ISO how long food can be left in the crock-pot

[CTteh99]

Hi all,

So my friend recently got me a crock pot with a timer on it, thinking that I could put dinner in it before I went to work in the morning, and have dinner ready when I get home.

This sounds great and all, but the problem I have, is, I'm an HVAC technician, so I never know what time I will be getting home from work at night. I leave my house at 7am, and sometimes I'll be home around 5 or 6, and sometimes I won't be home till 7 or 8.

Most of the recipes I've looked at, say they get done anywhere from 4 hours to 6 hours cooking on low. My crock pot will automatically switch down to low once the allotted time is up.

But my question is, just how safe is it to leave on all that time? I know it switches down to warm an all, but how do I know that the liquid isn't eventually all going to boil off if I end up working till 7 or 8 at night, causing the food to then catch on fire? Or get overcooked at the very least?

Does anyone else use their crock pot for an extended amount of time like this?

 

[Dawgluver]

Question about how long food can be left in the crock pot

Welcome to DC!

Hm. I'll take a shot at this, though all my crockpots are the "old fashioned" kind without timers. No worries about losing liquid, the lid insures that. Chicken breasts might get overdone if you go over 6-8 hours. Cook everything on low, then reprogram to warm if you will be gone more than 6-8 hours. Otherwise, you should be fine. Have fun with your new toy!

 

[Zagut]

I feel your pain CTthe99.

I've wanted to use my crockpots for the set it and forget method but it's a learning curve to do so.

I wouldn't worry about your chow catching on fire but overcooking is a very real issue.

Depending on the Crockpot you have unless it has a temperature setting you have to play it by ear. Simple cheap crocks tend to have a temp that overcooks things. Thank . gov for that.

Experimentation and weekends are your friend here.

Try to cook what you want in the crock when you have the time to keep an eye on it.

Only you can decide what works for you and what doesn't.




BTW. Welcome to DC.

 

[GotGarlic]

Hi and welcome to Discuss Cooking

That's interesting about the cooking times you've seen. The ones I'm familiar with call for 10-12 hours on low. Of course, I would never do chicken breasts in a slow cooker because they do overcook easily. Recipes containing pork shoulder, beef chuck, or chicken thighs are best for slow cooking.

One way to solve this is to make meals on your days off and reheat leftovers on the days you work.

 

[jennyema]

Just make absolutely sure your crockpot's "warm" (holding) temperature is consistently above 140. Otherwise you risk food poisoning ...

 

[GotGarlic]

Just make absolutely sure your crockpot's "warm" (holding) temperature is consistently above 140. Otherwise you risk food poisoning ...

+1..

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Even great food that holds well, such as soups, stew, roasts in liquid, etc, will overcook if left at even 140' F. I've gotten away with split pea soup holding and highly edible for two days. but there is some moisture loss, and the sides, even on warm, will brown and create an off-flavor. With my crock pot, microbe growth would not be a problem. Slowly drying foods out, which not only browns the food, but concentrates the flavor will cause problems.

Theoretically, you could make a pot full of something like beef-barley soup, and simple add more water and a few ingredients, and if kept slightly above 340'F, keep it hot and cooking indefinitely, with no loss of quality. But I wouldn't do that.

It will easily keep overnight, if needed. Though as stated by the others, proteins will tend to dry out and toughen.

As a side note, I once simmered brats in my slow cooker overnight, and until the next evening meal. I was expecting a wonderful broth and tender sausages. The broth tasted great. The brats were like sawdust inside, though they were completely submerged by the cooking liquid. And they had no flavor. my only excuse is that I was young, and ignorant of how protein and water react with applied heat.

Have fun with your new SC, and remember, what takes a slow cooker 12 hours, can be done in a pressure cooker in 30 minutes.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Kayelle]

Once you've overcooked something in a crock pot, I find the food is flavorless and all the flavor of the meat and/or vegetables ends up in the liquid. Case in point is the process of making stock.
I rarely prepare food unattended and like to be in control of the time and temperature.

 

[Farmer Jon]

Im a farmer and my wife works in the fields with us at times. I will put a roast in at 6 am and sometimes not get in until 8 or 9 at night. I always put in extra water.

 

[dragnlaw]

*** No worries about losing liquid, the lid insures that. ***!

As a matter of fact that is one of the premises of the slow-cooker. Actually cooking with less liquid than you would on the stove top or oven.

If you have the type of cooker that automatically switches over to warm, check the instructions to see if there is also a turning off point. If it holds over you should be just fine.

But, as mentioned, practice on weekends to see which ones work for you.
And I agree, it is not easy to find some recipes that specify longer hours.

BTW, Welcome to DC!