Slow cooked Chicken Provencal

I cook from scratch, love it and have discovered since breaking my finger,three months and still in a splint I was destined to have personal sous chefs! Chris and Paige have been great choppers,dicers and peelers, so I can still keep my hand in and cook. I may continue this routine hehe!! 

We do more food planning so that all my ingredients are chopped the day before and then I can cook at leisure,pan lifting is a bit tricky so my slow cooker has been on the side permanently. Its really helped with the heat of summer an unexpected bonus, we have been  eat a great cooked meal without melting from the heat of the oven.

 I reviewed the Tefal slow cooker http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/judge-slow-cooker-review.html

I have had great success with it, my best question and find was Can you cook bread in a slow cooker? The answer was a very successful yes!! Look out for the giveaway to win one!
http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/slow-cooker-bread.html

Back to this weeks recipe I so waffle, I have been reviewing more products to make life simple designed for busy cooks not just broken digits. The latest is the Just Add range herbs and spice in an easy tube,I love them, they have a three week shelf life if refrigerated,I am already half way through the garlic in a week.

Just Add removes the fiddly task of chopping when cooking meaning that you can simply reach for the squeezy tube or one shot sachet to add your desired taste sensation, which includes: Garlic, Chili, Basil, Ginger and Coriander. They are perfect for a fuss free, flavorsome supper across a range of cuisines, for example, the Coriander is great in curries and stir-frys and the Ginger makes a delicious marinade. Available from Tesco Asda, Waitrose and Ocado
http://www.justadd.me.uk/

I used the Just Add Garlic and Basil for this slow cooked chicken, its a lovely alternative to snipping leaves or crushing garlic and stringy ginger.The basil especially had a lovely fresh aroma and in  the finished dish it was very evident.

To make a Slimming World Chicken Provencal, just use fresh garlic and basil.
I made this a rather herby chicken,feel free to omit or add herbs of your choice,most  of the recipes start as a certain dish then I tinker!

Do not be alarmed by the size of the dish above I doubled up my recipe,as I was taking some to London for my Mum and Dad.



Serves 4
Ingredients

1 red pepper, cut into large chunks
1 green pepper, cut into large chunks

1 onion sliced

450 grams chicken breast or thigh
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbs tomato purée
1 tsp Just Add garlic
1 tsp Just Add basil

A few sprigs of fresh thyme

Black pepper

Method

Fry the chicken if you want to but I did not this time as using breast pieces. It tastes the same either way and saves even more time.

The method again is very simple,place all ingredients in your slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours!

Disclosure Just Add sent me the Garlic, Basil and chill range to try. I received no other payment,my views are my own.

Judge Slow Cooker Giveaway

Can you cook bread in a slow cooker? Yes you can. See here http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/slow-cooker-bread.html

Its been a whirlwind of activity surrounding the slow cooker bread recipe. Visitors to the post have been high. I was approached today by a big US slow cooker site asking if they could add the post to their collection of 28 sites and 10 million visitors. 


Its been tried by other cooks and thankfully turned out well so I can breathe as its not just a fluke. The post is also featured on the Homewares live.net site.

http://www.housewareslive.net/products/product.asp?id=2177&title=Judge+Slow+Cooker+-+bakes+Bread%21

I am keen to keep going with the theme of baking in an appliance that has up to now been stewing and steaming. 

Thanks to the Judge Slow cooker review and their lovely 5 litre beauty this has worked out rather well.I used the slow cooker for usual recipes. I also made Slow cooked pulled chilli and that was fabulous. 

There is no end to what a slow cooker can do for you.

Benefits of using a slow cooker for me

Easy cooking - No need to stand over a hot stove stirring and checking. Just put all the ingredients into the slow cooker and go out to work or out for the day.

Keeping cool - Summer time is the time the slow cooker shines, the oven is not on and you can make great meals to eat alfresco. Chilli for fajitas, try a chicken and chorizo dish that is lovely with new potatoes and salads.

