Cooking TWO meals in the slow cooker at the same time

[tintinthegingertomcat]

Today I will be cooking two different meals in the slow cooker at the same time!

I have sliced up some carrots and layered them at the bottom, just covering with a little stock. My meal is placed on top of the carrots, in a foil container and then wrapped in some more foil to seal it completely. My son's meal is pork shanks already ready to cook already sealed so that also goes on top of the carrots and next to the foil sealed meal. I shall turn the slow cooker on about midday and therefore two different meals can be heated and cooked in the slow cooker at the same time thereby saving the need to put the oven on later. And his veg are cooked at the same time as well. I only need the microwave for two mins to heat up the rice.

Voila a cheap way to cook two different meals.

[stampingpat]

That is very clever. I used my slowcooker over night last night to cook up some chicken broth from the bones from the roast yesterday. 🙂 I hadn't thought of doing separate parcels like that. Good idea.

[tintinthegingertomcat]

I always try and plan meals that are all cooked the same way ie hob or oven - if needs be I will make bread for when the oven is on anyway. anything to try and cut down costs. If this slow cooker way works I shall be doing it again in the future. Easy to cook carrots in the slow cooker because of their shape and the fact you can sit stuff on them...not so easy for the weird shaped veg ie cauli and broccoli LOL.

If I am cooking veg for me and spaghetti for the boy, then I put the spaghetti in the water at the bottom of the veg steamer...again that saves a hob use.

I have just found a shop that sells the foil containers slightly smaller than the ones that the chinese supply (think they call them "half size") so I can freeze on extra meal by making the portion sizes smaller.

[**roofie**]

Did you know you can buy slow cookers with 2 compartments? I think it's brilliant.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/181261544080?limghlpsr=true&lpid=102&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1...

[ed_blackadder_1]

Wow thats good and it's twice the size of mine,  I was going to get another one so I could have 2 on the go at the same time.

Thanks roofie

[**roofie**]

No worries Ed. Great idea isn't it? Long time coming too...

[tintinthegingertomcat]

Wow.....thanks Roofie. That slow cooker you gave the link to looks like the same one as I have now except mine just has the one compartment. I may buy one of these when the one I have now gives up the ghost....however, it is possible to cook two meals in one provided you use different pots like I have done.