Slow cooker problem

Thank you all for your help. Apart from not preheating the cooker, which the instruction booklet says not to do, I am doing everything else suggested.
I did use 2 separate packs of beef from the supermarket as I was making double. As some of the meat was OK and some was inedible, I think I have to conclude that I got some inferior meat in one packet. Oh well, Try again!

Did you bring the meat up to room temperature before starting to cook? I’ve found if I forget this stage sometimes meat is tougher regardless of how long it’s cooked .

I’ve never had a failure with mine, it’s a medium sized Russell Hobbs model, bought as a gift by my daughter many years ago. I never brown the meat/veg first. Just put the heat on the highest setting for 20 mins, add the floured meat, then all the veg, seasoning and then the stock/wine. I cook for at least 4 hours. If I add dumplings I put these on top of the pot and finish in the oven.

The trouble is that this was a present from my DIL, and she is bound to ask me how I am getting on with it! Oh dear.

'I'm having fun experimenting!' would cover all bases without giving too much away.

It took me ages to get decent results from my slow cooker, so persevere until you find a way that suits you and yours. As others have said I found that the best way was to preheat everything. Good luck!

I’m another who starts the ingredients off on the stove and then set the slow cooker to high and once bubbling turn it down to low and leave it. Don’t think anything has ever taken eight hours. I don’t preheat my slow cooker. Don’t give up on it; it’ll be an asset to you.

I always add hot liquid (apart from wine!) to mine and cook on high until bubbling then medium or low for the rest of the time. I generally put mine on overnight too, on low for casseroles and it’s delicious.

M0nica

I also use my slow cooker to boil ham joints and make stock.

The instructions for my very elderly slow cooker is quite explicit that the coooker should be preheated.

Probably over the years the pre heating of slow cookers has been reviewed?

Mine is about 10 years old, so just an infant!

If you are anxious about heating the SC empty..put a half inch of water in it while you are preparing the ingredients... you would be adding stock or water anyway...

I also use my slow cooker to boil ham joints and make stock.

The instructions for my very elderly slow cooker is quite explicit that the coooker should be preheated.

My slow cooker book also says not to pre heat, so I never have.

The instruction booklet says not to preheat it if it is empty. The stock was boiling when I put it in.

Make sure to brown meat / veg and put in hot preheated sc.

Also heat your sauce or stock.

Leave on high, check after a couple of hours for ‘done ness’.

Cover with a tea towel to get it really bubbling.

Give it a couple more hours and it will most likely be nearly done.

I use mine about 3 times a week , and so long as I use the tea towel trick it’s usually really nice and tender.

Thank you all for your help. The trouble is that this was a present from my DIL, and she is bound to ask me how I am getting on with it! Oh dear.
At the moment I feel very reluctant to try anything else. We really can't afford another disaster, with things being so expensive .
My casseroles in the oven are always lovely, it's just the cost of the electricity!

It should have been fine on low I have never had this problem in 30 odd years of using a slow cooker.

I pre heat the slow cooker, and whilst it’s warming up, heat everything through to bubbling point on the hob before transferring to the slow cooker. I find that this method works for me, culminating with nice, tender meat and veg. I usually use the low heat setting unless the guide book suggests otherwise.
I know that you are supposed to be able to throw everything into the slow cooker without doing any pre-heating of the ingredients on the stove, but I don’t find this works for me.

I too preheat the SC, then onto high until bubbling, turn down.
I’ll be cooking a gammon joint tomorrow, preheat SC, onion sliced in half, gammon on top, apple juice half way up then onto high until it’s simmering, turn the joint over, on low until it’s tender, about 6 hours in total. I’ve had one for about 35 years and use it 2/3 times a week, small one for us, large for family or batch cooking.

My slow cooker book recipes says to cook on medium, otherwise less time for high, and longer time for low, so I would have done a beef stew for 8 hours on medium, and I don’t heat the cooker up first.

Only use low for overnight cooking, chicken stock, home made tomato pasta sauce, and for cooking my Christmas puddings.

My slow cooker is quite new. I still follow the recipes as not confident yet to do my own. What I have found is that the quantities of stock/liquid is quite high in the recipes so maybe that makes a difference? It means you need to thicken some recipes at the end but that's not a problem. I have cooked stewing steak and it was fine though. I do give an occasional stir as if I don't some of the meat on the top goes a bit hard so perhaps that happened to you? I think it needs lots of experiments. Oh and I did do an apple crumble which was ok but took much longer than baking in the oven so wouldn't bother again. DD1 has cooked a ham joint and chicken and made soup using the chicken carcass (apparently the remaining meat just falls off then you remove the bones. She has had hers a lot longer.

I accidentally turned my slow cooker onto the 'keep hot' mode after bringing to boil it was cooked but the meat and veg wasn't tender.

That's a good idea MONICA may try next time. My SC is at least 25 yrs old so could probably do with heating up first.

I agree. I inherited mine years ago, with no instruction book, so I've always started oh high, then reduced to medium, only using the low setting if I was going to leave it for 8hrs.
I'd heat whats left on the hob, put it in the S cooker on high until bubbling, then reduce to low for 6 - 8hrs.
If its still tasteless you could always turn it into a curry?

I put it all straight into slow cooker on a high heat for 6 hrs and then low for an hour. My braising steak is always browned and falling apart.

With my old and very basic slow cooker, you heat the slow cooker for 20 minutes, prepare the stew(frying meat and veg, adding seasonings etc) in a pan on the hob and when it is at a bubbling boil, you decant it into the heated slow cooker.

I think having both food and slow cooker up to full heat before you set the temperature is essential.

I had that happen to me more than once. Once we came in from a long walk on a cold winters day ready to eat. Veg hard, meat inedible family miserable. I pan fried on high heat but it still tasted naff. Didn't use SC again for a few years. However friend mentioned she always cooked on high for four hours then medium for another four. Since then most dishes have turned out OK although pot herbs with shin beef and pearl barley takes at least 10 hours.

I agree that you have to have it on 'high' to start, until it's bubbling. When I used to work, I'd make the mix on the stove so it was boiling, then put it into the slow cooker while I was out at work to simmer.

So sorry you've been disappointed, see how it performs next time.