Heat Setting Guide - West Bend 6 – QUART Manual

HEAT SETTING GUIDE

Below is a listing of some of the foods that can be cooked in your Slow Cooker. They are arranged according to the method of
food preparation-simmer, steam, bake, etc. and grouped under the different heat settings. As a general guideline, most recipes
can be prepared at Heat Setting #3 ½(Low), #4(Med) or #5(High). The exception is baking of quick breads which must always
be done at the #5(High) Setting. The cooking time is dependent on the heat setting used. In general, food cooked at the #3
½(Low) Setting will require 7 to 10 hours for cooking, 4 to 6 hours at the #4(Med) Setting and 2 to 3 hours of cooking at the
#5(High) Setting. Less tender cuts of meat will become the most tender when cooked at the #3 ½(Low) Setting. When
cooking roasts, ham or poultry, it is recommended that a meat thermometer be inserted to insure that desired or recommended
doneness is reached.
DO NOT USE A HEAT SETTING BELOW #3 ½(LOW) FOR ACTUAL COOKING OF FOODS.
Setting #1---- Warm and serve: sweet rolls, doughnuts, dinner rolls, muffins, hard breakfast rolls, taco shells and hamburger
(Keep Warm) buns.
Setting # 2----- Warm and serve: frozen baked rolls and buns
(Keep Warm)--Keep warm for serving: baked beans, beef pot roast, cereal, chili, fish fillets, frankfurters, fruit punch, hot
spiced wine, pork chops, potatoes, rice, rice pudding, round steak, soup, spareribs, stew and vegetable juices
Setting #3 ½ -- Slow–simmer: all-day stew, chili, all-day casseroles with cooked meat and frozen vegetables, beef pot roast,
baked beans, vegetable hambone soup, poultry-bone soup, pork chops, oatmeal, rice pudding, beef round steak, spareribs
Bake: tuna loaf, sauerbraten loaf, meat loaf, canned ham, shank half of ham
Steam: frankfurters
Setting #4----- Simmer: casseroles with cooked meat and frozen vegetables for 2 to 3 hours cooking time, corned beef and
(Med) vegetable stew.
Prepare: hot spiced wine
Bake: apple betty
Roast: chicken, rolled beef roast
Setting #5-----Bake: potatoes, acorn squash, meat loaf in pan, chocolate cake, carrot cake, banana bread, spice raisin loaf,
(High) gingerbread, frozen pot pie, frozen entrée dinner
Steam: rice, dumplings, and cauliflower
Fast-simmer: dried fruit
Prepare: fish fillets, fresh applesauce, fruit punch, frozen vegetables, hot chocolate, vegetable juices
Roast: capon chicken
TIPS FOR ADAPTING RECIPES TO SLOW COOKING
Many of your favorite oven and range top recipes can be adapted to slow cooking with a few minor changes. Here are some
important points to remember.
Amount of Liquid:
Because little moisture evaporates during slow cooking, reduce amount of liquid in your recipe by one-half (1 cup of liquid is
enough for most recipes). For soup recipes, add all ingredients except water or broth to pot; add only enough liquid to cover
ingredients.
Amount of Seasoning:
Reduce amount of seasoning in proportion with reduced amount of liquid. Use whole or leaf herbs and spices rather than
crushed or ground forms.
Slow Cooking Meat:
Less tender, less expensive cuts of meat are better suited to slow cooking than expensive cuts of meat. Remove excess fat
before slow cooking if desired. Meat can be browned in the cooker pot on top of the range before slow cooking.
Slow Cooking Vegetables:
Add partially frozen vegetables, Chinese vegetables and fresh mushrooms during the last hour of cooking. Strong-flavored
vegetables such as spinach, eggplant, okra and collard greens should be precooked before adding to cooker. The amount of
onion normally used in your recipe should be reduced because its flavor gets stronger during cooking. In most cases, fresh
vegetables take longer to cook than meats because liquid simmers rather than boils.
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