Slow cooker

[2] They could start dinner cooking in the morning before going to work and finish preparing the meal in the evening when they came home.

[2] Naxon was inspired by a story from his mother which told how back in her native Lithuanian town, his grandmother made a traditional Jewish stew called cholent which took several hours to cook in an oven.

[2][3][4] A 1950 advertisement shows a slow cooker called the "Simmer Crock" made by the Industrial Radiant Heat Corp. of Gladstone, NJ.

Other brands of this appliance include Cuisinart, GE, Hamilton Beach, KitchenAid, Magic Chef, West Bend Housewares, and the now defunct American Electric Corporation.

A basic slow cooker consists of a lidded round or oval cooking pot made of glazed ceramic or porcelain, surrounded by a housing, usually metal, containing an electric heating element.

The vapor that is produced at this temperature condenses on the bottom of the lid and returns as liquid, into which some water-soluble vitamins are leached.

The slow cooker's lid is essential to prevent the warm vapor from escaping, taking heat with it and cooling the contents.

Many published recipes for slow cookers are designed primarily for convenience and use few ingredients, and often use prepared sauces or seasonings.

The long, moist cooking is particularly suitable for tough and cheap cuts of meat including pork shoulder, beef chuck and brisket.

Cheaper cuts of meat with connective tissue and lean muscle fibers are suitable for stewing, and produce tastier stews than those using expensive cuts,[7] as long slow cooking softens connective tissue without toughening the muscle.

Slow cooking leaves gelatinized tissue in the meat, so that it may be advantageous to start with a richer liquid.

Since slow cookers work at temperatures well below boiling point and do not rapidly denature enzymes, vegetables tend to lose trace nutrients.

Slow cookers are less dangerous than ovens or stove tops due to their lower operating temperatures and closed lids.

However, they still contain a large amount of foods and liquids at temperatures close to boiling, and they can cause serious scalds if spilled.