This kitchen essential is one that we probably all have. I think most kitchens today contain a slow cooker/crock pot and if you are like me you use it all the time. Crock pots make life in the kitchen so much easier. I love putting food in my crock pot first thing in the morning and then having dinner ready for me at the end of a busy day.
I use mine so much that I have three. Yes, I have three crock pots that are three different sizes. I have found that having three sizes works best for me.
I think that food cooks more evenly if I am using the correct size for the amount of food that I am placing in it. Sometimes, I make a really big pot of soup or meat and I need my largest crock pot. Other times I make just enough for one meal and the regular size one works well. Other times, I use my crock pot for a side dish or a dessert. When I make those things, I usually use my smallest crock pot.
There have also been times, like when I do freezing cooking, that having multiple crock pots is really nice. I can cook soup or chili in one and chicken or another kind of meat in the other one. Being able to do this makes freezer cooking so much easier and faster.
Now I am curious, how many crock pots do you have? Is there anyone else that has several crock pots like me?
I have 4 crock pots and I totally agree you need multiple sizes. Makes all the difference!
.-= Sheena´s last blog ..Easy French Dip Sandwiches =-.
HA! I have you beat! I have 5!!!
1 Large, 1 medium, and one of those 3 in one buffet slow cookers. I got the last one for Christmas and have no idea what to do with it or where to put it. I would have used it for the first time if we held our superbowl party, but well…we were snowed in with no power.
There have been several times I’ve thought of buying another one. I only have one and its large, but on those days I do spaghetti sauce or chili, I’d love to have more to freeze. Not to mention the times my crock is still dirty and I need it again…that’s probably the biggest reason!
.-= Nicole´s last blog ..do you love your handwriting? =-.
I need another crockpot now. LOL
.-= Melissa´s last blog ..Kitchen Organization – Kid Style =-.
I only have one crockpot. I wish they made a bigger one – everything I cook with is either Big or Bigger. I think mine is as big as they come, though.
I love my crockpot. I live in Houston so I use it all summer when I don’t want to turn the oven on!
.-= Milehimama´s last blog ..Save Money and Lose Weight Too! WFMW Irony =-.
For a long time I had just two. I think they are 3 quart and 5 quart. But when we moved and had to live in temporary housing for a while, I ended up buying another because I was hating eating out so much! Now that one is my favorite. But sometimes, like when I do my Once a Month Cooking, I feel like I don’t have enough. lol
.-= Nikki´s last blog ..No more unloading dirty dishes. *WFMW* =-.
I have just the one, but I love it! It is pulled out at least once a week for a fuss-free dinner. 🙂
.-= The Saved Quarter´s last blog ..The Budget Kit: Review and Giveaway =-.
LOL… I have 3 bigger ones that are different sizes AND a smaller one LOL
What a time savor they are. I usually use mine on Sundays so that lunch is ready when we get home from church.
All of them comes in handy when we have a get together. I can make many different things and are not limited 🙂
I just have the one 6 quart slow cooker, which I love. I truly didn’t know if I would use it when I bought it, but it now has a permanent place on my counter. It’s even more useful now that I am pregnant and pudding brain would lead me to forget about things on the stove that are quite safe left in the slow cooker. I use the tip of using a smaller stoneware container inside the big crock to make smaller quantities when necesary, which saves having multiple appliances (I feel like I have quite enough already).
Hi! Currently I have one crockpot and am already considering getting a bigger one. I only started crockpot cooking last year and I love it! It’s an essential in our house with two little ones I barely have the time to cook on the stove everyday.
I actually have 4 crockpots! Two are large ones, one medium and one of those lil dipper types. However, I want to get a new one of those b/c the one I have the bowl doesnt come out of it. Why would they make them like that? You have to try not to get the cord wet when washing it. That just makes no sense to not have a removable bowl. But I use the others all the time and love them!
Yes, I have four crockpots! I have a really big circle shaped one, a really big oval shaped one, a regular size one I’ve had since before I was married (over 17 years), and a tiny one. I actually use the big oval shaped one the most but rely on the huge circle shaped one for bulk cooking. I rarely use the tiny one except for hot dips at family gatherings. I adore my crockpots and use them several times a week.
Samantha
.-= Samantha´s last blog .."Oh, I could NEVER homeschool!" =-.
This looks great – trying this tonight!
