Everyone hates the dreaded question, “What’s for dinner?” Slow cookers solve this dilemma that every family faces on weeknights. With a slow cooker in your cooking arsenal, coming home to a hot, table-ready dinner is as simple as adding ingredients in the morning.

A slow cooker brings a “no-watch” convenience to preparing meals, but many worry about the hot exteriors when picking up the appliance. The Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker has this problem solved. Its base is insulated to help keep most of the heat on the inside, where it’s needed most. Along with its cool design, the Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker is equipped with a nonstick removable pan that goes on the stovetop for easy browning. More lightweight than traditional stoneware, the aluminum insert pan offers cooks the benefit of fast, even heating on the stovetop and eliminates the need to clean a second pan afterwards.

Not only is the Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker full of smart ideas to make life easier, it was also designed with simple programmability in mind. An intuitive control panel makes setting the time and temperature a simple matter of pressing a few buttons, and the cooker’s even heating performance ensures that meals come out the way you want them to: tender and delicious.

Cool-Surround Slow Cooker Benefits:

• Insulated base has cooler sides than the leading competitor
• Cool-touch base handles
• Nonstick pan removes for easy browning and searing on the stovetop
• 6 quart aluminum insert pan fits a 6 lb. chicken or a 4 lb. roast
• Reduced energy consumption; our most energy-efficient slow cooker
• Simple programmability with +/- buttons for temperature and large, easy-to-read heat buttons for OFF, HIGH, LOW & WARM
• The glass lid is dishwasher safe and the insert pan is nonstick so baked-on foods are wiped away easily
• Wraparound, even heat cooks food evenly and consistently
• Questions are supported by a toll-free call center located in the U.S.
• Backed by a one-year warranty

Uses and Details

Simple Programmability
The Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker has simple buttons for selecting the cooking time and temperature and either one can be adjusted anytime, even after you start cooking. During the cooking cycle, the countdown display on the control panel shows the remaining time so you can see it at a glance. When the cooking time is up, the slow cooker automatically switches to WARM. If you forget to turn the slow cooker OFF for any reason, the unit will automatically shut off after 14 hours of total cooking time.

Stovetop Searing
Many recipes recommend browning or searing meat prior to slow cooking. While this step is not required, it can enhance the meal’s flavor. To make browning easy, the Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker has a removable, stovetop-safe pan. This insert pan is made of nonstick aluminum, so it heats quickly and evenly and is perfect for browning. When you brown or sear food, the delicious flavor you start on your stovetop will improve the taste of your finished meal.

Designed by Consumers, For Consumers
At Hamilton Beach, every appliance has to perform well for consumers before it ever makes it onto the shelf. As we design products, we seek out honest feedback and opinions from a variety of sources. Now that’s Good Thinking.®

Our research revealed that consumers are frustrated with hot surface temperatures on slow cookers. With that in mind, we developed a plastic body with handles that are fully integrated into the design. As a result, the aluminum pan is nestled entirely inside the insulated housing as food cooks, so the sides and the handles remain cooler to the touch.

We also identified several innovation opportunities for the slow cooker’s inside. Traditional crocks are heavy and are not stovetop safe. Since many slow cooker recipes call for browning on the stovetop, people need a separate pan to cook with — and clean. To avoid that inconvenience, the Insulated Programmable Slow Cooker is equipped with a lighter, stovetop-safe aluminum pan with nonstick performance.

Slow Cooker Tips

For those new to the slow cooking method, there are a few things you should know. First, how high you fill the crock (also called the insert pan, stoneware, cookware or vessel) is important. To prevent overcooking, the crock should be filled anywhere from half full up to no more than one inch from the rim. Leave more room when cooking with liquid. When cooking soups or stews, leave a 2-inch (5 cm) space between the top of the crock and the food so the recipe can come to a simmer.

Secondly, lifting the lid during cooking will cause the crock to lose heat and it will take longer for your meal to cook. Unless your recipe specifically calls for stirring, resist lifting the lid. Last but not least, if you want to store leftovers after cooking, do NOT place the entire crock in the refrigerator. Contents will take too long to cool. Instead, divide leftovers into smaller containers and then place in the refrigerator.

Cooking Meat
A slow cooker is great for foods that are not naturally tender, like meat. Similar to braising, slow cookers tenderize meat slowly as it cooks. Cuts such as chuck roast, pork butt, short ribs or chicken thigh produce great results. These are the least-expensive cuts but also the most flavorful. If fat is an issue, refrigerate the contents after cooking and skim off the extra fat before serving. Note: you must thaw frozen meat and poultry before adding it to the slow cooker.

Cooking Side Dishes or Dessert
Main courses, soups and "one-pot" meals are not the only things that slow cookers are great for preparing. They are also perfect for making side dishes and dessert, especially when your main oven is full. Check out the recipes found at www.HamiltonBeach.com that were developed and tested by the culinary experts in the Hamilton Beach Test Kitchen.

How to Adapt Recipes
You can convert your favorite recipes to slow cooker recipes if you learn these important differences first:

• Liquids do not evaporate in a slow cooker. So unless you are cooking rice, pasta, or beans, reduce the amount of liquid to 1/2 of the amount called for in your recipe.
• Fresh vegetables produce more desirable results than canned and frozen vegetables. Canned and frozen vegetables take less time to cook and can produce overcooked dishes.
• Potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic should be washed and cut in uniform pieces, then placed in the bottom of the crock.
• Ground beef should be browned and drained before slow cooking to remove grease.
• Tender foods such as pasta, asparagus and snow peas should be added in the last hour of cooking.
• Dairy products such as cheese, milk, and sour cream should be added in the last half hour of cooking.
• Seafood such as shrimp, scallops, and fish should be added in the last 15-30 minutes of cooking.

Time Conversion Chart

Care and Cleaning
Do not use metal utensils, abrasive cleansers or metal scouring pads on the aluminum insert pan. The glass lid is dishwasher safe. However, as with most aluminum pans and cookware, hand washing is recommended for the aluminum pan. To clean the base, simply wipe it down with a damp cloth. Do not immerse the cord, plug or base in any liquid.