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Plus 5 fabulous recipes (slow cooker)

Did you know that January is national soup month? I love soup and I love to cook!  Let’s talk about how to get some delicious soups from thought to table using either an Instant Pot or Crockpot. There are advantages and disadvantages to either method, which one is best really depends on you, your style of cooking, and the time you have.

What is the difference between an Instant Pot and a Crockpot?

A slow cooker is a one function tool. It does one thing, cooks your meal slowly with moist heat. Because it does just one thing, it tends to this very well. Most recipes that use a slow cooker have you “dump” all of your ingredients, except creams or cheeses, in at once. Then you put the cooker on “slow” cook, put the lid on, and “forget” about dinner until you get home.

A slow cooker is a very basic appliance, so it is easy to use. It requires prep, because all of your ingredients go in at once, but it does not require much else. Now the slow cookers have a removable “crock” that you cook in, so you can take the dish out for washing.  If you have food that is really sticky, you can use slow cooker liners, which make clean up a snap!

An instant pot is a multi-purpose tool. They are primarily known for their ability to cook quickly, using pressure cooking. They also bake, brown, boil, steam, roast and slow cook food. The very nature of doing so many things, means they do not do them all as well as a tool designed for that task specifically. For example, I would bake in my oven, which is designed to bake over an instant pot. Many people complain when trying to use an instant pot as a slow cooker that it just cannot cook “slow” and it does not create the tender meat they are accustomed to in a slow cooker.

An instant pot allows you to cook more with less dishes. You can also buy one appliance that serves many purposes when space is a factor. My caution with an instant pot is because it is able to do so much, it will be more complicated to use. I recommend using only instant pot recipes with this appliance and read the reviews to see how readers adjusted cooking times, temperature, ingredients, etc.

How does the Slow Cooker stack up against the Instant Pot for cooking soups?

Baby it’s cold outside! You want to cook a soup and have an easy, warm, comforting, and delicious meal ready to go. Both of these cookers are great at making soup, but there are some slight differences.

Bone broth. If you are making bone broth, the clear winner, time and time again is the instant pot. The very nature of the pressure cooker doesn’t require a much higher temperature and shortens the cooking time. It is thought that this is the best way to make bone broth to preserve the nutrients.

Full flavor. If you want the flavors to mix and mingle, they need time. You will get a richer, more flavorful soup if you use a slow cooker.

Last minute. If you live in a place where the weather always changes like I do, you may need to be able to change the plans last minute. If you woke up thinking you may have taco salad for dinner and at 4:00 a cold wind blew in, with the instant pot, you can easily just throw in the ingredients for taco soup and in 30 minutes switch from a warm weather meal to a cold one.

Prep. I confess, I love my slow cooker and use it once week-at least. I am busy. Mornings can get rushed. I do all of the prep the night before and toss everything into the crock, put the lid on, and then throw it in the fridge. Then in the morning before I walk out the door, I just put the crock into the pot, turn the dial to “low” and (usually) 6 hours.  I assume you can do something very similar with the instant pot, however, the entire attraction of the instant pot is that you can come home and make dinner in 30 minutes by doing all of the chopping and throwing into the pot when you get home.  I like to come home and just add the bread and butter to the table and eat.

The instant pot is for you if:

You think about what is for dinner a half hour before dinner is ready.
You forget to thaw the meat and want to just “throw” it in frozen.
You are tech savvy and can easily learn how to use new appliances (there is YouTube for everything).
You love to cook and want to explore many options.

The slow cooker is for you if:

You are busy during the day and want to come home to a dinner prepared.
You have time to throw ingredients into a pot in the morning (or the night before).
You hate reading instructions and just want “low,” “high,” and number of hours to cook to choose from (listed in every slow cooker recipe).
You do not want to play with the appliance to find new ways to use it, you just want recipes from people who know what works and is good.

Ultimately, the slow cooker allows for a more hands-off, prepare it and forget it approach with its low and slow cooking method, while the Instant Pot offers a faster and more versatile solution.

Which one is better? It comes down to personal preference. Whichever appliance you choose, you’re sure to enjoy delicious, homemade soup.

Recipes 

(These are all recipes I love and make, so they are also all designed for the slow cooker, since that is my preference.)

Best Beef Stew 

Prep time: 30 minutes, Cook time 6-8 hours

Stews are great in the slow cooker, because the stew meat has time to get really tender instead of chewy.

3 lbs. cubed beef stew meat 2 cups boiling water
1/4 cup flour
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1/2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp (butter, oil, etc)
3 Tbsp oil (I use butter)
3/4 large onion (this is to taste, I pulverize mine in the food chopper, my family doesn’t love onion chunks)
3 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce 
1/2 bag baby carrots
*Lots of potatoes, cubed I use gold or red baby potatoes, pre-washed and just cube. We love potatoes, so we use lots.
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1/2 cup red wine (not sweet, I use Burgundy)
1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 can of corn, drained
1/2 of a small can of tomato sauce (to taste, I like 1/2 can)

*If needed, for thickener, 1/4 cup warm water and 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
I do not like using cornstarch, if you use the flour in the beginning and don’t skip that step, you may have a thick enough stew without the cornstarch!

