I had to confess that I have a very soft spot for slow cookers! Before I retired, life was extremely hectic and there was often very little time available in the evenings between coming home from work and going out for a very hectic social life to spare some time for such a mundane duty as preparing some food! The gift of a small crock pot made me a lifelong fan of slow cookers because I would simply have to throw some meat or chicken and some vegetables into the pot along with a crushed oxo cube and top it up with boiling water before switching the heater on and when I finally fell into the house in the early hours of the morning there was a wonderful aroma of a beautifully cooked dish waiting for me! Delicious!

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Slow cooker is of course are not just for those of us is who single and irresponsible! The joy of them for someone cooking for a family is partly that they save time, because since they never boil they do not have to be watched carefully lots of food is cooking, partly that they save money because cheaper cuts of meat come out really tender after several hours in the pot, but the main advantage to me is that the food that is produced is, more often than not, very very appetising. Fair enough, we all like a little bit of variety and it would not do to have a meal from the slow cooker every evening because it would get a little monotonous but there should certainly be a place for one in every 21st century kitchen.