/slow-cooker-cajun-red-beans-and-rice
I’ve only ever used mine to cook steel cut oats and other porridge things overnight for breakfast. I haven’t really found any slow cooker cook books for the kind of food I eat, so this book would be a great intro!
I like cooking country ribs in the slow cooker.
Believe it or not, my favorite thing to cook overnight in the slow cooker is hot cereal. I use a pint jar to hold steel cut oats, or grits or Bob’s Seven grain. I mix 1/4 cup of cereal with milk, water and a dash of salt and set it in 3-4 inches of water with a dollop of vinegar (prevents hard water scale) overnight on low.
Chiles rellenos. It’s a recipe from an old slow-cooker cookbook that requires 2 blocks of cheese! Creates a cheesy, peppery souffle that really should only be consumed once a year. But tasty!
Applesauce! (Although the pork shoulder is right up there with me, too!) The book looks great!
Pork roast with root vegetables
Pork shoulder with soy, ginger, and grapefruit
Pulled pork shoulder!!