Yeah, stay away from that. It’s usually overpriced and you have no idea what you’re getting. The stew meat at my grocery looks to be round or some similar lean cut. There’s almost no fat or marbling in the meat whatsoever. Buy the specific cut. Chuck should be cheapest, and one of the best tasting.
Whoops. I just realized you meant it looked like stew meat, not labeled as such. At any rate, look out for the specific cuts, because they do make a difference.
Good to know – thanks.
And thanks for the recipes. I loooooooooooooove lamb – but am less of a fan of cabbage (which can be very, uh, cabbagy). The goulash looks seriously yummy.
Just so you know, the goulash can just as well be done with lamb or pork shoulder. All are common variants.
ok I got a crockpot. Can’t wait to use it!
Today’s project: a bottom round roast, which I’m cooking with BBQ sauce. Will report back in (checks watch) 7 or 8 hours.
You DID put some diced onion in there, didn’t you? Or at least minced dried onion?
Nope – didn’t even occur to me. Maybe next time.
Had the beef-n-sauce on a nice chewy roll (Amorosos, for thems as knows their rolls) with some homemade slaw on the side … that was an extremely satisfying dinner.
I insist that you try it next time. You’ll thank me later. It’s worth keeping minced dried onions in the house, just to use in a slowcooker. The long slow cooking gives them time to release their full flavor without overpowering the dish.
Chicken and onions in BBQ sauce come out very nice and tasty, too.
I’m thinking this weekend I’m going to make my porkchops and sauerkraut in the slow cooker. Been too long since I had it, and it’s so yummy.
Staring today with Beef Bourguignon
Just dropped in to say - I got my first crockpot today!
Thinking of making my own beef boullion/broth tonight with it.
For the sauce, we’ve used the chipotle/rasberry stuff they sell at costco. (brand name escapes me) comes out really nice.
COCONUT MILK SOUP
(TOM KA GAI)
4 - 13.5 oz cans of coconut milk
5 - 9.75 oz cans of chicken (lightly drained)
2 - inner envelopes of soup mix (coconut ginger soup base from A Taste of Thai)
2 - 14.5 oz cans of chicken broth (I like the box/bag things)
3 - oz of lemon juice (about 1/3 of a small bottle)
1 - tablespoon of garlic powder
2 - tablespoons of cilantro (dried is all right, fresh is better)
1 - tablespoon of white pepper
coconut milk and soup mix are from www.atasteofthai.com
combine all ingredients in a crock pot set on medium heat
(caution, soup burns easily!). After 45 minutes make rice
and turn crock pot to high, when rice is ready turn crock
pot off.
Serve soup over rice.
WARNING!!!
Some folks think this soup STINKS, it is however WONDERFUL!!
Unclviny
I am using my crockpot today to make a giant batch of caramelized onions for freezing. I use a variety of sliced onions and some leeks and cook them for a day or so, adding the odd knob of butter along the way.
They are great when you are cooking in a hurry. It takes far longer to caramelize onions than recipes ever allow. So if you are making anything with minced meat it is great to be able to start with the onion flavor taken care of. Great as an addition to sandwiches, burgers, pizzas and hot dogs when you don’t have to do anything but microwave them.
Crockpots are very good for this. Also, save your clean vegetable trimmings (onion skins, carrot peelings and tops, celery bits, etc.) and cook them with some water, too. This can be used as a base for your next soup, or for the cooking water for rice.
Making my own broth is actually my main motivation for getting on - I prefer homemade, but I don’t want to have to babysit the stove all day.
I’ve made some lovely beef broth, and sitting in the fridge some snow-white suet has made a layer on top. Now, I don’t completely de-fat my broth (it does taste better with a little fat in it) but I’m curious as to whether there are other uses for this?
If I had some venison I’d use it with that, venison being so very lean, but my deer-hunting friends had no luck this year. 
Also, what’s the best way to make one’s own gravy with this sort of thing? would that be a way to use the suet?
Next project: chicken broth. Now, chicken fat I know what to do with - I use it in my kosher-style chopped liver. Mmmmm-good! (but also high cholesterol - it’s a treat, not a regular food item at my house)
Just make corned beef in the slow cooker… mmmmm, good!
And the vegetables came out great, too.
Here’s the recipe sized for 2 (for more just double or whatever)
2 lbs corned beef brisket (with seasoning packet from store)
1 medium carrot, cut up
1 stalk celery, cut up
1 medium onion, cut into 8ths
2-3 medium red potatoes, cut into chunks
1/2 head cabbage
Put vegetables EXCEPT cabbage in bottom of pot. Put corned beef over it (I had to cut it in half and stack it in my 4 quart pot). Sprinkle seasonings over beef. Add water to cover.
Cook on high 5-6 hours.
Remove vegetables and put cabbage in cooking liquid, cook on high for 1 hour.
Serve with horseradish sauce and whatever other condiments you’d like.
We actually have leftovers from this.
Toss cut up chunks of potatoes in the melted fat, and roast. You can also roast other veggies with it…particularly root veggies. It can also be used as a spread for bread, though most people put some salt and pepper in it if they use it for this, or for generally cooking savory dishes. You can grill veggies in it, too.
It’s not as healthy a choice as EVOO, but it’s damn tasty, and it’s something that you would otherwise throw away. I used to use it a lot when we were very short on cash, and couldn’t afford to throw away anything.
You can also melt it, put birdseed in it, and mold it into patties for your birds, or for feeding birds outdoors. Birds usually need a bit more fat than they usually get, anyway.
For chicken broth, I used to save up chicken skin and bones. I’d throw in the tail, and the wing tips, and backs, that I’d saved up in the freezer. Chicken broth is amazingly versatile. You can use it just like beef fat.