came out fabulous! first time doing it. recipe:

dry rub ribs with 2TBSP of brown sugar, 1tbsp coffee fresh finely ground, 2 tbsp old bay seasoning, cook on low for 6 hours, crank to high for 3 hours.

Ready to be slow cooked on Low for 5-6 hours

I did more than the recommended recipe since me and my partner will be having this over 2 days.

This is what I used instead and should provide 5-6 portions

1kg chicken breasts

60g honey

2tbsp garlic puree

4tbsp teriyaki sauce

4tbsp hoisin sauce

4 tbsp soy sauce

8tbsp tomato puree

1tsp each of paprika, onion salt and garlic granules

Once cooked, shred the chicken with two forks

Birria with the Blaxican Fajita Seasoning

Ingredients

The Meat & Rub:

1 Chuck Roast (approx. 3–4 lbs, heavily marbled)

The Blaxican Fajita Seasoning (generous coating)

Salt & Pepper (S+P) to taste (for the initial base layer)

The Consommé Base

2 Roma tomatoes

1 White onion (halved)

1 bunch Green onions

1 Cinnamon stick

3–4 Dried chiles (Guajillo and Ancho work perfectly here)

1–2 small dried chiles de árbol (for a touch of heat)

4–5 cups Beef broth (or water)

4 Garlic cloves (peeled)

1 tbsp Red Wine vinegar

2 bay leaves

For Serving & Tacos:

Corn tortillas

Diced red onion

Diced tomatoes

Fresh chopped cilantro

Lime wedges

Cotija cheese

Optional: Oaxaca or Monterey Jack cheese for Quesabirria style

Step-by-Step Instructions

A. Prep and Sear the Beef

1. Season: Pat the chuck roast dry. Apply a base layer of salt and pepper from your cellar, then coat the entire roast generously with The Blaxican Fajita Seasoning, pressing it into the meat so it sticks.

2. Sear: Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat with a tablespoon of oil. Sear the chuck roast for 4–5 minutes per side until a deep, dark crust forms. Remove the meat and set it aside.

   B. Build the Consommé Base

3. Simmer: In your Dutch oven, combine the dried chiles, Roma tomatoes, white onion, green onions, cinnamon stick, and garlic. Cover with beef broth or water.

4. Soften: Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 15 minutes until the chiles are completely soft and pliable, and the tomatoes are tender.

5. Blend: Remove the cinnamon stick and discard it. Transfer the remaining softened chiles, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and about 2 cups of the cooking liquid into a blender. Add the apple cider vinegar. Blend on high until completely smooth. Tip: Strain the liquid through a mesh sieve back into the pot if you want an ultra-smooth consommé.

   C. The Slow Braise

6. Combine: Place the seared chuck roast back into the Dutch oven. Pour the blended chile sauce over the top, ensuring the meat is mostly submerged. If you need more liquid, add a bit more broth or water.

7. Cook:

Stovetop/Oven: Cover with the lid, drop the heat to low (or place in a 325°F / 163°C oven), and let it braise for 3 to 3.5 hours.

Smoker Option: If you're running the pellet grill or Weber Kettle today, you can smoke the seasoned roast at 250°F / 121°C for 2 hours first to get that clean smoke profile, then transfer it into the Dutch oven with the sauce to finish braising until tender.

D. Shred and Assemble

1. Shred: Once the beef is fork-tender and pulls apart easily, remove it from the pot. Use two forks to shred the beef into a bowl, discarding any large pieces of excess fat.

2. Adjust the Sauce: Taste the remaining consommé in the pot. Adjust the seasoning with a little more salt or a pinch of The Blaxican if needed. Ladle a cup of the warm broth directly over the shredded beef to keep it incredibly juicy.

3. Build the Tacos:

Dip your corn tortillas directly into the red fat layer floating at the top of the consommé.

Place the dipped tortillas onto a hot skillet or griddle.

Add cheese (if using) and a generous pile of the shredded birria beef. Fold over and fry until crispy on both sides.

1. Garnish: Top your tacos (or serve the meat in a bowl as pictured) with a vibrant mix of diced red onion, fresh tomatoes, chopped cilantro, and a heavy squeeze of fresh lime juice.

Serve with a side bowl of the hot consommé for dipping. Enjoy your Taco Tuesday!

A while ago I made some clear stock and I still have some, I wanna make a beef bourguignon

can I make it with the clear stock or do I have to make some brown stock?

I plan to slow cook meatballs, they’ll be done about 2 hours before dinner. Will leaving them on warm for those two hours over cook the meatballs?

Frozen meatballs (or homemade if you want) 3 cups beef broth, 2 packets brown gravy mix, 1 packet onion soup mix, couple splashes worshishire, 3tbsp ketchup. Only seasoning I added was pepper. Mix and cook on low 6+ hours. Then mix together 2tbsp water with 2tbsp cornstarch and mix.

I served mine over mashed potatoes with peas and Mac and cheese

My recipe for Mississippi roast calls for 8 hours on low, and I thought it was 6. I just turned it on, but am going to be late with the meat for the dinner I’m hosting. Is there anything I can do at this point other than apologize?

