9 Delicious summer slow cooker recipes for stress-free cooking

About to pop your slow cooker in the cupboard until next autumn? Hold on. A slow cooker is great for delicious summer meals too. Let’s face it, cooking over a hot stove in the summer months isn’t pleasant – and we can’t barbecue every evening. Your slow cooker is perfect for easy summer dinners – prep in the morning, leave to cook, and come home (or in from the garden) to a perfectly cooked, flavoursome dinner. Less time cooking means more time enjoying the lovely weather. Win, win. Try some of our delicious summery recipes below, and you’ll never leave your slow cooker to gather dust in the cupboard again.

The best summer recipes for your slow cooker

From pulled beef tacos to fruity cheesecakes (yes, you can cook desserts in your slow cooker too!) and healthy summer recipes like our lemon and olive chicken, we’ve got lots of scrumptious slow cooker recipe inspiration for you. Which will you try first?

Pulled Pork Burger and Asian Slaw

多汁的手撕猪肉和扑鼻的菠萝混合在一起，为传统汉堡增添了令人垂涎欲滴的美味。美味的沙拉配上姜和蒜，还有很多美味的蔬菜丝，是一道非常美味的配菜，也非常适合烧烤。#

Pulled Beef Tacos with Pickled Cabbage

无论是柔软还是酥脆，无论你喜欢什么口味的玉米卷，你都会喜欢用我们的食谱里的辣牛肉做馅。上面点缀着浓郁的酸菜和奶油羊乳酪，每一口都是味蕾的享受。如果你有剩下的牛肉，你可以把它放进冰箱，或者冷冻起来，再享受一个晚上。You could put the filling in buns for super-simple (and delicious) sloppy Joes with a kick.

Mexican Pull-Apart Pork

也被称为Carnitas，这一传统的墨西哥美食肯定会受到人们的欢迎。用勺子把猪肉丝舀进玉米饼里，再撒上酸奶油和新鲜的香菜，这就是完美的夏日晚餐了。Better still, you can cook extra pork and freeze some for another night.

Barbecue American-Style Pork Ribs

Get your kitchen roll (or napkins, if you’re feeling fancy) at the ready for these delightfully sticky, sweet and spicy slow-cooker ribs. Packed with summery barbecue flavour, without having to actually get the barbecue out, your slow cooker will cook the ribs to fall-off-the-bone perfection. Mouth watering yet?

Jerk-Spiced Chicken Drumsticks

这些火辣辣的慢炖鸡腿制作起来再简单不过了，味道也非常好。如果你不喜欢香料，你可以放弃辣椒——大蒜、肉桂和百里香，仍然有很多味道。Lovely as an evening meal with rice and veg, they’re also great for taking on picnics or serving as part of a summer buffet in the garden.

Slow Cooked Green Olive & Lemon Chicken

The fresh yet zingy flavours of green olives and lemon make this slow-cooked chicken perfect for light summer suppers. Using a whole chicken, you can serve it with veg and potatoes for a summery twist on Sunday lunch, or serve with salad and a light side dish like rice or couscous. And any leftover chicken can be used for yummy chicken sandwiches for lunch the next day. Win.

Thai Red Chicken Curry

需要“fakeaway”灵感吗?看看我们的泰式咖喱红鸡就知道了。早上做好准备，一整天都在做饭，然后回家享受周五晚上的终极大餐。All you have to do is make some rice – and maybe a pack of Thai crackers on the side…It is Friday, after all.

Spiced Chicken with Dates & Chickpeas

You can’t beat chicken thighs cooked in a slow cooker – the chicken comes out perfectly tender, having absorbed all of the beautiful flavours and juices that it’s bathed in for hours. Perfection. The sweet combination of dates and honey with earthier flavours like courgette and onion, finished off with cumin and saffron, result in a flavour-packed dish that’s perfect for summer evenings on the patio.

Slow-Cooker Clementine & Pomegranate Cheesecake

We couldn’t leave you without a dessert, could we? And this mouth-wateringly delicious fruity number, topped with juicy clementine slices and pomegranate seeds, is full of wonderful summer flavours and is the perfect way to round off a barbecue or pizza party in the garden. And all made in your trusty slow cooker, proving just how versatile these wonderful machines are.

Want to get the most out of your slow cooker? Here are our top tips

Slow cooking is one of the best ways to enjoy flavoursome, easy meals that get the most out of your ingredients. Not to mention the pure joy of coming home after a long day at work to find a cooked dinner (even better when you’ve forgotten you even made it in the morning – a tasty surprise indeed!). Follow our simple tips below, and your slow cooker will be your new best friend in the kitchen.

1. Save money and buy cheaper cuts of meat from the butchers – your slow cooker will transform them into tasty, tender perfection.
2. If you have a large slow cooker, make extra portions of stews, casseroles and curries, etc. and freeze extras for quick, fuss-free meals through the week.
3. Use your slow cooker to cook joints of meat like gammon, and then use it for multiple meals throughout the week – sandwiches, salads, omelettes or a cheeky ham, egg and chips. Once you’ve sliced the ham, you can freeze it too.
4. Don’t lift the lid. Taking the lid off during cooking releases all the precious heat and steam inside – a big no-no as it means your food will dry out and take longer to cook.
5. Slow cooking recipes don’t need as much liquid. This is because not much evaporates during cooking, so it’s important to not add too much water, stock or alcohol to your recipe.
6. If your recipe calls for a dairy product like cream, don’t add it until the end, or it’ll curdle.

Check out our‘A beginners guide to slow cooking’写博客获取更多的好主意和建议。

And that’s it, you’re all set for a summer of delicious, quick and easy dinners. We’ve also got everything you need to make the most of alfresco feasts with our range ofbarbecues,pizza ovensand prettypicnicware. Now all we need is the sun!