Need Guidance in Buying a Crockpot

Judimae's picture
Submitted by Judimae on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 7:31am.

Hello All,
I am a new member here and need some guidance in buying a new crockpot. There are so many models to chose from and I want to make sure that I make a reasonable choice. Does anybody have any recommendations on what brand/model to buy. I would like to buy an oval-shaped model (preferably 5 to 6-quart size). I cook for just two of us, but would like a larger size so that I will have leftovers or make enough for company.

I am interested in one of the Rival Smart Pot Slow Cookers, but I understand that it gets VERY hot and this might not be the best way to go. I need a crockpot that will stay on at times for at least 10 hours if possible.

I saw there is a new generation of smart pot Rival model 38651-c which claims it is programmable and you can set in 1/2 hour increments.

Does anybody know about the smart pots, how versatile they are, how easy they are to use. I know that the early smart pots were not as versatile and you were stuck with the time settings and it could not be manually changed. I need a crockpot that you can program the time you want it to cook for.

I presently own an Ultrex crockpot from Home Shopping Network. I am NOT happy with this crockpot. I used it once to make white bean soup and can't seem to get the stain off of the liner. The ULTREX company does not stand behind their product and did not offer to change the liner for me. I did own a West Bend cooker many, many years ago, and was happy with it, but I think there are more advanced-type models.

Any help would be greatly appreciated on what you feel is a good crockpot. I am willing to spend as much as necessary to get something that will last and perform well.

Thanks,

Judi


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jennye's picture

Well, I don't know much about

Submitted by jennye on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 7:52am.

Well, I don't know much about crockpots and different kinds and brands of them. But, I have what I think is a 5 qt (but not sure) round Rival one that is good. And, I have a GE 6qt one that is oval. I've never been unhappy with the round one, I got it 11 years ago as a wedding gift. But I wanted an oval one to cook bigger roasts. DH gave it to me for Christmas 2 years ago. It's cool, has a keep warm feature and also came with two other little half-trays so that you could keep two different dips warm at once. It's purty, too. LOL! It's black and white and has apples on it.

But there are no timers on these. They are just plain jane ones I guess. But I've never had a problem with them, and I seldom time anything anyway. I just put it on in the morning on low, and that night it's ready for dinner. LOL!

Lynn's picture

Me, I always recommend...

Submitted by Lynn on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 9:33am.

...your neighborhood thrift store to find a good-sized pot with a ceramic liner. I have an old Rival (I think) with a big blue ceramic liner and I see just the liners for my pot at the thrift store all the time. I'm thinking of picking up a couple so I can swap out my cooking.

But if you want a new one, this one sells well here and has been recommended more than once.

Lynn Siprelle, Editor

Snork maiden's picture

A slight digression....

Submitted by Snork maiden on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 9:55am.

(with apologies)
As the conversation is on crock pots could anyone tell me if there are suitable recipes for this sort of cooking for vegetarians? I've heard a lot about crock pot cooking but it has always been about meat recipes and as a life long veggie I have never really looked into the whole thing but do you think it would be suitable for veggie cooking and if so do you know of any recipe books that deal with this subject?

Snork Maiden

lgunnoe's picture

It seems to me...

Submitted by lgunnoe on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 11:07am.

Advanced warning: Not only am I NOT a vegetarian...I actually dislike MOST vegetables Eye-wink )

BUT....

It seems to me that there aren't many vegetables that would take crock-pot-style cooking and come out for the better....KWIM? Most would be a soggy, mushy mess. Not to mention that many of the nutrients that vegetables have would likely be destroyed by the extended cooking time and necessary liquid.

Maybe a good vegetable soup or a corn chowder...maybe some of the root veges...but other than that, I can't think of many long-cooking, liquid needing recipes for vegetables.

Of course, I'm not one with a wide experience in cooking vegetables, so hopefully someone else will have better ideas!

On the subject of recommendations: I don't know about one brand over another...but I will NEVER, EVER again use a crock-pot that doesn't have a removable liner. Big grin

Blessings,
Lenora
"...if woman's work is never done, why bother about how much of it [isn't] getting done at any given moment?"
~ Claire Fraser in The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon
(Book 6 in the Outlander series is due Sept.27!)

Snork maiden's picture

Vegetables are our friend... :)

Submitted by Snork maiden on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 11:28am.

How can you NOT like vegetables???? Shocked Laughing out loud

I did wonder about the length of cooking bit (which is part of what I don't know about crock pots)but I wondered about recipes using 'robust' items like soya chunks etc. Hmmmmm perhaps crock pots are just not a vegetarian thing.
Pity, I really like the idea of something cooking itself! Ah well, back to the stove for me then. Smiling

jennye's picture

Another Carnivore here! LOL!

Submitted by jennye on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 4:18pm.

Another Carnivore here! LOL! Veggies are the enemy. Red meat, friend.

BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

Becky's picture

yes on veggies

Submitted by Becky on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 1:28pm.

I made bean soup in the crockpot just last week. And my crockpot cookbook includes a number of vegetarian recipes. Google crockpot + vegetarian or something like that and you'll find plenty.

Andrea's picture

yes I think so

Submitted by Andrea on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 2:18pm.

Yes Snork Maiden, I think it would work - bean soups, veggie soups and stews, chowders, all come to mind. Maybe just shorter cooking times for some veggies and cook on low. Google it or go to some vegetarian sites or all recipes-

Yum, I'm getting hungry.

