Slow-Cooked Meals on Hectic Days

Set it and forget it. Slow cookers are a beloved part of every kitchen. Easing hectic days, it’s a lifesaver for dinner and makes everyone a star chef regardless of actual cooking skills.

Whether living on your own or cooking for a family, slow cookers eliminate the need to rush home to prepare dinner. Simply place your ingredients in the pot, set the timer, and go about your day. Slow cookers do the rest of the work for you, making meat tender and mac and cheese gooey. Your food will be ready by the time you get home, with the aroma coming from the kitchen leaving your mouth watering.

Additionally, we all love the easy clean-up of one-pot meals. There aren’t gross pots and pans around you, taking up the rest of your night to clean. Just wash one pot before bed, perhaps even putting the slow cooker back to work for a delicious breakfast the next morning.

The convenience we love is what drove the slow cooker to enter our lives decades ago. The inventor of the slow-cooker Irving Nachumsohn took inspiration from a Lithuanian tradition of cooking Sabbath meals on low heat. Nachumsohn applied for a patent in 1936, earning it in early 1940. And while families would appreciate a kitchen helper immediately after, the slow cooker didn’t appear on store shelves until the 1950s, finally called the Naxon Beanery.

Yep. Slow cookers were niche, designed to cook beans. That Lithuanian tradition that inspired Nachumsohn was for a bean-based stew. Probably delicious, but not a kitchen essential.

Once consumers discovered that you could put more than beans in the pot, however, the appliance became a must-have. The device was enlarged to feed the entire family and the pot became detachable for easy cleaning.

Families, particularly women entering the workforce without free afternoons to prepare dinner, sought convenience at mealtimes, and the slow cooker provided that. We all love the ease of casseroles and bakes, but imagine making those dishes in a slow cooker, like this slow cooker lasagna! Talk about a tasty, low-effort meal.

This appeal continues today. According to Statista, Americans purchased 12.7 million slow cookers in 2018, and over 80% of American homes have at least one slow cooker. You have the tools, so add your ingredients to the pot and get out the door and back to your life.

For recipes to add to your slow cooker, check out The Dairy Alliance recipes.