Notes about Recipes in this book

• Dal 2: cauliflower and quinoa

  • MollyB on October 31, 2021

    The flavor was good with this, but the texture was mush after 8 hours in the slow cooker. I made it as suggested, with a mix of toor dal, red lentils, barley, and quinoa. I think it would be much better with only 4 or 5 hours of cooking, or in a slower cook that has a really low settting. (I feel like my "low" setting isn't too different from the "high" setting.)

• Fresh tomato, pinto bean, and ancho chile stew

  • sosayi on October 16, 2018

    Really easy and quick dinner to put together. I think it took all of 5 minutes in the morning? I did sub a can of whole tomatoes for the fresh ones, but otherwise followed the directions. I'd definitely serve it with the suggested accompaniment, cucumber yogurt with hot cumin oil, though, if you have the time. It's prepared in the evening, but took at most 15 minutes to prep. Altogether, this was a lot of flavor for very little effort. Will definitely make again.

• Cucumber yogurt with hot cumin oil

  • sosayi on October 16, 2018

    Really quite delicious. I was sort of skeptical how this would do as an accompaniment to the Pinto Bean stew from this week, but they were really great together. I can see the hot cumin oil being used to flavor the yogurt on its own, without the cucumbers, too, or even to top some sour cream if you want to go more traditional Mexican for a topping for the stew.

• White bean-tahini soup with garlic oil

  • sosayi on May 03, 2018

    A warming, basic and easy white bean soup. You don't really taste the tahini, it more adds a savory and rich undertone. Garlic oil was great stirred in at the end.

• Roasted tomatoes and croutons

  • sosayi on May 03, 2018

    Served with the White Bean Tahini Soup with Garlic Oil. I probably made too many substitutions: home-canned tomatoes for cherry tomatoes and dried basil for fresh. It was just what I had on hand. The croutons were fine, but not great with those changes. They did taste good as a topping for the soup, and were definitely necessary for a textural contrast, but I would make them as listed.

• Smoky black lentils and beans

  • PennyG on November 13, 2025

    This was easy and really tasty. I will probably soak the black beans prior to making next time as 8 hours on Low was not quite enough for them (my beans (Rancho Gordo Midnight Black) were not old). Really nice use of the Beluga Black Lentils.

• Shortcut cheese puffs

  • sosayi on October 16, 2018

    These were.... fine. The texture was great, but I think the cooking instructions were a bit off. Mine were far too done by 17 minutes when I took them out (the bottoms tasted burnt) and the recipe called to leave them in for 20. I also might try a different oil than canola, as I think that also added a bit of bitterness. I'll definitely try to tweak them, though, another time.

• Chicken and spinach curry

  • sck on January 01, 2018

    Note she means kosher salt even though she does not specify. Made my first attempt at this recipe a total failure.

• Chicken tikka masala

  • MollyB on February 25, 2019

    Good and pretty easy, but a bit bland. (The serrano chile I had was very mild - a lively pepper might improve it.) I ended up adding some chipotle powder to add some heat, and that was a good addition.

• Chicken tinga

  • sosayi on May 10, 2018

    This was a good, solid recipe. Simple to prepare, with good flavor. I'd add more chipotle if I made it again, though, but that just may be me. Great taco filling. Will probably try the Rick Bayless Mexican Everyday version next time, though, for variety and to see how it tastes with actual tomatoes, not just tomato paste.

• Chicken with coconut milk and achiote

  • ccav on February 23, 2018

    Very good, leftovers good as well. Made with homemade version of adobo as mentioned in recipe. Served with brown basmati rice.

• Chicken with tart pineapple, coconut, and cashews

  • sosayi on November 02, 2018

    Absolutely delicious! All the sauce ingredients get pureed (super easy in a vitamix and I think next time I wouldn't bother chopping or doing it in parts) and then added to the slow cooker with the chicken (I actually used breasts instead of thighs, per DH's preference, and I liked the shredded texture). Nighttime prep is only toasting coconut for a topping, which you could definitely leave out, if so desired. Served with Coconut Rice and Soy-Steamed Broccoli. Make again for sure.

  • MollyB on December 12, 2018

    Easy and very good (though not the world's most attractive dish - it's quite brown). Even my anti-sauce 7-yr-old happily ate a full serving of it. I made it with boneless chicken thighs, and they were tender and falling apart at the end of the cook time. Served it with toasted coconut and coconut rice - they were perfect accompaniments.

• Basic coconut rice

  • sosayi on November 02, 2018

    As with all coconut rice, very good and easy. I took advantage of author's suggestion to only use half a can of coconut milk (to use up the remaining half from the accompanying recipe, Tart Chicken with Pineapple) and it was still full of flavor. Adjusted for brown rice and the rice cooker and it worked just fine, as well.

• Fried nuts and seeds chicken curry

  • ldebuys on February 11, 2026

    I really liked this! I had no pre-conceived notion of how this would turn out. It's a rich sauce, between the coconut milk and the nuts blended in, but the flavor was surprisingly bright with the amount of coriander seeds in there. I would make again! Although my husband might have benefited from blending the sauce in a more high-powered blender or sieving it, he thought it was a little grainy for his taste (I didn't mind). This dish is not going to win a beauty contest, but it has a great personality.

• Pork mochimos

  • rglo820 on January 12, 2018

    This can't quite compete with the succulence of carnitas, but it's absolutely delicious in its own right - crispy and porky - and way more achievable on a weeknight. I served it with the recommended black bean salad, tortillas, and queso fresco and it was a big hit, although some felt it could have used a salsa since the pork loses a lot of moisture in the shredding/crisping process. The leftovers were fabulous turned into a hash with potato, carrot, and celery and topped with a fried egg and tomato-serrano salsa.

