USING THE OVEN - SLOW COOK (if tted)
The advantages of slow cooking are
as follows:
• Food can be left to cook unattended
for several hours and will keep hot for
several hours if left covered, without
spoiling for a further 2-3 hours, so
foods can be left to cook while you
are out for the day, or over night.
• Inexpensive cuts of meat become
deliciously tender when slow cooked.
• Slow cooking will also produce moist,
tender“roasts”withminimalmeat
shrink-age and reduced oven soiling.
• Dishes such as soups, vegetables,
puddings savory dishes and preserves
are also suitable for slow cooking.
• There is no topping up of steam-
ers,steamlledkitchensorconstant
checking to do.
Using the slow cook oven
Turn the oven on and preheat for 20
minutes. Always place the prepared cook-
ing pot centrally on the base of the oven.
Follow the guide lines for the best results.
• The maximum capacity of oven proof
dishes should be no more than 2.5
litres(4.5pints).
• Pleasenote:Themoreyoullthe
dish/pot the longer it will take to
cook.
• Cooking times will vary depending on
the size and shape of the meat, or
poultry.
• Always bring soups,casseroles and
liquids before placing in a preheated
oven. To give more colour to meat or
poultry, fry the meat to brown and
add to stock which is hot.
• All meat and poultry recipes need a
minimum of 5 hours to cook.
• Make sure all frozen ingredients are
well thawed out.
• Always ensure that frozen poultry has
thoroughly defrosted in a refrigerator
and all ice crystals have melted.
• Cut root vegetables into smaller
pieces as they take longer than meat
to cook.
• If possible they should be sauteed for
2-3 minutes before slow cooking.
• Ensure that root vegetables are
always at the bottom of the pan im-
mersed in the cooking liquid.
• A meat thermometer should be used
when cooking pork joints and poultry.
The internal temperature of the food
shouldreach88˙C,
• Stuffed meat or stuffed poultry
should not be slow cooked. Cook any
stufngseparately.
• Cover casseroles with a lid, or foil to
prevent loss of moisture.
• Adjust seasonings and thickenings at
the end of cooking time.
• Dried red kidney beans must be
boiled for a minimum of 10 minutes
following soaking before inclusion in
any dish.
• Opening the door during cooking,
leads to heat loss, and will lead to
increased cooking times.
