Crockpot Soup Secrets - Handy Tips and Tricks
By KC Kudra
Soup is normally something you imagine bubbling away on the stove, rather than simmering quietly in a crockpot, so why would you want to make a crockpot soup recipe?
Actually, there are several reasons, but the most important one is flavor. By definition, food cooks slowly in a slow cooker, and whether you are making a stew, a casserole, a soup or something else, all the flavors in your meal blend together in a crockpot more intensely than with any other cooking method.
Crockpot cooking is also handy if you going to be out all day because you can leave your French onion soup recipe, or whichever recipe you are making, to cook by itself. To make the best crockpot soup recipes, it is important to follow the recipe closely. With a lot of crockpot recipes, you simply throw everything in, stir it, and leave it, but if there are any other steps, it is important to do them.
Essential Tips for Crockpot Soups
Fill your crockpot about three quarters full but no more, else your crockpot soup will not cook properly. Remember that crockpots cook whatever is on the bottom faster than what is on the top. This is why hard vegetables like carrots and potatoes are normally added to the crockpot first, and meat or poultry goes on top.
Tender mushrooms like tomatoes and mushrooms only need about forty-five minutes, so you can add these near the end of the cooking time. Add dairy products like heavy cream or sour cream in the last thirty minutes, unless the recipe tells you otherwise.
You do not have to stir your soup while it cooks. If you remove the crockpot lid, you will lose heat from inside, which means you need to add twenty more minutes to the cooking time. Turn the lid back and forth quickly a few times, so the condensation drips off, and you will be able to see inside the crockpot.
Crockpot Creamy Potato and Celery Soup Recipe
This recipe for potato and celery soup is very easy to make. You simply chop the ingredients, add everything to your crockpot, and leave it to cook for about eight hours. If you will be out working all day and you want to get home to something hot and delicious, this crockpot soup recipe is ideal. This recipe serves eight people, so halve it if you want.
Potato and Celery Soup in the Slow Cooker
What you will need:
- 6 red potatoes, in 1/2 inch cubes
- 2 sliced leeks (just the white part)
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 chopped yellow onion
- 1 can cream of cheddar soup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 peeled, diced carrot or parsnip
- 1 can cream of celery soup
- 2 sliced stalks celery
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
How to make it:
Put the chopped potatoes and carrot or parsnip into the crockpot. Pour the cheddar soup and the celery soup over the top, then sprinkle over the salt, pepper, and fresh parsley. Add the leeks, onion, garlic, and celery. Mix together the half-and-half and the chicken broth and pour this mixture over the top. Cover the crockpot and cook the potato and celery soup on low for 8 hours. Check the potato. If it is not quite tender, cook the soup for another hour. Serve this potato soup hot, with crusty bread and butter on the side.
With the cooler weather setting into the nights, air many a cooks attentions turn to warmer more filling meals. One of these meals so many like during the brisk nights dinners is soup. There are many different kinds of soup to many to name here but one soup above all conjures up images of elegance, sophistication and extraordinary presentations like that of French onion soup.
As the parent of 4 boys, onion soup is a meal starter that gets rave reviews for its hardy beef stock and wonderfully sweet taste from slowly caramelized onions and other wonderful vegetables if you choose to make one of the many onion soup recipes available at my wife’s website FrenchOnionSoups.com.
One of the things she is asked often about this culinary delight is what types of onion are used in making a delicious French onion soup. She has helped take the guesswork out of knowing what the different onions are in a comprehensive guide to onions. She even answers the questions of how to grow onions, the health benefits of onions and many more in-depth articles on this wonderful vegetable.
You can make all kinds of delicious soups in your crockpot, including tomato soup, chicken soup or even a crockpot French onion soup recipe with swirled cheese. If you enjoy French onion soup, you will be spoilt for choice at FrenchOnionSoups.com because we have loads of delicious onion soup recipes for you to make at home, including easy crockpot recipes. And if you like what you see don’t forget to bookmark us and tell your friends too so you can share the joy of wonderful onion soups with others.
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Crock Pot Chili - Easy Recipes For The Best Chili
Crock Pot Chili - Easy Recipes For The Best Chili
By Diane Watkins
Mom’s Favorite Chili
1 pound ground beef ; browned, drained
1 can pork and beans
1 can chili beans
1 regular can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
Red pepper ; to taste
Salt ; to taste
Mix all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours.
Navajo Beef And Chile Stew
3 pound lean beef stew meat ; cut 3/4 ” cubes
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can ready-cut tomatoes with juice - (14 1/2 oz)
1 can diced green chiles - (7 oz) drained
1 can whole-kernel corn - (8 1/2 oz) undrained
1 teaspoons dried oregano leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
Combine all ingredients, except cornmeal, in a slow cooker, mixing well. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or until meat is tender.
20 Minutes before serving:
Turn control to HIGH. Stir in cornmeal. Cover and cook on HIGH 20 to 25 minutes.
No-Bean Chili
2 pounds ground beef
(or cubed lean stew beef)
1 can tomato sauce - (8 oz)
1 can tomato paste - (6 oz)
1 can stewed tomatoes - (16 oz) ; (optional)
2 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce ; or more
Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours. (Add a can of your favorite beans if you wish, but then it wouldn’t be No-Bean Chilli.)
This recipe yields 4 to 6 servings.
Do you need more easy crock pot recipe ideas? Sign up for our newsletter at Easy Crock Pot Recipes and get quick and healthy crock pot recipes delivered to your email regularly.
Diane has just finished a free cookbook of her favorite southern recipes. Download Easy Southern Favorites today. These recipes are guaranteed to have them begging for more. Best of all, its free!
Diane Watkins is a traditional southern style cook. She enjoys cooking, teaching, and writing about good food and family. For more information on southern cooking and recipes visit her website at Easy Southern Cooking
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