These set-it-and-forget-it meals are perfect for busy winter days.
It’s winter, and soups and stews are perfect cold-weather comfort meals at dinner time. What makes them even more so is that many of them can be made in the slow cooker, their flavors melding together over many hours. Sometimes, those hours can be while you’re at work, either at the office or your office at home. When you’re working day is done, dinner is all but on the table.
Note: Some of the recipes don’t require a full eight hours to cook, so if you have a programmable slow cooker that turns to warm when the cooking time is done, that’s helpful. Others may need some attention a few hours in and may be better for those who work from home.
Jennifer Olve…
These set-it-and-forget-it meals are perfect for busy winter days.
It’s winter, and soups and stews are perfect cold-weather comfort meals at dinner time. What makes them even more so is that many of them can be made in the slow cooker, their flavors melding together over many hours. Sometimes, those hours can be while you’re at work, either at the office or your office at home. When you’re working day is done, dinner is all but on the table.
Note: Some of the recipes don’t require a full eight hours to cook, so if you have a programmable slow cooker that turns to warm when the cooking time is done, that’s helpful. Others may need some attention a few hours in and may be better for those who work from home.
Jennifer Olvera
Give yourself a little time before work to get this one started. Browning the chicken (but not cooking it through) and sautéing the veggies help build flavor in the soup. Throw them in the slow cooker with a variety of spices, beer, a few cans of chiles and tomatoes, apple cider vinegar, and stock. Cook everything on low for about four hours. When it’s done, shred the chicken, ladle the soup into bowls, and serve with toppings like avocado, cheese, and tortilla chips.
Serious Eats / Morgan Eisenberg
As pork shoulder cooks slowly, it tenderizes, making the slow cooker an optimal vehicle for making this chili. Once the chili has cooked until the pork falls apart, all that’s left to do is make a cornbread batter to create dumplings on top and give it one more hour.
Jennifer Olvera
This slow-cooker version of beef stroganoff delivers tender shreds of beef in a rich meaty sauce. Drape it over egg noodles for a complete meal.
Jennifer Olvera
Boneless pork shoulder cooks all day in the slow cooker with spices—including paprika— broth, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire, and tomato paste, for a hearty and satisfying dinner.
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Jennifer Olvera
Is there leftover holiday turkey in the freezer you need to use before it gets freezer burn? Here’s the answer. Sauté veggies on the stove, throw them in the slow cooker, then thicken stock on the stove with a roux. Put that in the slow cooker. Add leftover turkey, andouille, and seasonings. Towards the end of cooking, make a batch of rice to serve the gumbo over.
Jennifer Olvera
If gumbo isn’t what you want to do with your leftover turkey, this soup is a tasty alternative. Sauté carrots, onion, and celery before putting them in the slow cooker with leftover turkey, seasonings, lemon, Worcestershire, stock, and wine.