Crockpot Cooking: 4 Extra Tasty Slow Cooker Dishes

The best thing about crockpot cooking is that the flavours have lots of time to mingle and intensify. Check out these extra tasty slow cooker dishes!

If you’re going to leave ingredients cooking for such a long time you want the end result to be pretty impressive. I have sourced out three slow cooker recipes with incredibly tasty ingredients for intense results on your dinner table – prepare to wow your guests!

#1 Tarragon Lamb Shanks with Cannellini Beans

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Leaving lamb cooking for this length of time in your crockpot will ensure it is ever so tender and simply falls off the bone, and slides down your guests’ throats like heaven. Cannellini beans are a great source of protein and they are also low in calories and fat, so no matter how tasty it gets, you don’t have to feel guilty about enjoying your meal.

Ingredients:

  • 4 lamb shanks
  • 1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 1/2 cups diced peeled carrot
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 3/4 cup chopped celery
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 2 teaspoons dried tarragon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 can diced tomatoes, un-drained

Method:

  1. First trim as much fat from the lamb shanks as you can.
  2. Place the beans and next 4 ingredients (through to the garlic) in a 7-quart electric slow cooker and stir well.
  3. Place your lamb shanks on top of the bean mixture and sprinkle with tarragon, salt, and pepper.
  4. Now pour the tomatoes over the lamb, cover and cook on HIGH for 1 hour.
  5. Reduce the heat to LOW after an hour, and cook for the full 9 hours, or until the lamb is deliciously tender.
  6. Remove your lamb shanks from the slow cooker and pour the bean mixture through a colander or sieve over a bowl, reserving the tasty liquid.
  7. Let the liquid stand for 5 minutes before skimming the fat from the surface. Then return the bean mixture to the liquid.
  8. Remove the lamb from the bones; discard bones.
  9. Serve lamb with the bean mixture.

Nutrition Tip: Canned beans are a convenient option when you don’t have time to prepare dried beans – but the drawback is the sodium content. You can reduce the sodium content of any variety of canned beans by 40 per cent simply by draining and rinsing them!

#2 Brown Sugar Balsamic Glazed Pork with Roasted Potatoes and Apples

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This recipe intrigued me. I have heard of pork going well with apple sauce, but I have never heard of roasting apples alongside roast potatoes! Apparently you can substitute the balsamic vinegar for alternatives for an even more intense flavor experience. Try getting your hands on something special like a bottle of Cinnamon Pear vinegar!

Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs. pork tenderloin
  • 1 t. ground sage
  • 1/2 t. salt
  • 1/2 t. garlic powder
  • 1/4 t. pepper
  • 1/2 c. water
  • 1/2 c. light brown sugar
  • 1 T. cornstarch
  • 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 c. water
  • 2 T. soy sauce

Method:

  1. Mix together the sage, garlic powder, salt and pepper and rub it over the pork tenderloin.
  2. Place 1/2 cup of water in your Crock Pot.
  3. Place the rubbed pork in the Crock Pot and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.
  4. 1 hour before the roast is finished, mix together the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan: brown sugar, corn starch, balsamic vinegar, water and soy sauce. Heat the glaze over medium, stirring until mixture thickens, about 4 minutes.
  5. Brush your roast 2-3 times with the glaze during the final hour of cooking. Serve sliced pork with remaining glaze on the side.

And don’t forget your roasted potatoes and apples, which you can do alongside in the oven in the last hour…

Ingredients:

  • 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 8-10 small Red or Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 2 apples, peeled and sliced
  • 3 T. olive oil
  • 1 t. salt
  • 1 t. chilli powder
  • 1 t. smoked paprika

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Toss both types of potatoes with the oil, salt and seasonings and spread evenly onto a sheet pan.
  3. Roast the potatoes until they start to get tender, takes about 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through cooking time.
  4. After 20 minutes, add the apple slices, stirring well to incorporated into the potato mixture.
  5. Roast for at least another 20 minutes, until potatoes are completely fork tender.
  6. Serve alongside the roasted pork and extra brown sugar and balsamic glaze.

#3 Slow cooker 3-cheese pasta bake

    • 1 tbs olive oil
    • 20g unsalted butter, chopped
    • 2 leeks, pale section only, thinly sliced
    • 2 tsp plain flour
    • 1 large cauliflower, cut into florets
    • 250g pasta shells
    • 300ml pouring (pure) cream or thickened cream
    • 3 cups (750ml) salt-reduced vegetable stock
    • 2 tbs Dijon mustard
    • 1 cup (100g) coarsely grated havarti
    • 1 cup (120g) coarsely grated tasty cheddar
    • 1 cup (240g) ricotta
    • 1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil, extra
    • 1 bunch sage, leaves picked
    • 115g Coles Bakery Stone Baked by Laurent Sourdough Baguette, torn into small pieces
    • 1 garlic clove, crushed
    • Finely grated nutmeg, to serve

    Method:

This is one of my favourite, comforting tasty slow cooker dishes. For start, heat the oil and butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Find the whole recipe here.

#4  Slow Cooker Cheesy Spinach Lasagna

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Pesto Lasagna with Spinach and Mushrooms

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Yes, believe it or not you can make a lasagne in your crockpot, and not just any old lasagne, but possibly the best lasagne you have ever made! This is also one of my favourite tasty slow cooker dishes.  Try Slow Cooker Cheesy Spinach Lasagna or

Pesto Lasagna with Spinach and Mushrooms, I am a big fan of both recipes.

This recipe includes some special ingredients like pesto and spinach which are bound to tickle the taste buds more than just a little!

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups torn spinach
  • 2 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup commercial pesto
  • 3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
  • 3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded provolone cheese
  • 1 (15-ounce) carton fat-free ricotta cheese
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
  • 1 (25.5-ounce) bottle fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce
  • 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
  • Cooking spray
  • 1 (8-ounce) package precooked lasagna noodles (12 noodles)

Method:

  1. Arrange the spinach in a vegetable steamer; steam, covered, 3 minutes or until spinach wilts.
  2. Drain, squeeze dry, and coarsely chop. Combine spinach, mushrooms, and pesto in a medium bowl, stirring to combine; set aside.
  3. Combine mozzarella, provolone, ricotta, and beaten egg in a medium bowl, stirring well to combine. Stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan, and set aside.
  4. Combine the pasta sauce and the tomato sauce in a medium bowl.
  5. Spread 1 cup pasta sauce mixture in the bottom of a 6-quart oval electric slow cooker coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over pasta sauce mixture; top with 1 cup cheese mixture and 1 cup spinach mixture. Repeat the layers, ending with spinach mixture.
  6. Arrange 3 noodles over spinach mixture; top with remaining 1 cup cheese mixture and 1 cup pasta sauce mixture. Place remaining 3 noodles over sauce mixture; spread remaining sauce mixture over noodles.
  7. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Cover with lid
  8. Cook on LOW 5 hours or until done.

Share Your Crockpot Tips For Adding More Flavour

Do you have any slow cooker secrets you’d like to share with us?  What kind of tasty slow cooker dishes do you prefer? We want to know how you boost the flavours in your crockpot cooking. What ingredients do you like to throw into the pot? What ingredients do you avoid?

In a mood for a dessert? Try these Sinful Chocolate Cake Recipes for Your Slow Cooker.

Cover photo: www.pinterest.com

About the author

Zara M.

I love to write, draw, take photographs, dance tango, write in my Midori Traveler’s Notebook and ogle other people’s Filofaxes. Oh – and I like LOTS of sugar in my tea! I want to inspire you, and show you the world through my eyes.

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