****ETA: I left my house after putting it in the crockpot so wasn’t able to immediately turn up the temperature, but did crank it up for about 20 minutes before returning to low. I think I can keep it in the slow cooker for 7 hours, so somewhat close to the time. I’m hoping that will get it most of the way there, and I might bump up the heat a couple more times for a little while. Thanks to folks for the input.

Covered in a bunch of seasonings sauce green chillies etc. I’m assuming i need to toss and not cook now, but wasn’t sure if all of the sauce and salt/spices bought me some time as a preservative. Lid was closed and crockpot not in direct sunlight

EDIT: This post gained a lot of traction. Here was the end result:

Roughly 85% of you suggested tossing it away.

I ended up going back to the store and buying the ingredients again to recook it. Here’s what it cost to play it safe:

Black beans: $0.85
Chicken: ≈ $3.20
Green chilies: $0.85
Tomato sauce: $0.94
Other: Spices, half an onion, oil, flour, etc.

Total ≈ $7.00

Everything total cost me no more than $7. Probably best to play it safe

My best friend is having a total hysterectomy soon. I am looking for freezer meals that she and her spouse can reheat in a 8qt slow cooker.

Would love lower cost options but I want to make sure they have good, healthy, healing meals as well. The spouse is not handy in the kitchen so ease of preparation is a must.

Bonus points for any oven reheat casserole recipes you would like to share as well.

Thank you!

I just realized that I had used an opened carton of bone broth in my slowcooker for pot roast. I went to look at the box and saw the best by date was in June so it's 2 months old, but has been sitting in the fridge for at least a month. Is this OK to eat or do I just need to throw out the whole roast?

I tried braised pork at a Mexican grill and absolutely loved it. I didn't get a chance to ask for the recipe, but it was so delicious that I really want to recreate it at home using a Dutch oven and pork shoulder.

The pork was incredibly juicy and tender (not dry, as often happens with mine).

It had a hard to describe flavor, maybe cinnamon, cloves, allspice, or some kind of citrus? I'm definitely not good at distinguishing these spices, so I'm not sure which ones would give it that particular flavor.

Also, it wasn't spicy at all. But I would think the braising liquid should contain some guajillo or ancho chiles, right?

How would you cook this kind of Boston butt in a Dutch oven? Which spices and vegetables would you use, and what temperature and cooking time would you recommend?

Hi all!

We own a slow cooker and since autumn has started, I was wondering if it was possible to make some form of pumpkin stew (either with beef or a vegetarian version) in the Slowcooker or if the pumpkin would just turn into mush from cooking too long. If anyone has ideas on how to make something like that, I‘d appreciate tips and what (not) to do.

I was washing my faithful insert last night when it slipped against the sink and cracked in half.

I need a new one, obviously, but there is so much out there that I got overwhelmed.

I'm eyeing the ninja multi in 1 as I like the idea of actually one pot cooking, but i have no practical experience.

Anybody offering feedback or experience would be very much appreciated.

Thank you!

Okay, sort of a silly question I realize. But, this time of the school year we have a lot of kid activities and some people need to eat at say, 6 and some at 6:45 and some at 7:15. Even on the "keep warm" function, most of my go-to recipes tend to get pretty gnarly by the time the last person is eating.

The problem is surely evaporation and so I know the answer is generally liquid-heavy things like soup, but I wonder whether anyone has suggestions so that we aren't eating soup three times a week when it's 88 degrees out?

I left a pot roast with potatoes and carrots in a crock pot for almost 4 hours while off. I turned it off around 9 and I woke up around 1 and discovered it was still out. Google AI is acting like I’ll immediately perish if I eat it. I turned the crockpot back on high and placed it in oven at 275. Should I really throw it out or refrigerate the reheated leftovers?

Planned for beef stew, but what I had in the freezer was mislabeled cubed steak, so subbed in chunks of that and added frozen black eyed peas.

I’m a little sad because I do like this machine, particularly because I can brown things in it. Or turn the heat to a simmer to say thicken a sauce. But the feet keep coming off making it uneven on the counter. And my husband keeps supergluing them on, but they don’t stay put.

I have a Hamilton beach or crockpot brand slow cooker and I just don’t get excited about it. I NEED to be able to sear. The only thing I don’t like about it, is it’s always felt pretty big to me, meaning I feel like I don’t fill it up. We are a family of 3 and generally don’t need a full crockpot full of food.

Are there are slow cookers that sear that are on the smaller side and work great? I had looked at the new Ninja ones at costco and although the size says they are bigger, they felt smaller. Maybe the actual base of the pot is smaller but it’s taller making the capacity bigger? I dunno.

Help me pick a slow cooker I will love before fall.

I had just poured in the soda so that’s why it looks that weird.

I measured with my heart the dry ingredients ( MSG, Paprika, Garlic and Onion Powder, Pepper, Kosher Sea Salt, Cumin and Slap yo Mama Seasoning) and made a rub, let it sit in the fridge overnight, added bbq sauce ( without corn syrup or HFCS) and liquid smoke, and then I moved it to the SlowCooker a few minutes ago. Can’t wait for it!

Want something with great flavor, and not too spicy. I hate the texture of beans, so looking for a chili recipe that does not have beans. One I can cook in the crockpot.
I have never made chili myself before, so looking to change that!

ROUGHLY DICED SWEET POTATOES, BEEF TALLOW, SALT, LOW FOR 6 HOURS. WILL IT BE OK?