Easy Slow Cooker Ketchup

It's not just stews and casseroles that you can use your slow cooker for! This recipe for tomato ketchup is so easy, you'll wonder why you ever bought a bottle.

Ingredients

• 2 cans Tomato puree (roughly 800ml in total)
• 1 Small onion
• 1 Medium shallot
• 100ml Cider vinegar
• 75 grams Dark brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Mustard powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground mace
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Add the tomato puree, onion and shallot to a food processor and blitz until smooth.
2. Next, add the vinegar, sugar, mustard, allspice, cinnamon, mace, ginger, cloves and pepper flakes and pulse until mixed.
3. Add the contents of the food processor into your slow cooker, being sure to scrape every last bit in!
4. Cook on high, with the lid on, for 2 1/2 hours.
5. Cook for a further 1/2 hour with the lid off, stirring occasionally.
6. Check the consistency. If you’re happy, switch your slow cooker off season to taste with salt and pepper. If you’d like your ketchup to be a bit thicker, leave it a further 15 minutes.
7. Leave the slow cooker to cool before scraping your ketchup into a large sterile glass jar.

This will keep in the fridge for a while. But once opened, it’s best to eat within 2 months.

Slow Cooker Beef with Red Wine and Shallots

A lovely rich slow cooker beef recipe. Perfect comfort food for cold winter evenings.

Servings
6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 kilogram Braising steak (Or any stewing beef)
• 200 grams Streaky bacon (unsmoked)
• 1 Onion
• 1 Clove of garlic
• 2 tablespoon Plain flour
• 300ml Red wine
• 1 Bay leaf
• 12 Shallots
• 1 Carrot
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Peel and chop the onion and carrot, peel and crush the garlic.
2. Trim any fat from the beef and cut into generous bite-sized chunks.
3. Chop the bacon into strips.
4. Put a pan on a medium high heat and brown the beef in a little oil. Then transfer to your slow cooker.
5. In the same pan, fry off the bacon, carrot and onions until the onions have softened and the bacon starts to turn golden.
6. Add the flour and red wine to your pan and mix well.
7. Bring to a slow simmer and then add the bay leaf, shallots with a pinch of salt and pepper.
8. Carefully add the contents of the pan to the slow cooker and give it a good mix.
9. Cook on low for around 8 hours.

Slow Cooker Pork Fajitas

This recipe for slow cooker pork fajitas requires minimal prep and is a great social way of cooking for larger groups.

Servings
9 servings


Ingredients

• 1 kilogram Pork loin
• 2 Medium onions
• 400ml BBQ sauce
• 150ml Salsa
• 1 tablespoon Chili powder
• 1 teaspoon Ground cumin
• 2 grams Green peppers
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt

Directions

1. Thinly slice one of your onions.
2. Add your pork to the slow cooker and place your sliced onion on top.
3. In a bowl, mix the BBQ sauce, salsa, chili powder and cumin.
4. Pour the mixture into your slow cooker, over the pork and onion.
5. Cook on low for 8 hours.
6. After cooking, remove the pork onto a board and shred using 2 forks.
7. Slice your other onion, and chop your peppers into strips.
8. Return the pork to the slow cooker, adding your chopped veg and salt stir well.
9. Turn your slow cooker up to it’s high heat setting, cover and cook for a further 30 minutes.

Perfect served it’s own on soft warm tortillas. Optionally, you could also dish up some grated cheese and guacamole or sour cream.


This recipe would also make a great sandwich filling.