(SPRAY your slow cooker with non sticker cooking spray, or use a liner)

1. Toss the beef, flour, and salt in a bag until beef is well coated (keep left over flour).
   2.   Heat 3 Tbsp. of oil in large skillet, med-high heat. 
   *Hint: If you have left over flour in the bag, use 3 Tbsp of butter instead of oil, melt, then mix in flour (create a roux so your flour will not clump).
   3.   Add beef and Worcestershire sauce (watch the flour can burn). Brown beef on all sides. (DON’T clean pan)
   4.  Put beef, carrots, potatoes, corn, parsley, and pepper into slow cooker.
   5.  If you microwave your 2 cups of water in a glass measuring cup (makes it easy), just add your soup mix to it and stir, then add this to the slow cooker.
   6.  Go back to your skillet, melt 3 Tbsp butter, sauté onion and garlic, just until soft. Put these in the slow cooker.
   7.  Add the wine to slow cooker (if you are concerned about the alcohol not cooking out-and it won’t in a slow cooker, or the flavor being too “boozy” throw the wine into the skillet and quick boil-I just dump wine in the cooker).
   8.  Put lid on cooker, cook on low for 6-8 hours. Time depends on how fast your slow cooker cooks. My original always used the outside time (8 hours), my new cooker takes about 5.5 hours. Definitely use low! You just want tender meat.  

IF your stew is not thick enough, whisk together the warm water and cornstarch and put in the pot, cook uncovered for 15 minutes!

Corn Chowder 

Prep time: 20 minutes, Cook time: 5 hours

1/2 a package of bacon, chopped and cooked until crisp (I use turkey bacon)
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/4 large sweet onion chopped
2 cans corn, drained
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried basil

(SPRAY your slow cooker with non sticker cooking spray, or use a liner)

*Hint: How to make turkey bacon crisp? Heat up some oil in the skillet (I use avocado). Cut the bacon into “crumbles” for this soup. Fry.
The frying in oil gives the bacon a crisp, bacon texture, so no one knew I used turkey bacon instead of pork.

1.  Combine bacon, chicken, broth, carrots, onions, 1 can of corn, and potatoes in slow cooker.
2.  Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.
3.  Uncover, transfer chicken to a plate and shred with two forks.
4.  Return chicken to slow cooker.
5.  In a blender (or Vitamix, food processor, etc) combine the other can of corn and milk until smooth.
6.  Add spices.
7.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes more.

Enjoy! This is a quick and easy family favorite in our home!

15 Bean Soup

Prep time: 20 minutes, Cook time: 8-10 hours

20 oz 15 bean blend (rinsed)
3/4 – 1 medium onion (diced)
6 cloves of garlic (minced)
4 carrots (about 16 baby carrots) chopped
2 stalks of celery (chopped)
1 ham hock (or left over ham bone)
1 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup soy sauce
6 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
Splash of Frank’s Red Hot Pepper Sauce
1 can (14.5 ounce) Italian diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

(SPRAY your slow cooker with non sticker cooking spray, or use a liner)

1. Rinse the beans really well. Add to slow cooker.
2. Add ham hock or bone to the pot.
3. Combine onion, garlic, carrots, celery, black pepper, thyme, bay leaf, soy sauce, chicken broth, water, and diced tomatoes in slow cooker.
4. Mix well, cover,  and cook on low for 8-10 hours on low.
5. Take ham out and shred meat from bone if you want some “chunks” in your soup.
6. Before adding the meat back in, take approximately 2-3 cups of soup out and put in a blender (VitaMix)
7. Add the meat, the blended soup, and lemon juice back to the crockpot and cook for 20 minutes more. 

*You do not have to blend the beans and veggies, but this will make a creamier version of this amazing soup without dairy.

Chicken (or Turkey!) and Noodles

Prep time: 15 minutes  Cook time: 7.5 hours (max)

Granted, this is not really soup, but it is warm, comforting and feels like a thick kind of soup! My family asks for this often. We use up all of our left over turkey on this and I think my men may prefer the “leftovers” than the actual holiday meal.

(SPRAY your slow cooker with non sticker cooking spray, or use a liner)

3 large uncooked chicken breasts
1/2 sweet onion (chopped)
half a small bag of baby carrots (chopped)
2 stalks of celery (chopped)
2 cans chicken broth (14.5 ounce cans)
1 can vegetable broth (14.5 ounce can)
2 cans cream of chicken soup (10.5 ounces)
pepper to taste
2 24 oz packages of Reames frozen egg noodles (I don’t recommend any other kind)

*I would not salt-broth has salt, wait until done to taste

1. Throw chicken, onion, carrots, and celery into slow cooker.
(I would place veggies on bottom).
2. Add broths and cream of chicken soup.
3. Cook on low 5-6 hours, until chicken is tender and veggies are done.
4. Take out chicken and shred with two forks and set aside (cover either keep warm or put in fridge).
5. Add noodles to slow cooker and stir.
6. Cook on high for 30 minutes, or low (I recommend low because you have a cream soup) for 60 – 90 minutes.
7. Periodically, check the noodles to make sure they are done-you don’t want to over cook.
8. Add the chicken back and cook for 15 minutes more.

Santa Fe Soup

Prep time: 8 minutes (if meat is already cooked) Cook time: 5 hours

2 ½ to 3 cups cooked chicken (cubed) or 1 lb. ground beef cooked/drained
15 oz canned corn (drained)
15 oz black beans (drained and rinsed)
15 oz can Rotel
14 oz can diced tomatoes
Cheese: I like to use 4 oz of Velveeta (I am not a Velveeta fan, but it works in this recipe) and 1 cup of shredded cheddar
2 cups chicken stock
1 envelope taco seasoning

(SPRAY your slow cooker with non sticker cooking spray, or use a liner)

Take 1 cup of the chicken broth (in a small bowl) and stir the taco seasoning in so it doesn’t clump.
Combine all of the ingredients (including taco seasoning mixture) and put in slow cooker.
Cook on low for 5 hours.

Tastes great with corn chips!

“One bite and all of your dreams will come true.” 
~ Queen/Evil Stepmother in Snow White and the 7 Dwarves