Agreeing with the folks who have said to not compare to stovetop or roasting.
Also remember what slow cookers do best which is low and slow cooking. So keep that in mind for the cuts of meat you use. Super lean cuts like chicken breasts or pork tenderloin CAN be cooked in the slow cooker, but not for an all day thing since it will dry them out.
Cuts like pork shoulder, beef chuck roast, stew meat, chicken thighs, country-style ribs and the like do well in the slow cooker because they need to be cooked slow, (or braised or stewed) to help tenderize the meat.
I love pork shoulder or even pork sirloin roasts in the slow cooker.
My very favorite homemade pulled pork is called Lazy Man's Barbecue Pork Sandwiches.
4-5 pound pork shoulder roast (boneless) OR boneless pork sirloin roast
1 can (14.5 oz ) beef broth
1/3 cup hot pepper sauce (YES, trust me. it mellows)
1/3 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1-2 teaspoons liquid smoke (optional)
Favorite barbecue sauce and sandwich buns
Place pork in bottom of large slow cooker. Combine broth, hot pepper sauce and Worcestershire sauce, and pour over pork. Cover and cook 8 -10 hours on low setting until pork is very tender.
Place pork on cutting board; reserve 1 cup cooking liquid. Coarsely chop or shred pork; combine with reserved cooking liquid and put back into slow cooker (set on Keep Warm setting) until ready to serve. Spoon pork onto sandwich buns and serve with bbq sauce.
Serves 10-12
Leftovers can be put into freezer bags and frozen for up to 3 months. And because you don't add sauce to the finished product, you can do all sorts of things with the leftovers like top a salad with pulled pork, put into quesadillas, or put on baked potatoes with cheese.
Other favorites in the slow cooker is
http://www.zonya.com/pdf/recipes/Beef_Barley_Soup.pdf (So good and so easy. And yes, get a good basic spaghetti sauce. Again, trust me it works)
I also like This gal's blog. Some recipes are better than others. She also tells about FLOPS.
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/ I actually just had her Rotisserie-style chicken and it is really good. I put halved small yellow potatoes and third whole carrots in the bottom and put the chicken on top so it doesn't sit in its juices. Plus it is a whole finished meal.
Also would recommend using a crockpot liner (find them where foil and plastic wrap are) and make Sunday Chicken. (another one that is on my rotation. After it is done cooking I cube or shred the chicken and put back in the sauce. Serve it over either rice or mashed potatoes or even egg noodles with broccoli or peas. Also I have used about any cream of something soup with it so cream of chicken works well.)
http://www.flylady.net/d/flyladys-kitchen/slow-cooker/slow-cooker-chicken-recipe/#sunday-chicken Can you tell I work with food and sometimes teach cooking?
