10 Crockpot Cooking Tips

Since I’m in the middle of a #CrockpotThursday series, I thought it would be a good time to share some of my helpful crockpot cooking tips:

1. For a healthier crockpot meal, use reduced fat soups and reduced fat or light sour cream, cream cheese and cream. Also, ground turkey or chicken can be used in place of ground beef.

2. Cook and drain the ground beef or turkey before adding them to the crockpot.

3. As a general rule, lifting the lid lengthens the cooking time by 15-30 minutes.

4. Your crockpot should be at least 1/2 way full to ensure proper cooking time and temperature. If it’s over 3/4 full, additional time may be needed.

5. Prepared jarred garlic can be used instead of fresh minced garlic.

6. Recipes that contain raw chicken or beef should be cooked a minimum of 3 hours on high heat. Combination of raw meat and veggies should be cooked for 4 hours.

7. Tough, inexpensive cuts of meat work well. The moist, gentle heat slowly tenderizes these cuts as they cook.

8. Don’t add more liquid then a recipe calls for as liquid is always retained. If there is to much at the end of cooking time and you want to thicken the sauce, stir in some instant mashed potato flakes, tapioca, flour or cornstarch mixed with water.

9.  Searing meat before adding it to the crockpot isn’t necessary but it does add a richer flavor.

10. To make clean-up easier, spray the inside of the crockpot with nonstick cooking spray or use a liner before adding the ingredients.

Happy #Crockpot Cooking! Here are some great recipes to check out:

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