Healthy - I make most of the meals without using any oil, and choosing lean meat and packing it with vegetables makes a nutritious meal. The Judge slow cooker has a self insulating lid and locks in the nutrients.

Economical -  It saves up to 40%  on energy used by other cooking methods. Plus slow cooking tenderises food,so cheaper cuts of meat can be used. (see my slow pulled beef chilli enough for 12 hungry people)
http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/pulled-brisket-chilli-slow-cooker.html 

Timesaving - For me having a 5 litre slow cooker means I can double or even triple quantities and freeze the meals, even less standing around and more 'me time'

Versatile - As you can see it cooks bread, proving this is not just a sit on the side in winter churning out stews, or languishing away in the cupboard. You can cook puddings, cakes,crumbles, rice dishes,jacket potatoes there is no end to what it does for me. 

OK now time for a giveaway you can win a Judge  JEA35 3.5 litre slow cooker. RRP £56

Just fill in the easy peasy rafflecopter only a comment and a follow needed, extra entries are not mandatory.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Slow cooker bread

Slow cooker bread!! Well this the success post, I posted (I think rather bravely) yesterday that I was going to bake bread and in the slow cooker. I sort of regretted it as I expected it to fail!

Yay I did it,this post makes me proud, I also foolishly tweeted and instagrammed the bread making project as it happened. During that morning, I regretted doing it as I thought it would be a total disaster, a complete flop!!

But hey, I'm honest and wanted to catalogue the attempt both good or bad, it would have been an amusing post if it had had been a flat pancake or an exploding slow cooker!!!


So are you up for a challenge? I bet you can make it better as I just hurriedly chucked the dough in without any shaping expecting catastrophe!

 Its a strange feeling waiting to see if something will work especially as I usually google and pour over my own recipe methods to get something right for the blog.

Best of all I did not have to find a warm place to let the bread rise, the slow cooker took over that part too. oh and not to mention no hot kitchen from the oven!

I chose to make a Granary loaf, its a recipe I use from my teens, it was in our school recipe book, which is simplistic, 1lb (500g) Hovis Granary flour, (** US Conversion see below) 1 tsp salt 7g dried yeast sachet, mixed together, then 1 tsp of honey or sugar. I will use fresh if I can talk Sainsbury's into selling or giving me fresh yeast.

Add in 300-325 ml of hand hot water,to make a workable dough and knead vigorously for at least 10 minutes. Chris did this asmy broken finger means I have to wear rubber gloves to do any prep and it would have tasted pretty poor!

For US readers 1lb of bread flour is 4 cups
For liquid measurement 1 cup US is 240ml 
7 grams (0.25 oz) is approximately 2 1/4 US tsp but you probaly have the equivalent sachets for yeast for a 1lb loaf.

I doubled above recipe to make two 1lb bread portions,one for expected stand in if the first  failed,or I burnt it. I fully intend to try different breads now,larger loaves,rolls,soda bread even. I am most excited by this and fully intend to keep making it this way. 

The first one I cooked for two hours the second cooked faster, I think as the slow cooker was already hot.

95 minutes on high to cook in fact I've not browned this one as it looked golden enough for me.You may want a darker crust than I like.

The first went under the grill when it came out to brown up, the second I did not brown at all!

I used a Judge 5 litre slow cooker the one I have been reviewing. 

You can win a Judge slow cooker too
http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/judge-slow-cooker-giveaway.html


I cannot see why any size slow cooker would not work (just ensure its big enough as the dough will double).

So the taste test, its amazingly good,as it should taste, the crust is softer more like a French loaf, or a dinner roll. 

The bread is not too heavy, and very moist.

I deem it perfect....phew!!

OK I will attempt to recap as I tend to waffle, please note I have no real definite method yet, its going to be a case of tweaking, checking the bread often and making a note of time cooked, bearing in mind different slow cookers, brands and sizes may take shorter or longer. Also different breads will have an effect I imagine, I expect white bread will be quicker.

