Slow Cooker Split-Pea Soup

[fairly unappetizing pic that doesn't do justice to the taste forthcoming]

As per what passes for an editorial policy here, I'm just acknowledging a dearth of recent posts then moving on. Hi!

Seeing that it's finally fall, we pulled out our trusty copy of Slow Cooker Revolution and mostly followed the split pea soup recipe -- albeit with more ham hocks, carrots and garlic. It turned out quite well -- smoky and rich, though I may try it with less salt and a bit less liquid next time. Happy soup and stew weather, everyone.

• 2 onions, minced (about 2 c)
• 6 garlic cloves, minced (about 1-1/2 T)
• 1/8 t red pepper flakes
• 1-1/2 T fresh thyme, minced
• 1 T vegetable oil
• 4 c beef broth
• 3 c water
• 1 lb. split peas
• 6 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 in. pieces (about 2 c)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 smoked ham hocks, rinsed and scored
• 1 T lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste

Place onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, thyme and oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for five minutes, stirring occasionally, till onions are softened; transfer to slow cooker.

Add broth, water, split peas, carrots, ham hocks and bay leaves to slow cooker. Cover and cook till peas are tender, 9-11 hours on low or 5-7 hours on high (everything was super soft at five hours on high with our cooker).

When done, remove bay leaves, stir in lemon juice and season to taste. Skim fat and remove meat from bone, then return to soup if you want; we didn't bother.

Slow-Cooker Pot Roast

Lunch - 01 August 2011, originally uploaded by essgee51.

We've mostly been repeating recipes, so I haven't been posting variations. This weekend, we once again turned to the trusty Slow Cooker Revolution, halving some parts of the recipe and using a blade roast instead of the asked-for boneless pork picnic shoulder roast (see below).

Turned out really well - richer and meatier for the inclusion of the bone. This one will definitely become a regular.

• 1 T vegetable oil
• 1 onion, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 T tomato paste
• 2 t fresh thyme, minced
• 1/8 c all-purpose flour
• 1/4 c white wine
• 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut into 1 in. chunks
• 1 lb. parsnips, peeled and cut into 1 in. chunks
• 1 blade roast, trimmed
• salt and pepper
• 1 t white wine vinegar

Put oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, garlic, tomato paste, and thyme. Cook till onions are softened and browning, 8-10 minutes. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in wine, scraping up any browned bits, till smooth. Transfer mixture to slow cooker.

Put tomatoes, carrots and parsnips into slow cooker. Season roast with salt and pepper; add to slow cooker. Cover and cook till pork is tender (five hours on high worked fine for me; the book recommends 9-11 hours on low or 5-7 on high).

Transfer roast to cutting board, tent with aluminum foil and rest for 20 minutes.

Let braising liquid settle, then remove fat, if you like (we skipped this). Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Slice roast, spoon sauce over the slices, and serve.

In Progress: Navy Bean and Chicken Chili

I'm way behind on posts, so this one isn't going to be very chatty. We had to adopt this recipe for dried beans. It came out a tad soupy, but very delicious, especially since we amped up the amount of jarred jalapenos and the garlic. In future iterations - and there will be future iterations, since this is flavorful and filling -  we'll start decreasing the liquid a cup at a time and fiddle a bit with the cooking/what to add when times (beans were perfect but chicken got a tad stringy) and see where the sweet spot is. Below, our riff on the Slow Cooker Revolution original.

• 4 c chicken stock
• 2 c beef stock
• 1 15-o. can hominy, drained and rinsed
• 2 T vegetable oil
• 2 onions, minced
• 4 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and minced
• 8 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 t ground cumin
• 2 t ground coriander
• 1 lb. dried navy beans
• 3 lbs. chicken thighs, skin removed if you want
• salt and pepper
• 4 T minced, pickled jarred jalapeno chiles, plus more for garnish
• 1/4 c fresh cilantro, minced
• 2 avocados, pitted and cut into 1 in. pieces

In a blender, puree the hominy and 2 cups of stock till smooth, about 1 min. Pour into slow cooker.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, garlic, fresh jalapenos, cumin and coriander. Cook till the vegetables are softened and somewhat browned, 8-12 min. Stir in 1 cup stock, scraping any browned bits. Pour mixture into slow cooker.

Add beans to slow cooker. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to slow cooker. Cover and cook till beans are tender, about 5 hours on high.

Remove chicken from slow cooker. Let cool a bit, then shred into bite-size pieces. Discard the bones and return the meat to the slow cooker.

Stir in pickled jalapenos, then let sit till heated through, about 5 min. Stir in cilantro, season with salt and pepper to taste, then serve, garnishing with avocado bits.