Also, I have trouble with my crock pots cooking too hot. The low setting seems high as the liquid even boils. I have tried 3 different slow cookers and everything tastes over-cooked. Would love to hear suggestions for this problem!
@TJ, Maybe you just need more liquid in there? That would be my first guess.
.-= Tracy @ Hall of Fame Moms´s last blog ..My Son’s Sticker Collection =-.
I have three also. 🙂 The last one I got is just one of the little bitty ones, but the other two I’ve had for a while and use often. It’s not that unusual for me to use both of them at once. My favorite thing is to bake potatoes in them – just because I didn’t know that for so long.
I have 5 crock pots of different sizes. One is the normal 5 or 6 quart, can’t remember, 1 is 3 quart football shaped, another 3 quart with a football field pattern on the outside, another 3 quart regular white crockpot that we bought to give as a gift and never did. The final one is the little dipper that we took as a gift to a white elephant party and I ended up choosing that item and took it home. I love my crock pots and have been eying the triple buffet crockpot setup that Target carries, but I haven’t found a justifiable reason to purchase it yet. I can still dream!
I have 2 crockpots, and I’m always on the look-out for another crockpot at the thrift stores. I like to do my main dish (ie.meat) in one and a side dish (whole squash or veggies) in the other – it makes coming home from church so much more enjoyable!
I have two – one that is ancient and a newer more efficient version! lol
I love my slow cookers – the best $$$ ever invested!
.-= Chris´s last blog ..The Great One……. =-.
I also have 3. Look to be the same sizes that you have.
And I feel like I need all of them, because the big one would overcook the smaller recipes (especially since my days can keep me away for 10 hours+) and obviously the smaller one wouldn’t hold the larger recipes.
I might want an extra big one if I devoted a whole day to freezer cooking. I just usually stock my freezer by increasing my daily cooking.
.-= Jane´s last blog ..Slowly But Surely =-.
I have 3. Two big ones and one smaller for cheese dip etc. I also have a rice cooker (works very nice) I bought for $5 at a garage sale.
.-= Tracy @ Hall of Fame Moms´s last blog ..My Son’s Sticker Collection =-.
Now THAT is a great idea! I only have one and use it at least 3 times a week. I’ve been eyeing a second travel one for a while now and will have to get it now. I bring alot of meals to people and it would be a great help to have a 2nd one. Thanks for the inspiration 🙂
.-= Sarah @ Mum In Bloom´s last blog ..Recipe: Lemon Ginger Scones =-.
I only have one large one but have used it a lot lately.
.-= Julie Bagamary´s last blog ..More Blessed To Give Challenge =-.
I have 3 also and do the same things you do. lol great minds think alike ha ha
I have two. One has a digital timer, so I can set the slow cooker to low or high for so many hours and then it will just keep the food warm. The other is one with a locking lid that’s great for taking food to pot lucks.
I have three as well though I am thinking about getting a couple more. I love my slow cookers because they do most of the work for me. And it is just so nice to not have to worry about the dinner time rush!
I host a weekly blog event called Crock Pot Wednesday and would love for you to post your great ideas to that. Obviously, I am a crock pot fan. Mine gets used all of the time. Like you, I have several sizes. I rarely use the little one, however. None of mine are the very expensive models, but they work for me just fine. Just this week I have made seafood gumbo and white chicken chili in mine, but I make desserts, veggies, and breads in them as well. If yours doesn’t have a timer, I think it is a good idea to invest in one. You can more easily control the cooking time. The ones that auto shift after the cooking time has elapsed are wonderful. Thanks for your great blog.
.-= Debbie´s last blog ..CROCK POT WEDNESDAY – First You Make a Roux and Seafood Gumbo =-.
I don’t have a crockpot. My mom kept hers when she moved. I need to get one though 😀
.-= Jenny´s last blog ..A New Q & A =-.
I have 2 Crock Pots and it’s just my husband and I! I use the big one for a big pot of soup or if we’re having company and the small one for when it’s just the two of us. I love Crock Pot dinners!
.-= Emily´s last blog ..Sourdough Pancake Recipe =-.
I have two of different sizes and use them very regularly. I was doing just fine when a co-worker brought his in and told me I could have it. What a surprise! His wife tried to cook rice in it (they are from India) and it didn’t work out…I told him that crock pots aren’t intended for rice, but he insisted that I keep it. Score! 🙂