Make your usual bread dough.

Line the slow cooker with parchment or greaseproof paper. Cut to your slow cooker size roughly coming slightly up the edges. 

Place dough into the slow cooker.

Turn on high and add the lid.

Check after 1 hour.

Then I set a timer for 30 minutes more (actually pressed the loaf after 1 hour 20, it seemed spongy still.

Another 30 minutes if needed and then I carefully removed bread from the slow cooker. 

This is tricky be careful as the slow cooker dish is hot,the bread slides well!!

Turn the loaf over, it should be golden brown.

I use the normal method to check if cooked, I tapped it and it should make a hollow sound.

Place bread under a preheated grill if you desire a browner looking crust. It turns very quickly.

If cooked place on a cooling rack and leave to cool.

Good luck and hopefully it has worked  for you, please let me know how it turns out!

Baking Bread in a Slow Cooker

This photo was instagrammed and put on Facebook and Twitter as its Round 1 of my cooking bread in the slow cooker.I am expecting it to be rock hard and like a baked house brick .

It will not be the slow cooker's fault, I have read on a few US sites its doable.

I feel a little apprehensive as it was just mixed in the usual way and popped straight in on some parchment, without the usual proving,rising and knocking back and kneading. I am led to believe the slow cooker will do that for me.

If it does I will be a happy chapess all day!

I will be checking after an hour and then checking every half an hour,will keep you posted or be going for round two! Yikes!

UPDATE!!
If you have landed here first and are as eager to see the results,pop to the full post on how the bread turned out
http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.com/2013/08/slow-cooker-bread.html

Pulled Brisket Chilli (Slow Cooker)

Its Saturday morning and my kitchen is filled with the glorious fragrance of spices just ground in my pestle and mortar.I am making a chilli that once tried I know you  will want to make it again and again. It was a recipe from a Jamie Oliver a few years back on one of his shows. He used brisket slow cooked in a pot on the hob for 4 hours and then its pulled apart to make a great chilli with lots of texture. 

I sat rewinding until I got the recipe down as it never showed up on his site for a long while. Its here now for those who want to cook this how he did.

Its a simple dish to make,just grinding of all the spices to rub into the meat, then sealing it and adding all the other ingredients into the pot. 

I have a lot of the spices already in the cupboard. I recommend getting fresh bay leaves if you can, Sainsbury's and large Tesco's sell them. I really need to buy my own tree so I can save money.

Brisket can be expensive, I am a bit of a bargain hunter, so picked up this piece reduced. It was best before the end of day, weighing in at £1.7 kg (before trimming the fat)  for £6.10, reduced from £12.20. 

Three meals at £2 for the beef works out well, so keep an eye out for these I have been lucky and picked up a couple at under £5 and I pop those in the freezer for this and other meals. 

I decided to cook mine in my slow cooker. I have been reviewing the Judge 5 litre slow cooker for about a month, to really get to grips with it and then try some more unusual recipes. 

For just cooking your usual casseroles and roast chickens its superb, but I want to utilise my cooker more, its seems a shame to pack it away all summer,especially as most of us really do not want the oven on at this time of the year. Mine now stays out and I amusing it more,saving money and also its a healthier way to cook. 
You can see my full review here http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/judge-slow-cooker-review.html

The original recipe is for the stove top and works as well, the slow cooker just makes it really easy to have perfect melt in the mouth beef with no need to adjust the liquid. It also locks in the meals nutrients, so for me its the way to go. The liquid used is quite a lot for the slow cooker.

I suggest shredding the beef and adding to half the sauce,then adding the sauce to make it chilli like. I keep the rest for pouring over rice and chops.

This can truly be called Slimming World Brisket chilli followers this recipe is free, if you brown in frylight,  avoid the tortillas, it can be served with rice, wedges or chips cooked in the Actifry or your usual method. or a healthy extra pitta, lots of salad and lasts for days, so a real treat.