  • TrishaCP on September 13, 2018

    This was a really delicious base for a taco, and is really easy to prepare. It does get dry after the pork is crisped, so it needs a salsa or guacamole as an accompaniment. I didn't want to eat raw onions and serrano chiles, so just cooked them in the skillet with the pork.

• Marinated bean and tomato salad

  • rglo820 on January 12, 2018

    Used an Anaheim chile for a bit of spice, and cherry tomatoes instead of regular since it's January. This is a fairly basic salad - it tasted good with the mochimos and was a nice alternative to heavy refritos, but there wasn't anything special about it.

• Pork with pineapple and chiles

  • MollyB on January 09, 2019

    Very easy (apart from the browning the pork in the morning) and tasty, though not very complex, It was a nice winter weekday meal, served with rice. Don't skip the salsa - the acid and chile from the salsa really balanced out the dish. A simple cabbage salad with lime and cilantro would be good on the side.

• Garlicky pork ribs soup with tamarind and greens

  • rglo820 on January 20, 2018

    I expected this to have a lot more flavor based on the description and ingredients, even accounting for the fact that my tamarind paste may not have been as concentrated as the one she recommends. I used country ribs (one of the options she gives), but I think back ribs would be a better choice as the bones would lend more richness and body to the broth. I wound up tripling the tamarind and miso, doubling the fish sauce, and adding the juice of half a lime to get it into balance. I did really enjoy the charred sauteed greens (I used a large bunch of very leafy baby broccolini) and felt that they elevated the dish above what it would have been otherwise. Would not make as written again.

• Cabbage and beer brats

  • MollyB on March 14, 2019

    Not worth it. The cabbage was pretty tasty (though mushy), but the bratwurst were really overcooked with no flavor left. (I think all the flavor for the sausage leached out into the cabbage.) The dish might be OK if cooked for 3 or 4 hours on low, but not for 8 hrs.

• Smoked sausage, white bean, and spinach soup

  • tamarajohnston on January 21, 2026

    The flavors of this were delicious and well balanced. I used hot link sausage rather than kielbasa, which added a nice spice. I used at least 8 ounces of spinach and I think it could have handled more. My slow cooker runs hot, so I will cook it for fewer hours next time as the beans were almost completely dissolved after 7 hours on low.

• Your basic chili

  • sosayi on November 06, 2022

    Great base chili recipe. Can be made on stovetop, too. I often sub Penzey’s Chile con Carne blend for the straight ancho chili powder, which I prefer.

• Spinach meatloaf

  • adrienln on June 23, 2020

    Based on weak spots I found in the foil afterwards, I wouldn't recommend using the aluminum foil sling as the recipe is written if you are cooking in the stock stainless steel Instant Pot interior or other metal interior slow cooker. I suspect that either the salty juices or possibly some degree of acidity in the vegetables allowed the formation of a galvanic cell. (I do wonder whether some natural leaf, like the somewhat disparate flavor of [tamale] corn shucks, or several collard greens/swiss chard leaves layered (which might cook down) could serve as a substitute in this case, but it will be a while before I make this again.)

• Soy-steamed broccoli

  • sosayi on November 02, 2018

    This was a quick and easy accompaniment to the Tart Chicken with Pineapple, Coconut, and Cashews. Next time, I'd add 1/4 cup of water (instead of 1/2 cup) to start, however, as the broccoli ended up a little softer than I'd like before the water was all evaporated.

• Garlicky short ribs

  • sosayi on April 01, 2020

    A good, basic recipe for short ribs in the slow cooker. I used Chx stock, but added a few dried mushrooms. Turned out great, with just the right amount of sauce.

• Feta moussaka

  • sosayi on November 27, 2018

    I really enjoyed this recipe, but would make a few changes in the future. Instead of pan-frying the eggplant, I think that I'd just layer it in the dish uncooked (like with the potatoes). To make it a bit more unctuous, and make up for the lack of olive oil from the frying, I'd just not skim the fat from cooking the lamb and keep it in the tomato sauce. This would also massively simplify the morning prep! Great, rich flavors, though, and the feta on top was a nice touch.

• Quark

  • rglo820 on January 12, 2018

    The traditional quark recipe she references in the headnote (from Luisa Weiss's Classic German Baking) calls for cooking the buttermilk in the oven at 150 degrees. Given that most slow cookers' warming settings run 165, I was skeptical it would work but I gave it a try anyway. The curds and whey separated just over an hour in (vs. 8 to 12 in the oven!), and even then I think it was overdone as the texture was extremely grainy. I haven't had commercial quark so I don't have anything to compare it to, but I just don't think this produces an ideally textured cheese. I blended it to improve the texture, and it tasted fine, but if I had an oven that went as low as 150 I'd probably just make it the old-fashioned way.

• Kitchn

  This book is intended for the "adventurous home cook," which means it's not filled with run-of-the-mill chili recipes.

  Full review

• Food52

  Krissoff focuses on what she calls “true 8-hour recipes”—as in, you can start it, leave for work, and come home to dinner...definitely not your mom’s slow cooker cookbook.

  Full review

• Cookbook Junkies

  A well-done, beautiful book devoted to the slow cooker and the way people cook today.

  Full review

• Food in Jars

  ...is the most useful and practical take on making dinner in the slow cooker that I’ve ever seen. It’s also a ridiculously beautiful book.

  Full review