So I’ve tried adapting this gousto recipe for oven-baked coq au vin for the slow cooker. I’m fairly new to slow cooking and it’s come put a bit watery than I expected. Any tips would be great please.
I was making the recipe for four. For the oven it needed 650ml of boiling water. I used half of that as from a previous mistake I learnt I have to reduce the amount of water, not increase it. I read online that I should add any dried herbs for only the last half an hour so I haven’t added the dried thyme yet. But I wasn’t sure what to do with the bay leaves, in at the start or the last 30 mins.
Also, I was under the impression you just bang it all in at the start and then it will all be done at the end but I’m wondering if I should be adding some of the veg later. Especially mushrooms.
But I also found out yesterday I shouldn’t be taking the lid off so is it better to add it all in at the start regardless?
As you can probably tell, I haven’t got much of an idea what I’m doing so some pointers would be much appreciated.
Thanks
by maths-geek314
2 Comments
I always add all spices and herbs at the beginning so they can infuse the sauce in which everything else cooks. Also, I add all vegetables at the beginning. Dairy is the only thing I potentially add in the last hour of cooking because it can curdle if cooked to long.
Items cooked in a slow cooker rarely need to be stirred and the lid should stay put the entire cooking period. Because of that, there’s very little liquid evaporation during the cooking process. When adapting a non-slow cooker recipe it can be hard to know how much liquid you need without it being too much.
I don’t like to cook so I approach each new recipe as an experiment. I usually make something at least 4 times before deciding if it’s a keeper recipe. This time this recipe didn’t quite work for you. Next time, add everything at the beginning, reduce the added liquid some more, and leave the lid on the entire time.
The veggies give off water, so it’s unlikely that any additional water is needed for this slow cooker recipe.
Put all your veg in the slow cooker. Sear the chicken skin side down until you get a nice crisp, probably at least 5 min. Now put your chicken on top of the veg in the slow cooker.
Assess the amount of fat in your pan. If you need a little extra to get to 2 tbsp of fat, add a little pat of butter. Now sprinkle 1-2 tbsp of flour into the hot fat and cook that for 2-3 min until browned. Deglaze the pan with your wine and/or broth (again, no extra water usually needed here), and cook the resulting “gravy” down to reduce the wateriness by about half if possible.
Pour this gravy over the chicken and veg, add herbs on top, and cook until chicken & veg are done (in my slow cooker, this would be 5-6 hrs on low and 2-3 hrs on high setting).
You can use cornstarch slurry or xanthan gum to thicken the resulting gravy if it still seems watery.