I confess. I have crockpotophobia.

[GB]

The biggest thing for me with the crock pot is I can prep it the night before, throw it on in the morning, and have dinner ready when I get home from work.

That is why I like them too Saph.

I just made this yesterday. I prepped everything the night before aside from the lentils. I had everything in a mixing bowl in the fridge. In the morning I dumped the mixing bowl into the crockpot and then rinsed and added the lentils. I spent less than 5 minutes in the morning setting it up. When I got home from work the house smelled great and dinner was ready.

1 (16 ounce) package dry lentils
1 (16 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
28oz beef broth
21oz water
1 carrot, chopped
2 pounds kielbasa (Polish) sausage, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 stalks celery, chopped

Rinse and drain lentils, but do not soak. In a slow cooker, stir together the lentils, tomatoes, broth, water, carrot, sausage and celery.

Cover, and cook on High setting for 3 hours, or Low setting for 6 to 7 hours.

Stir well before serving.

 

[Saphellae]

That looks like a terrific recipe GB! However I don't measure in ounces... cups please!!!

I love polish sausage. Is this something to serve over rice?

 

[GB]

16oz is 2 cups. 28oz is 3.5 cups.

We eat this as is without rice or anything else, but rice certainly would not ruin it. I bet that could be a tasty change.

This makes a lot of food so we have lots of leftovers. If we ate it with rice we would have even more leftovers which might even be too much.

 

[Claire]

Oh, dear. When I was a single gal living alone, the crock pot was my very best friend. I don't even own one now, but have a special burner on my stove that is meant to be a crock-pot burner. It was always wonderful to make sauces and stews; just brown the meat and onions and garlic, then toss it all in the crock pot and go to work. Come home, dish out some for me and my cat, and the rest in the freezer. When I had guests, it was a true godsend. I was too broke to just take time off, so I'd fix chilis, stews, poached birds, etc, and leave my friends/family to do a tourist day (I lived in DC at the time) and dinner would be ready when I came home from work.

 

[GrillingFool]

I made my first crock pot pork loin the other day. Turned out very good, but the recipe was WAY salty for me.

I see more crockpotting in the future! In fact I bought a nice chuck roast the other day, just for the crock pot.

 

[Mrs. Cuillo]

I am not a big fan of the crock pot either but I am slowly opeing up to it. I think it works VERY well for stews, soups and chili's. I am working on my meats though. For instance, today I threw some chicken drumsticks in the pot with some onions, mushrooms, tomato sauce and spices for chicken caccatiore(sp) this morning. This is the first time I have tried it with fresh chicken. I've done simple things like weenies, meatballs and wings but never something like this.
My personal advice is to try using it every once in a while if you are looking to use it more. Not everything is made to be cooked in a crock pot but make an effort to find some great recipes on here and try it out. You never know what you may find out you like! Best of luck to you!!

 

[luvs]

i like my crockpot. it's great for chli, like geebs said. iit's a baby one, just enough for me & jake.

 

[Vanilla Bean]

I have to say I love my crock-pots, too! My oven was acting up for a bit, and they came in handy. I can only think of a couple of crock-pot meals that I haven't liked. I have even used mine for great meatloaf and baked potatoes... at the same time!

 

[Kathleen]

Crockpot Luv: Polish-Style

I suppose I am fortunate that I didn't grow up with a crockpot granny. When I moved to college, it was a gift that someone bought for me. I started with the recipes in the small book that came with the crockpot. Since then, I have moved in different directions. I use my crockpot for stews, soups, sauces, etc.; however, my favorite crockpot recipe is Kielbasa (Polish sausage) with sauerkraut. (GB's recipe inspired me to share.) It's a one pot meal and nothing is better on bitterly cold winter evenings. It's a fix and forget dish. Very easy to make.



Ingredients:

• Quartered and rinsed potatoes - Enough to layer the bottom of the crockpot. (I use thin-skinned Yukon Gold or Irish and leave skins on. If skins are thick, peel and rinse. If the potatoes are small, just half them.)
• 1 - large onion, chopped, toss over the potatoes
• 1-2 golden delicious apples, chopped. (I leave skins on.) Thow over the onions.
• 1-2 lbs. Raw Polish kielbasa - enough to add a layer over the apples
• Sprinkle a little caraway seed over the sausage, if you like caraway. If not, leave it out.
• Sauerkraut (with no sugar added) enough to make a layer to cover over all. (I use 1 - 2 large cans or two bags. No draining or stirring needed - just dump it over everything.)

Cook covered on low for 8 to 12 hours. No need to stir. Serve in shallow bowls.

I sometimes serve this with fried cornbread or my grandmother's scalded bread, which is basically white cornmeal with a bit of salt that has boiling water added until it is the texture of playdough, then patted out and fried in vegetable oil until golden brown. Slather on the butter for ultimate comfort food. (The bread goes well with beef stew made in crockpots too.)

~Kathleen

 

[GB]

Kathleen, your recipe sounds great. I will make this next time I do a crockpot meal. And welcome to the site

I have found that certain things do really well in the crock pot and certain things do not do well. Boneless white meat (chicken) does not do well, but many Polish dishes (sausages, potatoes, sour kraut, etc.) usually work great.