Andrea's picture

veggies

Submitted by Andrea on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 4:41pm.

Oh c'mon Jenny - you know you like veggies! What about all that fried squash you eat?

jennye's picture

Fried Squash

Submitted by jennye on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 6:05pm.

I can't eat it anymore because of DH being on Weight Watchers. Sad

Ok, I do like a fresh tomato for my BLTs, and lately I have been craving salad from one restaurant in town. And corn on the cob is good. But that's about it. LOL!

Marlene's picture

My Recommendation

Submitted by Marlene on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 4:56pm.

ok, after years of being the crockpot queen, and going thru many of them, I have found the best to be the Cuisinart. True, its probably the most expenive of all of them, but I figure over the years, all the money I have spent on Rivals and Westbends etc....I have already bought one!! The Cuisinart has 6.5 quart black removable dishwasherble (lol) crock, 8 hr. timer, retractable cord storage too.....I got mine at Kohls for 99.00, the Cuisinart website says 150.00 but I have never seen it for that much anywhere. Comes with a rack and a cookbook too. Here is a link to the website for specs http://cuisinart.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi/en/item.cgi?item_id=CSC-650#specs

As for veggie AND meaty recipes, my favorite book is Fix It And Forget It. Has couple hundred recipes and a couple sections on veggies and bean main dishes. They are tried and true recipes from homemakers.
Hope all this helps! Hope everyone is having a good Sunday!
Marlene

Shaun's picture

Vegetarian foods, etc.

Submitted by Shaun on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 5:49pm.

We are not really vegetarian right now (though I think we may go back to it!), but I will say that I like my crockpot for cooking beans, especially in the summer when 3 hours of cooking dried chickpeas makes the kitchen unbearable! And then it is ideal for bean dishes, soups, stews, etc. Since I like to save money by buying and cooking dried beans rather than getting canned I think it is wonderful just for that purpose! We do eat a lot of beans!

Also, lots of vegetarian crockpot dishes that are not bean-based can be relatively quick cooking (2-3 hrs. as opposed to all day). That's fine for me b/c I'm here anyway, but if you were gone all day it might be harder.

The 2 cookbooks I like, which are not vegetarian cookbooks, are Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook and Healthy Crockery Cookery, the latter of which has one of my favorite crockpot recipes for quasi-Indian chickpeas (they even please my DH, who is often a real purist when it comes to ethnic foods). I tend to flee from recipes that call for canned things (with some exceptions) and these don't have as much cream of mushroom soup or evaporated milk as many other cookbooks. They do have good vegetarian/bean sections, and I like to look at all the recipes just to get ideas.

I've seen in one of these some recipes for homemade granola, which I really want to try! And poached eggs too! (not an all day thing, but an easier way to make them)

I also love the crockpot for cooking a ton of food and then freezing it.

Oh, and as for green veggies that would easily go limp, I've noticed that some recipes have you toss them in for the last 1/2 hour.

I have a Rival 6.5 qt.(chrome exterior) that I got from Amazon during a post-fire spending spree. Made sense to get a crockpot when we had no stove! I like it but it is a bit large for someone who doesn't make roasts (as I don't), and it is hot to the touch (not really a concern for me).

Regarding the nutrition, I don't think it would be a big loss, presuming that you weren't draining whatever liquid/moisture was part of the recipe.

Anhata's picture

I like to go by amazon.com's customer reviews

Submitted by Anhata on Sun, 09/25/2005 - 8:17pm.

I like to go to amazon.com and read the customer reviews. They've helped save me more money! And I've always liked the items I've gotten there with the best reviews. My crock pot is the primitive OFF/HI/LOW kind, so I'm no help there.

However, snork maiden, for vegetarian crock pot cuisine I recommend The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes by Judith Finlayson. It does have meat recipies in it, but it also has

Appetizers and Fondues
Soups (many are vegetarian or convertable with vegetable stock)
Beans, Lentils and Chilies (also, convertible to vegetarian)
Fish, Seafood, and Vegetarian Favorites
Vegetables
Desserts

It's the only slow cooker cookbook I recommend, the recipies are fabulously yummy.

There's also two or three veggie crock pot recipies in our recipe section.

Good hunting, gals!
Anhata
www.familynaturally.com
Your Family's General Store, Naturally

Snork maiden's picture

Thank you ladies!

Submitted by Snork maiden on Mon, 09/26/2005 - 9:20am.

I think there might be a crock pot out there with my name on! Smiling and I've added the books to my Amazon wish list ready for DH to go looking for Christmas present ideas so hopefully a life of leisure while dinner cooks itself beckons. Laughing out loud
Shaun - I know what you mean about recipes that include convenience foods in the ingredients - they never seem quite like a 'proper' recipe to me somehow. I guess vegetarians are just used to suffering for their food. LOL
Anhata - thanks for pointing me at the recipes on this site, I'll check them out.

Snork Maiden

Anhata's picture

Shoulda also mentioned...

Submitted by Anhata on Thu, 09/29/2005 - 3:10pm.

As to size, get the largest crock pot you can possibly fit in your kitchen or pantry. Mine is big and I love how much stuff I can get in it. I can cook a small chicken in it. However, I don't recommend my brand. It's a West Bend and the outer shell gets very hot during cooking. Makes me a bit nervous. That's the only problem I have with it though. The crock does tend to stain a little, but I don't mind terribly, I know it's clean.

Anhata
www.familynaturally.com
Your Family's General Store, Naturally

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