The end result makes enough to fill about 20 - 24 tortillas, so great for a summer evening with friends. If you do not want to share (trust me you may not!)  its enough for about 3 meals for 4 people. 

Brisket can be expensive,I am a bit of a bargain hunter, so picked up this piece reduced. It was best before the end of day, weighing in at £1.7 kg (before trimming the fat)  for £6.10, reduced from £12.20.

Three meals at £2 for the beef works out well, so keep an eye out for these I have been lucky and picked up a couple at under £5 and I pop those in the freezer for this and other meals. 

 1.5kg beef brisket 
1 large cinnamon stick
 1 tbsp ground cumin
 1 tbsp smoked paprika
 1 heaped tbsp dried oregano
2 fresh bay leaves
 2 red peppers
 2 yellow peppers
 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
 400ml beef stock
3–4 red chillies, 2 deseeded, sliced
 2 red onions, finely sliced
Red wine vinegar
½ bunch coriander, chopped 

 Place the brisket on a large board (this will help with the spice mess). Trim all visible fat if you are eating healthily. Make large scores across the largest brisket side.

In a pestle place cinnamon, cumin, paprika and oregano, grind with the mortar then rub the mix into the cuts in the beef. 

 Place the bay leaves, peppers, tomatoes and stock into the slow cooker and set on high,just while you are browning the brisket.

Drizzle over a little extra virgin olive oil or frylight and brown the brisket well in a large pan over a high heat. The smell is amazing! 

Next add the chilli and onion to the brisket, cook for 5 minutes, then transfer joint and veg and add to the tomato mix, add lid and cook on low for 8 hours.

Check that it falls apart easily, if not cook for longer according to your slow cooker.

Place the brisket on a large plate or board and pull the beef apart using 2 forks. 

Add the meat back to the pot removing the bay before you do, add a splash of red wine vinegar to taste, then the  coriander and check the seasoning. 

Serve in tortillas with sour cream, salad, salsa and  guacamole (my recipe is here) 

Judge Slow Cooker Review

Hold on there, do not step away when you see the subject matter, its summer,the UK has finally welcomed the sun with a vengeance. Its time for salads,strawberries and slow cookers!!!

Yes you did hear me right,slow cookers,give me a few more minutes and I may sell you to my idea.

Judges Slow cookers may also have thought me a tad strange, most people are bust barbecuing and washing lettuce and I am heaving the slow cooker out, the appliance for winter warmers,heartwarming broths and casseroles!!

Well I actually am trying two recipes that are less traditional and I will be posting these from tomorrow.

A really easy chilli, made with brisket of beef, being slow cooked as I type, it will be  pulled apart and served in tortillas with fresh guacamole,its the perfect summer meal for lots of friends to enjoy. It smells heavenly so far.

I'm also attempting bread!!!

Yes in the slow cooker. I'm risking putting it out here now and there maybe disaster,but you will see my success or failure.

I had seen a website in Australia that did this and I want to have a go with my bread recipe. One for curiosity, secondly, well the fact that all the proving and cooking is done in the slow cooker,perfect as I am unable to knead bread until my finger has mended.

Onto the slow cooker itself, I have been using it for more traditional recipes to get to know it and I am impressed. I have bought and reviewed several slow cookers, cheaper models often do not cook well and can burn meat.

My beloved Gordon Ramsay slow cooker which served me well, had a Paige attack, it was on my cooker top with a casserole in and she cooked some eggs and melted  the control panel. 

This model has a 1.5 litre version,I have seen this selling for £16.99  ideal for cooking for 1 person or couples. A 3 litre which is just perfect for a meal for 4. The one I chose was for the pure size the feature I love next to its great efficiency and so far perfect cooking results, its a 5 litre cooker. If you shop around you can pick this model up for between £30 and £43.20 (the latter being Judges RRP)

 Its my latest pride and joy (Paige is banned from being near it ;), it looks good, with the sleek stainless steel exterior.  A glass lid enables me to see if everything is OK. 

