About The Invention of Slow Cooker, Beans & Corn Bread

Slow cookers are not very popular in Poland. These days they are available in stores there, not too many kinds though (I checked some online stores today). I guess, people have not learned yet what a useful invention it is. Actually, I never came across anything like that while living in Europe. We had the opposite of that - fast pressure cooker which my sister had received as a wedding gift. She did not want it and gave it to us but we never used it either. We simply did not need it. Besides, we were a bit concerned about the safety matters connected with cooking in it.

The slow cooker is totally different. At first, I was not sure what I could do with it - I simply did not know the kitchen device at all. Encouraged by my husband, I decided to give it (and myself) a try. The results were great! Nowadays, I really enjoy using the slow cooker. I also very much like what I learned about it: the slow cooker (called also the crock-pot - did not know that) is safe and makes life easier. You just put all the ingredients into the pot - and that is all. No need to stand by it and check on its content all the time, which is most often necessary while cooking on the stove. Another important advantage is that food prepared in the slow cooker is always tender and tastes really good.

A few years ago, at a function/social meeting, we were treated with (among others) southern style beans. The dish tasted so good, that we asked the lady who had made it (cannot recall her name) to share her recipe with us. I am very grateful she was so kind and did write it down for me - since then, it has been one of our most favorite recipes. Having cooked the beans many times, both on the stove and in the slow cooker, I can say that the only right way to do it well, is to cook them with the help of the crock-pot. The grains are so tender and not overcooked - just perfect.

Here is the recipe. It is very simple and the beans make a great dish both for a family dinner and as a guest/party treat.

Beans

Ingredients:

• 1 pound bag Casserole Pinto Beans/or just dried pinto beans
• 4 slices ham
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• water to cover the beans (check the bag instructions)
  

Procedure: 
I always put the dried beans into a bowl, cover them with cold tap water and leave for a night - but it was not included as an instruction in the original recipe.

• Sort the beans, remove cracked or rotten beans. Rinse thorough with water. Strain.
• Put the washed beans into the crock-pot.
• Chop ham into small pieces and put in the crock-pot with beans.
• Boil water in a separate pot on the stove.
• Pour the boiling water in the crock-pot, turn it on 'high'.
• Add salt.
• Cover and let cook for 4 hours undisturbed. Do not stir. - this is my favorite part - if you cook the beans on the stove, you have to stir them often and check- often - how much water there is in the pot.

* It is best if the slow cooker has a see through lid, so you do not have to remove it to check how the cooking is going. The more times you open the lid, the longer it takes to cook.

* If you run low on water, boil more on the stove, the add boiling water to the crock-pot. Never add cold water, it will turn the beans black.

Beans cooked in the slow cooker

Together with corn bread, the beans make a great traditional, southern style meal. I have tried many corn bread recipes but we finally decided, that the one included below is the best.

I do not have a cast iron so I use a round, 9'' metal cake tin. As you can see in the picture, the corn bread baked in it turns out rather thin, but we like it in this way. If you want to make it thicker, just double the amount of all the ingredients.

Corn Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 TBS canola oil (or olive oil/or any vegetable oil)
• 1 cup corn meal
• 1/6 cup all purpose flour (a half of 1/3 cup)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 TBS sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• about 1 and 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 medium sized carrot (I use about 4 or 5 baby carrots)

Procedure

• Grate the carrot.
• Heat the oven 400F.
• Pour the oil into the baking tin. Put the tin into the oven for minutes.
• Put all the other ingredients into a bowl and stir with a spoon.
• Take out the baking tin from the oven. Carefully pour the hot oil into the bowl with corn bread ingredients, and stir with a spoon again.
• Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 20 or 25 minutes - until a toothpick comes out clean.

our favorite kind of home made corn bread

Warm, straight from the oven, corn bread with some butter + the beans = a wonderful treat.