An ode to the slow cooker (plus a delicious recipe for slow-cooked onion soup)
FavorFlav’s Wieke has discovered the slow cooker, and everyone needs to know about it. For a week now, she has systematically been calling herself ‘the kitchen queen’, and every day she tells us with enthusiasm bordering on rabidity what she has made this time. What’s so amazing about the slow cooker? Well, this:
It’s true. For a week now, I’ve been calling myself a kitchen queen. I already liked cooking, of course, but after a day at work and a workout as well, I often don’t really feel like getting elaborate in the kitchen. In that case, dinner doesn’t end up on the table until around 8:30 p.m. I live alone, so it often feels unnecessary to cook extensively when I’m going to put three-quarters of it in the freezer anyway. Don’t get me wrong, I love good food, and I’m also disappointed when I have something very simple in front of me that doesn’t quite taste absolutely delicious.
Minimal effort, maximum results
So I was looking for minimal effort and maximum results. People sometimes say that the best employee is a lazy employee, because they’re often so creative that they achieve the best results in the way that requires the least effort. Well, I completely agree. Because I’ve had a slow cooker for a week now, and I may well be its biggest fan.
It sounds almost a little student-like, because it requires so little work. In that sense, you can hardly even call it cooking, but I do anyway, because last Saturday I made the best onion soup ever (yes, better than at any restaurant — feel free to put it to the test, because I still have three litres left). It did take a while (around nine hours in total), but I didn’t have to keep an eye on it, and once again, it was so delicious. So I proudly declare that I made the best onion soup. All by myself.
Everyone needs a slow cooker
Tomorrow night, rendang is on the menu; my expectations are already sky-high. Last week, I made a Thai stew with green beans and stewing beef. Some curry paste, coconut milk, vegetables and herbs… It was (is, because I still have three containers of that left too — I still need to learn how to portion properly) delicious, if I do say so myself. So now I’m helping everyone around me discover the slow cooker. I have a Crock-Pot that holds 5.7 litres. Quite a lot, which explains why I’ve been cooking for an entire orphanage this past week. My friends are happy about it, by the way. They keep getting containers to take home.
Ambassador, anyone?
I have to say, I’m really enjoying this new status as kitchen queen. I may have said ‘from now on, I’m only cooking with the slow cooker’ a few too many times this week, and I’m trying to sell it to everyone. Advertising? Not exactly, but I’d be open to it. Hey, Crock-Pot (as the slow cooker is also known), are you looking for an ambassador? As you can tell, I’m very passionate about your product.
Oh yes, one final plus: it’s also incredibly energy-efficient. Always a nice bonus.
How to make the onion soup
- Cook the onions with the butter, garlic and sugar on the low setting for five hours. Then add the remaining ingredients and leave the soup on low for another four hours—and you’re done!
Tip: Toast a slice of bread with grated cheese (tip: Gruyère) to serve with the onion soup.
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