I wanted a slow cooker that would easily hold large meat joints, as you can see from the above photo it is hardly full with a whole chicken portioned potatoes and chorizo dish for 6 people. The recipe book that comes with the Judge slow cooker has a recipe for a leg of lamb.

I like to cook to feed an army Chris says. Its more that if I am cooking I like to make enough for a couple of meals.Its better for the gas and electric bills saves 40% on usual cooking, its good to have nights off cooking but still have a great meal. 

The function buttons are easy,you really wouldn't need any instructions to get started.my only wish was that once cooking was over,it switched to keep warm.This is not a feature I need as I am a full time carer at  home,but for those who work it would be useful. Although using it last night for a beef curry, I switched it off at 5.30 and forgot to put on warming and the curry was still hot an hour and a half later when Chris got home. The thick ceramic inner pot is responsible for that,its a really good looking dish, great to bring to the table to serve. 

I have used it so far for Thai curries, roast chicken,all my usual recipes and its dealt with everything well. If you are new to the idea of a slow cooker,this method of cooking locks in all the nutrients of the meal so it much more healthier than casseroles in the oven or on the hob. 

For my Slimming world readers most of you already know that many recipes can be adapted, so oil is not used, its handy for making lots of great tasting meals that you would usually have to stand over, a constant comment for a lot of my fellow Slimming World friends is not being able to make  quick meals,well the slow cooker makes quick meals in a slow way plus in bigger quantities, even better. 

I brown the meat, add the other ingredients and pop the lid on, job done! Its not even necessary to brown meat, I do it for the look of the dish mainly.

Cleaning is easy, the dish is dishwasher safe, that alone makes me adore the Judges slow cooker and on the site it shows the dish in the oven. It has a two year guarantee, with my previous experience of Judge products I don't expect to be needing it. This is my best slow cooker yet! Highly recommended.

Typical in store price 

JEA34 Slow Cooker, 1.5L £28.80

JEA35 Slow Cooker, 3.5L £33.60

JEA36 Slow Cooker, 5.5L £43.20

http://www.judgecookware.co.uk/Products/Electrical/Judge-Electricals-Cookers/Slow-Cooker.html

Disclosure- I was sent a Judges 5 litre slow cooker to review and try out recipes.I was given no other payment or incentive,my opinions are my own.

Slow Cooker Chicken with Chorizo and Lemon

This is a meal perfect for summer, lemon and spice work so well together, plus using a slow cooker in the heat we are having, means we can still eat well without turning the oven on.

I have been testing a new slow cooker from a great online shopping company called Wayfair, see here, its smaller than I usually use. A 3.5 litre capacity, most meals in our house are for 5 people all adults so this is a tad small for a big family casserole. But a summer evening dish for 3-4 perfect.

This is a complete concoction of favourite foods and flavours all mixed with a fingers crossed approach.

Chicken and potatoes is a good start for me, I used chicken breast, this could be thighs for more flavour, though these needed using. I imagine I will be trying this in my large slow cooker with a whole chicken, stuffing the lemon inside and resting on the potatoes and chorizo.

For this meal I made a mix of chilli, smoked paprika and rubbed into the chicken use a little or a lot according to your taste, don't use at all if you like a mild version. You can place straight into the slow cooker,without frying, but for photos and for just a nicer look on the plate, I fry first.

I had a bag of Jersey Royal new potatoes, actually this time of year I always do, they are used many times a week, again my finger break, means no peeling so a cinch for me.

Chorizo is such a good complement to chicken and potatoes,I decided to use the new Eng

Now I still make all my meals as Slimming World friendly, cooking chorizo as a treat is not too bad in syns. Sainsbury’s Spicy and Succulent mini Chorizo  is 2 syns per sausage, I have two halved. 

Tomatoes make a good base, I added in a stock cube for oomph, a glug of rosé to keep the summer theme.

