reciepe suggestions?

[Sarlon]

ok guys I'm in a dinner bind again for my gaming group. Last time I got some GREAT suggestions and want to test the waters again.

Looking for easy crockpot reciepes to feed about 6 to 8 large hungry people.

[lupo pazzesco]

Here is where I ask what KINDS of food you want. Soups? Stews? Dips? Roasts?

I'm all about the crockpot, and have been told my spinach dip is better than Friday's, but it'd be nice to know what kinds of dishes you're looking for

[Sarlon]

soups, stews, not so much roasts as that is what I normally tend to do. Its been cold and yicky here lately, and I wanted to do something warm and hearty...if that makes sense.

[lupo pazzesco]

perfect sense. lemme dig, I'll post a few recipes, I'm particularly fond of.

Er...quick question. Are you against alcohol in your cooking? I tend to toss wine in with my stews and dishes in the crockpot. Adds a much richer flavor.

[Kittish]

Kitchen Sink Soup/Stew:

This isn't so much of a recipe as it is throw everything in the pot and let it simmer for a while.

Start with 1 to 4 pounds of meat (I usually use a combination of beef, pork, and sausage). Quickly sear the meat over high heat to brown it and dump into the crockpot. While the pan you browned the meat in is still VERY hot, dump a cup or two of stock or water (or wine if you'll be using that- thanks for the reminder, Lupo!) into the pan to deglaze it, then dump that liquid into the crockpot.

Cut some carrots, potatoes, and celery into chunks, dump into the crockpot. Chop up an onion and some garlic and dump them in. If you can get tomatoes that taste decent, chop up a few of those and toss em in. I like using roma tomatoes for cooking, even grocery store ones usually have at least some flavor to them, unlike the big tasteless slicing tomatoes. Zucchini can work well, just make sure the ones you use aren't too big (the middle will sog out really bad and the seeds are annoying if the zuccini is too big). Green beans, corn, any other veggies you like can be tossed in. I prefer using fresh veggies, but if they're not available frozen works well also.

Add a cup or so of rice. Add a cup or so of lentils. If you have time, soak a cup or so of beans the day before and add those.

Add water or stock to cover everything plus another inch or two. Bring to a boil (crockpot on high) then switch it to low and let it go for a... while. At this point add any herbs or spices. I like adding wakame that's been broken into small pieces (instead of salt), fresh ground black pepper, basil, oregano, dried roasted red peppers (mild ones) chopped up fine, a little bit of rosemary and sage. Some red wine or cooking sherry will add richness (thanks again Lupo!). A couple of dashes of chili powder or ground red pepper if you want to add a bit of zing. Onion flakes (they taste distinctly different from fresh onion).

After a couple of hours start sampling and adjusting the seasonings to your taste. This recipe works better if you can let it simmer all day. It works BEST if you can make it a day or two before hand and let it simmer when you're home and stick it in the fridge when you're not.

If you want to thicken it from a soup to more of a stew like texture, you can dissolve some cornstarch in cold water and add that in, or use flour (careful with flour tho, easy to get lumps) or use xanthan gum (a seaweed derived thickener- careful with this one, it doesn't take a lot to thicken and if you use too much your dish will take on a sort of slimy texture).

A word of warning- this soup is all too likely to outgrow whatever pot you start it in. I almost always wound up with two large pots of soup doing this until I got a nice big stockpot to make it in. It freezes well if you have leftovers.

[Kiwi]

Chili!!!!!

clicky!

[draggar]

3 pounds of kielbasa
24 ounce jar of grape jelly
36 ounces of ketchup (or BBQ sauce for a spicy version)


Put the ketchup / BBQ sauce and the jelly in the crock - turn onto medium heat and stir until it is all melted together into a "glaze" like liquid.

While it is heating up - cut the kielbasa into 1-2 inch thick pieces - add when the glaze is done. Stir to make sure all the kielbasa has the sauce on it - heat until the kielbasa is hot.

You can usually have this done in less than 45 minutes.

[edible_hat]

When it gets cold I make soup...

-put 1 liter of stock and 1 liter of water in a stockpot
-finely chop whatever vegetables and meat you want in there (cook the meat first, unless it's something like Spam)
-add more water to cover the solids
-add seasonings, a couple of instant soup mixes, etc.
-boil it until you think it's done (at least an hour)

[Eric the Grey]

Depending on your, and your gaming groups sensitivities, you can have the recipe I'm making for Easter Sunday:

Highlight if you dare. Seriously, if you have soft feelings for furry animals being cooked and eaten, don't look.

RABBIT STEW
3 Rabbits cut into pieces
1 c Flour
1/4 c Olive oil
1/2 c Onions, chopped
2 Garlic clove, minced
1/4 c Wine, sherry, dry
1 c Chicken broth
1 c Game marinade, strained
1 t Thyme
1 t Sage
1 t Cayenne pepper
1/4 c Parsley, minced
Salt & pepper to taste

Dust pieces in flour and shake off excess. Brown in olive oil on all sides in a large black iron pot (My prejudice). Remove and keep warm. Add onions and garlic to same oil; cook until clear, not brown. Drain off excess oil and replace rabbit. Pour on sherry. Add broth and strained marinade. Bring to boil then reduce heat to simmer, covered, for 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

I made this last year and it went over very well; well enough to be requested as an encore this year.


Eric the Grey

[BookstoreEscapee]

Quoth Sarlon

soups, stews, not so much roasts as that is what I normally tend to do. Its been cold and yicky here lately, and I wanted to do something warm and hearty...if that makes sense.

Sounds like beef stew weather...

I haven't had a good beef stew in forever...