Black Bean and Pork Chili

We've been pretty good about making a mess of beans or other stew in the slow cooker every weekend (myself, less so about posting them). This past Sunday, we un-vegetarianned a Slow Cooker Revolution black bean chili recipe, adding in a hefty four-pound (five with the bone in) hunk of pork shoulder and skipping the mushrooms (only because there was no more room for them). We also lessened the hot chili powder and de-seeded the jalapenos, since my tummy's still a bit roiled. Despite the gentling, the Cook's Illustrated folks delivered yet again - it's a rich, flavorful stew, though there's perhaps a tad too much liquid. Our version below.

Future tweaks: less pork, add mushrooms and perhaps other vegetables, perhaps lessen the cooking liquid.

• 2 T vegetable oil
• 2 onions, minced
• 2 red bell peppers, stemmed and seeded
• 2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and minced
• 10 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 T chili powder
• 4 t mustard seeds
• 1 T cumin powder
• 1 T dried oregano
• 3 c vegetable broth
• 2 c water
• 1 lb. black beans, picked over and rinsed
• 4 lb. pork butt roast, cut into 1-1/2 to 2 in. pieces
• 1 T canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
• 2 T minced fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When it shimmers, add onions, bell peppers, jalapenos, garlic, chili powder, mustard seeds, cumin and oregano. Cook till vegetables are soft and slightly browned, 8-10 min. Stir in a cup of the broth. Scrape up any brown bits, then transfer to slow cooker.

Put water, broth, beans, mushrooms, meat, chipotles and bay leaves in slow cooker. Cover and cook till beans are tender and meat is fall-apart soft, 5-7 hours on high or 9-11 on low (took us 5 hours on high).

Stir in cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Catching Up: Slow-Cooker Navy Bean Stew II

Dinner, originally uploaded by essgee51.

Though we made this last weekend, the rest of this rich, savory stew also served well as soft food for this weekend's recuperation from dental surgery. Based on this variant, but still further simplified - we discovered that we could skip even the fast boil of the beans if we cooked on high for a few hours.

• 1 lb. navy beans
• 1 ham hock, scored
• 1 lb. kielbasa sausage, cut in 1 in. pieces
• 1-2 c carrots, cut in 1-2 in. pieces
• 1-2 c celery, cut in 1 in. slices
• 8 oz. mushrooms, stems removed and cut, if large
• 1 onion, sliced
• 5-8 cloves garlic, smashed
• bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay leaf)
• 6 c liquid (all water, this time)
• salt and pepper to taste

Put everything in the slow cooker (see below).

Cook on high for 3-4 hours, till hock meat is falling off the bone and beans are tender. Adjust seasoning and enjoy.

Navy Bean Stew with Chicken and Sausage

From our trusty copy of Slow Cooker Revolution. I used dried beans instead of canned and made a couple of other tweaks. Though I was worried about the adjustments to liquid level and cooking time, the tweaks worked out fairly well; in the interests of boosting flavor, I increase the stock-to-water ratio or decrease the liquid altogether, as well as adjust the levels of  spices and aromatics. The recipe itself is a bit fussy, but as far as I can tell, all steps are worth it.

• 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• salt and pepper
• 3 T vegetable oil
• 1 lb. Italian sausages, sliced 1 in. thick
• 2 onions, minced
• 1 fennel bulb, tops discarded; bulb halved, cored and sliced thin
• 6 plump garlic cloves, minced (about 3 T)
• 1 T tomato paste
• 1 T fresh thyme, minced (halve for dried)
• 1/8 t red pepper flakes (may increase this in the future)
• 1/3 c all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 4 c chicken stock
• 3 c hot water
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 lb. dried navy beans 
• 6 oz. baby spinach
• grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Dry chicken with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown half the chicken lightly on both sides, working in batches if necessary (5-8 min.), then transfer to a bowl. Add 1 more tablespoon of oil and repeat with the rest of the chicken; move to bowl.

Add the last tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Brown the sausage well (3-5 min.); transfer to a bowl with the chicken.

Pour off all but 1-2 tablespoons of oil. Add onions, fennel, garlic, tomato paste, thyme and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high heat till vegetables are soft and lightly browned (8-12 min.).

Stir in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in wine; scrape up any browned bits and smooth out any lumps (whisk in a cup of the broth if necessary). Transfer the vegetables and liquid to the slow cooker.

Stir the remaining liquid and bay leaves into the slow cooker. Add the beans (skipped the initial soaking, but they seemed fine) and the meat (as well as any accumulated juices) to the slow cooker as well.

Cover and cook till beans are done and chicken is tender. I had success with 3 hours on low and 2 hours on high.

Let stew settle, then remove fat from surface using large spoon (skipped this step). Remove chicken, shred and return to the pot, if you like (I left it whole, as it was falling-apart soft later).

Stir in spinach, cover, and cook on high till heated through, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning and serve with grated Parmesan.