I had a lemon in the fridge, intended for another recipe and it got forgotten,so it was a pure add it and see. I would use half a lemon next time or not squeeze before cooking. It was definitely the dominant flavour, we adore citrus foods so for us it was lovely.

3-4 chicken breasts

Fillipo Berio Olive Oil spray

Jersey Royal potatoes

1 lemon

8 x Cooking Chorizo sausage split or halved to let the red juices run.

1 tin chopped tomatoes

Chicken stock melt or cube

Smoked paprika

Chilli powder for rub

1/2-1 tsp Chilli powder 

Rosé wine (optional) or water

If using a rub,make slashes in the chicken breast and sprinkle a mix of paprika and chilli, rub into the breast, and leave for at least 30 minutes.

Place the potatoes, tomatoes,garlic, quartered lemons (squeezed if a strong lemon flavour is liked), a couple of glugs of rosé or water and chilli into the slow cooker dish. Mix thoroughly.

Spray a heavy pan with a few squirts of oil spray,heat and fry the chicken until golden on one side. Turn over and cook, adding the chorizo and frying until the red juices flows a little.

Place the chicken and chorizo onto the potato mix. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

I served with a green salad.

Lamb Shanks Red Wine and Rosemary

I have been wanting to cook lamb shanks for quite a while. To be honest two things put me off, one the price, I was not sure if there was enough meat to justify the prices I have seen in the supermarkets. Then some of the recipes I have seen all seem to be either mint sauce or sweetened with fruit, a complete no for me.

Then while in Sainsbury's I spotted two lamb shanks reduced from £7 to £2.50 and knew I had to try them. Thrifty and frugal won me round.

I decided to hoist out the slow cooker to aid my journey, I wanted a dish that was fall off the bone and I know that my slow cooker is ideal for this.

I scanned the web for dishes and then I decided to just go for simple flavours I already use when cooking lamb chops. Rosemary (made for lamb) red wine,onions and stock. Seasoned flour to fry the lamb shanks and thicken and that would be it.

I am very glad to say it worked, the dish was so good I am now scouring shops for more shanks,if anybody knows where they can be bought reasonably priced,let me know.

The 'falloff the bone' effect I wanted was literal, the meat came out of the slow cooker minus the bone!!

The taste was perfect, I used a Spanish red wine another bargain at £3 I used a glass full. There was enough meat for 4 people so very much a reasonably priced meal. I served with mash to soak up the lovely gravy and froze a good amount to serve with chops at a later date.

Just about to slow cook

2 lamb shanks

glass of red wine 

250 ml of lamb or chicken stock

4 sprigs of fresh rosemary

1 onion sliced roughly

flour seasoned with salt and black pepper

Coat the lamb shanks with the flour and fry in a little oil or Fry light to seal and brown.

Add to the slow cooker.

Pour the wine into the pan to get all the lamb juices and simmer for a minute or two stirring.

Add the wine, stock, rosemary and chopped onion to the pot.

Cook for 6 hours on high.

Paprika Beef Slow Cooker Sunday

Well its still persistently raining and all thoughts of salad and barbecues are put aside, so my trusty slow cooker has been put to use a lot. I love finding slimming world beef recipes or adapting ones I google.

One reason is that despite the wet weather its still too hot for the oven to be on, another reason has been our family eating patterns have changed recently by college and different working hours.

Its handy just to throw the dinner into to slow cook and then put on warming for all the different meal times.

This slow cooked Paprika beef is simple, I choose to fry the beef first to give a bit of colour, some people just put all the ingredients in and cook. For me its a visual preference. I also tend to throw in a lot more paprika.

I add Creme Fraiche right at the end and slowly to prevent curdling, Slimming World followers or those wanting a low fat paprika beef recipe  use half fat Creme Fraiche, 1 1/2 syns a tablepoon, feel free to add quark or fat free yogurt.

The end result is a deep red almost tomato soup looking sauce and its warm spicy taste is comforting in winter and well wet summers!

