all your usual all-in-one dishes will work (like chili) of course - you probably knew that already. You might need to add some cornflour and water to thicken since it won't boil thicker. Creamed corn works too!

I don't know how much this will help you, but I usually throw in a protein (fish or chicken could work, or even tofu chunks), a can of chopped tomatoes and suitable flavourings and another veg of some kind, sometimes potatoes. Since my lump of protein is usually pork or beef and frozen solid you probably wouldn't need to cook it for as long if you were doing chunks of tofu!

I see no point whatsoever in browning everything first. The whole point of the crockpot for me is that you minimise the work and get to make dinner at breakfast. I can't imagine myself defrosting a lump of meat overnight and browning it and some vegetables at breakfast! The only exception to that might be onions, which do take on a totally different flavour when fried rather than boiled from raw. Personally though I might consider having fried onions on the side if I was going to make such a fuss. Again, frying onions at breakfast or even lunch is more than I can handle.

Soups work too, though clear is better unless you like lots of cornflour or lots of creamed corn! You can always add small quantities of instant mashed potato flakes as a thickener too if you have them.

I've never 'roasted' anything or done anything dry in mine. I've done a Chinese rice dessert though (glutinous black and white rices), but it usually only reaches the right consistency by the third day!!!

I think if you do wet stuff it's very straightfoward, and if you like cooking with cans of soup then it's even more versatile and easy. Just remember that it will stay wetter than stovetop dishes and adjust accordingly. And common sense will go a long way - just because it says fry it first doesn't mean it. Oh, and chicken will break apart naturally after a while, so no need to cut up anything first if you leave it on long enough!

Ratatouille is a great thing to do in there too, and you can always throw a protein in it if you want, or just have it over pasta or rice.

Kerri.