Brazilian Black Beans with Pork

Absolute home run of a recipe - the stew was smoky, rich and full of flavor; the sauce added a perfect accent of sharp, grassy tang. We pretty much followed the recipe in Cook's Illustrated's Slow Cooker Revolution - our reliable go-to - save for deglazing the onion and bacon mixture with a cup of water. I scraped the pan pretty well though, and the stew was more than rich enough, so no harm done. I may try a bit of acid next time, though. Recipes for the stew and the accompanying sauce follow.

• 6 oz bacon
• 3 onions, chopped
• 1/4 c tomato paste
• 6 garlic cloves
• 2 T chili powder
• 2 t ground cumin
• 1 t ground coriander 
• 4c chicken broth
• 1 lb dried black beans
• 1 lb sausages, halved and sliced 1/2 in. thick
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 lb boneless pork butt roast, cut into 1-1/2 in. pieces
• salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, saute the bacon over medium-high heat till crispy, about 5-10 minutes. Add the onions, tomato paste, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander and cook till the onions are softened and beginning to brown, 10 or so minutes.

Meanwhile, put sausages, bay leaves and broth in the slow cooker. Add the onion-bacon mixture and season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook for 5-7 hours on high (took us about 5) or 9-11 hours on low, till meat is tender and beans are done. Adjust seasoning if necessary, then serve over rice and with Brazilian hot sauce (recipe below).

Brazilian Hot Sauce (makes about 3 cups)


This was good, though I may add a bit more jalapeno/include a bit of pith and seed next time.

• 2 large tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 green bell pepper, minced
• 1 jalapeno, minced (seeds and white pith removed if you're inclined)
• 1/3 c white wine vinegar
• 3 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 1T cilantro (used 1/4c parsley)
• 1/2 t salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Let stand for 30 minutes, till flavors have melded.

Slow Cooker Lamb Shanks and Navy Beans

Slow Cooker Lamb Shanks and Navy Beans, originally uploaded by essgee51.

The slow cooker is my new favorite thing. We prepped and started this last night, went out, came back, slept and woke to this savory, meaty richness. We used this recipe as a jumping-off point. Our version (below) completely filled the cooker (thankfully, I decided to buy only two shanks at the last minute!) and produced at least four cups of spare liquid/fat. Now that we have a solid base recipe, next time, we may try a bit less liquid, more seasoning (it's too rich and savory to be bland, but could perhaps use a bit of zing), some herbs and perhaps more vegetables.

• 1 lb. navy beans, rinsed and picked over
• 2 lamb shanks (about 4 lbs.), cut in thirds
• 1-2 tbsp. olive oil (will probably omit this next time - there's more than enough fat in the finished product)
• 1 huge carrot (about 1 lb.), roughly chopped (will add more next time)
• 4 large portobello mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 1 medium onion (about 1 cup), chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 cups liquid (hot water or stock)
• salt and pepper to taste

Soak the beans. We forgot to soak them overnight, so we followed the quick soak method on the bag:

• boil for two minutes
• remove from heat
• cover and let stand for an hour
• rinse.

Boil the beans (in new water) for a half-hour. We may skip this step next time and just adjust slow cooking time accordingly.

Drain the beans and place them in the slow cooker. Add all the other ingredients, then season (we started with about a tsp. of freshly ground black pepper and a tbsp. of salt). Cook on high for an hour (we had to leave, so it was more like half an hour), turn the slow cooker to low, and let cook for 8-10 hours (more like 12 in our case, because we slept in).

Adjust seasoning and enjoy!

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Slow Cooker Beef Stew, originally uploaded by essgee51.

With a Christmas Amazon gift card from John's aunt and uncle, we finally bought a slow cooker!

Our first project, based on this recipe, was a success - the meat was tender, and the sauce was rich, silky and savory in a way that only slow-cooked food can be. Next time, we may experiment with more/different herbs -- and definitely add more mushrooms. Tweaks below.

• 2 tbsp. oil (used peanut this time)
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves,chopped
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme (orig. 1/2 tsp. dried, but in an unusual reversal, I didn't have any)
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more as needed
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper, plus more as needed
• 1 (3-pound) boneless chuck roast
• 1/2 pound button mushrooms, quartered
• 2 c. low-sodium beef broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 lb. frozen peas
• fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Put the oil in a large pan over medium heat. When it shimmers, add the celery, carrots, onion and thyme. Cook till the carrots begin to soften, about 7-10 minutes.

Add tomato paste and stir to coat. Cook another 3-5 minutes or so, till the tomato paste starts tasting a bit roasted. Add wine and mustard, then stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook till wine's reduced by about half, 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Mix flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Cut the roast into 1-1/2 in. cubes. Put the meat and mushrooms in the flour mixture and toss to coat.

Put the meat, mushrooms and any excess flour into the slow cooker. Add the wine and vegetable mixture, and a bay leaf. Turn the slow cooker to high and cook till meat is pierced easily by a fork, 5-6 hours.

Add peas and cook till heated through. Garnish with parsley and serve.