Frylight or 1 tbsp olive oil to fry if browning meat.

800g of braising steak.

2 onions sliced

2 Red peppers roughly chopped

1 tin of tomato puree

4 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons of paprika

1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

300 ml beef stock

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

4 tbsp Creme Fraiche

Brown beef if desired, add all ingredients except creme fraiche to the slow cooker, cook on low for 7 hours and serve with  your choice of carbs, as we were all in at different times, I had rice, Conor cooked pasta. Chris and Paige had baked potatoes.

This will be added to #scsunday, click on the picture to find more recipes!

 

Slow cooker Lamb Tagine

I discovered Ras el hanout spice mix very late in life, I avoided the recipes as they all seemed to have fruits in and I am not a lover of sweet taste in my main meals.

But the flavour description appealed, so  after researching the spices used, I decided to make some meals and just ditch the apricots and almonds.

Ras el hanout is a blend including, turmeric, cumin, chilli and many more often secret spice, it translates 'head of the shop', meaning the best spices a seller may have to offer in the spice market.

The original Moroccan dishes are slow cooked in a tagine. Using a slow cooker works very well especially on cheaper cuts of lamb and of course this meal can be cooked in the oven.

500g cubed lamb or mutton

1 tablespoon of olive oil.
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2-3 large vine tomatoes
1 tin of chickpeas
2 large chopped onions
1 red pepper chopped
1 yellow pepper chopped
4 cloves garlic
1 square inch freshly grated ginger
2 heaped teaspoons of Ras el hanout spice mix
1 tsp turmeric
A pinch of chilli, (I added two as we like spicy)
Fresh stock about 250mls or a chicken stock cube in 250mls boiling water.

Fresh chopped coriander to garnish

Brown the lamb  to seal it then  put on a plate to rest.

Fry the onions for a couple of minutes adding the ginger and garlic to gently cook for about 2 minutes. Add to the slow cooker and then added all the other ingredients and gave it a thorough stir, finally adding the lamb.

Cook on low for approx 6-8 hours.

This recipe is being added to Mediocre Mum's Slow Cooker Sunday click the square below and look at at other fab dishes.

Beef Fajita (Slow Cooker Style)

I had some stir fry beef all ready to stir fry and make Slimming World beef fajitas.  The tortillas of course are not free but I save  syns for some favourite slimming world beef recipes

Its a fast meal but even so, it was one of those days where I just could not even be bothered to stand and stir fry.  I thought about the slow cooker. I was a bit dubious about the lack of liquid in my normal recipe, so decided to add a tin of chopped tomatoes.

I did not even fry the beef and I usually do, but  it still worked really well.

The finished mix was not too liquidy and would be fine in a tortilla. I served with rice for a syn free meal. (Another easy Slimming World recipe)

I love this, I make a lot  of fajitas in summer, but this means more time in the garden and tastes as good, in fact a little better as the beef falls apart! Plus no melting over a hot stove for me, albeit briefly when stir frying.
I like the Jalapenos, we are chilli fans so if you eat mild fajitas, omit them and halve the chilli powder too.

This recipe is being added to Mediocre Mum's Slow Cooker Sunday click the square below and look at at other fab dishes.

 

450g stir fry beef strips (Sainsbury's)

1 large onion chopped

1 green pepper cut into strips

1 red pepper cut into strips

1 or 2 jalapeno peppers seeds removed if you like.

small handful of coriander torn up

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp coriander

salt to taste

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

2 tsp lime juice (optional)

Tortillas

Any or all of these toppings or 42g of low fat cheese only if following Slimming World  

Grated cheese

Guacamole

Sour cream

Salsa.

OK now the easy part, add it all to the slow cooker press 8 hours on low and go out, sit down, read a book, have a glass or two of wine. Its as easy as these short instructions!

Then after you have chilled, serve in warm tortillas with all or some of the toppings of your choice.