Slow cooker: ribs that fall apart in 4 hours

Slow cooker: ribs that fall apart in four hours

Is it worth buying a slow cooker, or is it just another appliance doomed to the storage room? The doubt is no small matter when prices start at 42 euros, compared with the 18 euros an earthenware casserole costs at the market. Those who have used it maintain that the comparison is misleading: it doesn't cook the same, not in texture, not in time, not in consumption. But those who have one shoved away in the storage room admit that, without basic cooking knowledge, it doesn't perform miracles either.

What exactly a slow cooker does

The device is a closed container with a thermostat that holds a low temperature for hours. No high heat, no bringing the stew to a boil. That is the key and also the limit. According to the version circulating about its origin, the invention was born to emulate the cooking over the fire that grandmothers used, and that is where the insistence comes from that meats with tendons and fat give the best results.

The results described are hard to dispute. A whole pork rack, salted and with herbes de Provence, a spicy paprika bought in the Basque Country and a layer of barbecue sauce, rolled into a spiral, comes out after four hours on maximum power with the bones clean. The meat melts in the mouth: it was given a 9,5. In another case, two lamb shoulders, without oil, with Maldon salt, potatoes, apple and a splash of brandy, hold up for eight and a half hours on low, with familiar scores of 8,75 to 9.

There are tricks that make a difference. The cuts are seared first in a pan over high heat, and the pot should not be cold when the food goes in. It also helps if everything stays in contact with the liquid and, if stirred, it is done quickly, so as not to lose heat.

How much does a slow cooker consume?

Here the story gets interesting for anyone looking at the bill. Measurements shared with a consumption meter suggest the device uses about 60 W/h until it reaches temperature, which happens in 30 or 40 minutes. After that, the thermostat and the inertia of the ceramic do almost all the work. In six hours of cooking it doesn't even reach 200 W.

Translated into euros, with electricity at 0,25 €/kWh, the bill comes to 0,04 euros. The figure demolishes the main argument against it: that having a gadget plugged in all afternoon sends the bill soaring. It doesn't. And it adds a side benefit: programming long stews for the hours when power is cheapest, while you sleep.

The health warning that doesn't appear in the videos

It is worth pausing here, because there is a real and little-publicized risk. Raw red kidney beans, and to a lesser extent broad beans or fava-type beans, contain lectin phytohemagglutinin, a highly toxic substance. Boiling destroys it. The problem is that the low temperature of a slow cooker does not destroy it.

The recommendation is blunt: boil dried legumes for at least 30 minutes at 100 °C before transferring them to slow cooking, or soak them overnight and then discard the water. Skipping this step with red kidney beans is not a matter of taste, but of poisoning.

Price, competition and the skeptic who already knows how to cook

The most cited model costs 42 euros. Against it is the supermarket offering: a 3,5-liter slow cooker for 25 euros, with a stoneware pot in older versions; newer ones from other brands are thinner and non-stick. The recommendation from someone who has used it for years is to treat it carefully and not go from hot to cold water, so the ceramic doesn't sustancia ilegal.

The criticism is not mild. Some see the slow cooker as little more than an analogue slimming washing machine: paying more than double for something an earthenware casserole over low heat already solves. Others defend it only as a resource for people who don't know how to cook. And then there are the accessories, from a silicone rack for 10,47 euros to the self-stirring option.

Recipes, tricks and communities that aren't too keen on criticism

Much of the value of these devices lies in the community that forms around them. There are groups and forums where recipes and times adapted to each specific model are shared, which avoids the trial and error of the first weeks. The catch, according to those who frequent them, is that criticism is not always well tolerated.

Use is not limited to stews. People describe egg custards in a water bath or without a mold at low temperature, sponge cakes that come out without a problem and roasted vegetables in their own juices. For anyone living in a sunny area, some even plug it into a solar panel.

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With these figures, the strange thing is not buying a slow cooker, but remaining convinced that an earthenware casserole does exactly the same thing. You just need four free hours to watch it. And that is, in the end, the most expensive ingredient.