Slow Cooker Shredded Beef

Its a horrible wet Sunday here in Dunedin, which really makes me think that winter is here. At leasr this weekend is a long weekend, so tonight we can snuggle up and watch some movies with the fire on. The only downside?

I have to get studying! My first exam is just under a week away, so even though hungry male may get the day off, I have work to do. When I am busy studying, while I do enjoy getting to cook as a break, it is still better if I can have meals that don't take ages to make. I would prefer to use my study breaks on baking anyway.

This meal fits the bill perfectly as I think my prep time for this was all of 5 minutes. Perfect study food. I can throw it on in the morning and by dinner time it is all ready. This beef is also so versatile. You can throw it into wraps, add some chilli beans and make nachoes, use it for sandwiches and subs.... and there are probably heaps of other ways that I haven't tried yet.

So if you are busy studying, have a full on day at work or just cannot be bothered cooking, get this in your slow cooker now!

Ingredients
1kg beef chuck or blade steak (kept whole in steak form)
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup water

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, cumin, chilli powder, coriander and sea salt.

Rub the spice paste into the steaks and place the steaks in the slow cooker. Add the water to the slow cooker.

Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours and then shred the beef with two forks.

Creamy Chicken Potato and Leek Casserole

I've decided that its time to add a new recipe category, a slow cooker one. I love my slow cooker! After a busy day of university and work, it's really nice to be able to come home to a comforting cooked meal. A bonus for me being on a budget is that I can use cheaper cuts of meat and they still taste great. Slow Cookers are especially good for winter comfort food and that is where this recipe comes in.

I got the idea for this recipe from a food magazine, but it involved about 1 1/2 hours in the owen. While most of the time I don't want to wait that long for tea, it made it perfect to adapt for the slow cooker. It also uses some great seasonal ingredients.

The original recipe called for cream, but to lighten up the recipe a little I decided to use this Philadelphia Cream for Cooking. This tasted great in the casserole and it was still beautifully creamy. Next recipe I post I will give you a way to use the rest of this up.

Ingredients

5-6 large chicken drumsticks

1 leek

4 bacon rashers, diced

4 medium potatoes, diced into 1cm cubes

1/2 cup white wine

Chicken stock cube 

2/3 cup cream for cooking

1. Turn slow cooker on to low.

2. Using a heavy, sharp knife, cut the knobbly end off the drumsticks and remove the skin (I had to give mine a fairly good whack)

3.Place the potato and leek in the bottom of the slow cooker, place the chicken on top and sprinkle with the bacon.

4. Mix the wine and cream together, then pour over the ingredients in the slow cooker.

5. Place the stock cube into the slow cooker.

6. Cook on LOW for 8 hours.

7. Just before serving, remove the drum sticks from the slow cooker and remove the bones.

8. Place the chicken back in and stir to combine.