If there is one item in the kitchen that a lot of people can’t miss anymore, it’s the slow cooker! Meals prepared this way are often healthier, but it’s also plain easy to make and usually delicious too. However, there are a few do’s and don’ts when it comes to using the slow cooker, so let’s take a look at the ten most commonly made mistakes and how to avoid them.

1) Pulling the lid off to take a peek

It’s definitely understandable that you’d want to take a peak, as it is pretty hard to resist those delicious smells. However, even a small peek can greatly interrupt the entire process and add precious minutes to the preparation time. Patience is a virtue!

2) Using the wrong one

Size matters! There’s a reason why you can find slow cookers in all sorts of sizes. Using one that is too tiny probably won’t get your food to cook, but using a cooker that is too large is evidently not a good idea either. Luckily, you can buy multi-packs for different meals or just pick a medium-sized one that is just right for you.

3) Leaving chicken with the skin on

Granted, you can just live the chicken skin on when you put it in the oven, and it often results in a tasty and crispy sear that is just hard to resist. However, it turns out that it isn’t a great match for the oven, but it often turns mushy in the slow cooker. Still want that crispy skin? Give it a few minutes in the oven first, and then transfer to the crockpot.

4) Frozen food

It may sound like a good idea, but experts actually warn that you shouldn’t cook frozen meat in the slow cooker. The reason is that there’s a chance of bacteria forming before a safe and bacteria-free temperature can be reached. Thaw it in the fridge first, or use your microwave’s defrost option.

5) Fresh herbs

You can use fresh herbs in a slow cooker, but only at the very last moment. Stick to pre-packaged dry herbs that you add from the beginning in the crockpot, it’ll save you time and effort.

6) Not using the correct layers

Layering isn’t only important in the fashion world, it’s pretty essential in slow cookers as well. Using incorrect layering can result in parts of your meal that are left uncooked, and we all want to avoid that. Follow specific slow cooker recipes exactly as they describe so. Don’t have a recipe? Root vegetables can generally go all the way down, while meat goes on top.

7) Using too much alcohol

Of course, some meals require a touch of alcohol and there’s certainly nothing wrong with that, but things tend to get a little bit more complicated in a slow cooker. As it goes slowly, the temperature reached may not be sufficient for all of the alcohol to evaporate, which will have its effect on your food. Definitely, a case of less is more, here.

8) Using dairy

It’s not exactly the best idea to cook dairy in a slow cooker because even then, it’s still not slow enough. If your recipe requires the use of dairy, you can always just mix and cook it in a separate pan and add it when the rest is done.

9) Searing meat is a must

Searing meat is an absolute must! It’s a step that is often forgotten when you follow a recipe, but it’s such an essential step that will have a huge impact on taste and texture.

10) Too expensive meat

Whatever meat you throw in the slow cooker will most definitely come out tender, so it’s not really worth it to buy special top-class steak. Just try out some cheaper cuts, for example, and they’ll still be heavenly tender.

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Source: YouTube – Mashed, thekitchn