Slow Cooker Stew

If you are a guy and are reading this, then I can read your mind.

You are thinking, "What the hell is a Slow Cooker?"

A slow cooker is an electric pot that you dump stuff into and then leave alone for several hours.

This is what makes the Slow Cooker such a perfect "single man" piece of cookware.

As men, we tend to burn or under cook just about everything that won't fit into a microwave.  A slow cooker is very forgiving as far as time goes so you almost have to go on vacation to overcook something.

Here is my recipe for Stew.

Buy a 2-5 pound chunk of beef, although this will work with pork.  Place it in your newly acquired slow cooker (also called a crock pot).  Chop up a couple of onions and about 5 carrots.  Toss them in with the meat.  Get a pouch or two of pre-made seasoning. (Remember this is man-food.  We make nothing from scratch if we can help it.)  The seasoning will tell you how much water to add.  Don't add more that it says or the stew will be overly watery.

Turn the cooker on to either low or high.  As far as I can tell, this setting is unimportant, so long as it's not in the "off" position.

Now, go do something for about 6-10 hours.  Do not check the meat constantly as lifting the lid lets out a lot of heat.  When you think it may be ready, take a fork and poke at it a bit.  If the meat falls apart, then it's done.  If it holds together and is still firm, then it's not done.  I have checked meat after 7.5 hours and found the meat firm.  I'd then check it half an hour later and it falls apart.  This is sort of weird and there is probably some chemistry involved.

If the meat is done, add a can of whole corn and a can of peas.  Don't add these before the meat is done since long exposure to heat tends to turn these to mush.

Eat and enjoy!