As the first hints of fall arrive and temperatures begin to cool, it's a great time to dust off your Crock-Pot or slow cooker and ease into the season with warm, comforting meals that practically cook themselves.
Business Insider spoke with chefs and cookbook authors about their favorite comforting slow-cooker meals, from hearty beef stews and chowders to tender brisket, and researched celebrity chefs' go-to Crock-Pot dishes.
Here are 17 cozy comfort-food dishes you can make in a slow cooker, according to chefs.
Short ribs are one of cookbook author Kim Laidlaw's favorite things to make in a Crock-Pot, and they're a go-to on a chilly fall day.
In her cookbook, "Everyday Slow Cooking: Modern Recipes for Delicious Meals," Laidlaw offers several recipes for short ribs and recommends serving them with other sides.
"If you do them in a slow cooker, then the meat is out of the way," she told Business Insider. "Then, you can focus on other side dishes like polenta or risotto."
Beef, turkey, or chicken stew is the kind of stick-to-your-bones comfort food that feels made for fall.
Packed with tender meat, hearty vegetables, and a rich, flavorful broth, a warm bowl of stew makes an especially satisfying meal as temperatures drop and chilly evenings set in.
"Beef stew is really nice in the slow cooker," Laidlaw said. "That's something I grew up on with the slow cooker, and it's just as good today."
If you make this chowder in late summer or early fall, you can use fresh, in-season corn, as suggested in this celebrity chef-approved Martha Stewart recipe on the chef's website.
However, you can also take the easy route by choosing canned corn from the store. The chowder is flavorful yet light, using heartwarming ingredients like heavy cream, bacon, and baby red potatoes.
Brisket isn't reserved just for holidays or special occasions.
Laidlaw's recipe for slow-cooked braised brisket includes garlic, onion, dry red wine, carrot, and chicken or beef stock, with a chimichurri sauce.
"Brisket is a natural partner for the slow cooker, as a gentle braise renders it meltingly tender," Laidlaw writes in "Everyday Slow Cooking."
Whether it's for game day or just a slow Sunday with the family, crock-pot barbecue ribs make everything unbelievably easy.
Source: Read the original article on www.businessinsider.com
