Cookaholics Bulletin Board

JesBelle is right - when I was at CI we did a testing and the manufacturers confirmed that they had increased the temperatures of the newer slow cookers for safety concerns. I actually now use my rice cooker (which has a slow cooker inset) or my oven.

Thanks Lindsay!

For the oven, what do you set the temperature for (both for high and low).

Gerard

I do have this touchscreen model that CI recommended. I was in the market for a bigger model (believe mine is a 6.5quart) because i wanted to make larger amounts of pulled pork or roasts etc. i wanted to get either major leftovers or 2 separate meals out of my efforts!! So i do LOVE THE SIZE!! However, you cannot use this cooker if you do not fill it up with the larger cuts of meat. for instance when i make pulled pork i fit 2 of the cuts of pork in there and i would say they are 4lbs each. it does not do well with smaller recipes. stuff seems to overcook--which is a crockpot rule in general that you need to fill it properly. therefore, i do have a smaller cooker for those recipes! AND YES, i have noticed it cooks hot especially on high. i rarely use high as a result. i find the slow cooks nice and slow and things are not burnt around the perimeter. and sometimes if i'm cooking something more prone to burn, i will reduce the amount of cooking time on slow by just a little bit and that seems to be fine.
But i do love the touchscreen, the clear lid, the handles both on the lid and the side of the crock, and the non skid feet. CI mentioned that the black porcelain (or whatever it is) shadows after drying and makes it look dirty still. this is true and bothersome but not that big a deal for me. i got used to it quick and don't let it bug me. but if you are super particular about cleaning things beware it might drive you crazy!
fyi....I was at Bed BAth two days ago and they had marked them down from 99.99 (which is $20 less than i paid for it) to 79.99 and you can use a coupon.

Thanks for your response. I'm fine with a large slow cooker since most recipes I make, are for 6-8 servings.

I just got the TouchScreen replacement and tried it out. This time, on high, at 6 hours, it was 209-210 degrees. This was far different from what the last one was like (212 degrees, i.e. rapid hard boil by 3.5 hours - with the lid jiggling!). I'm likely to keep this one and do as you do - just use the low setting.

The one exception might be when I'm cooking with chicken. Typically, the recipes say to cook for 4-6 hours - so maybe for these receipes, I'll just go 4-5 hours.

Gerard

I have this one because I needed a smaller unit most of the time. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001E5CWVU/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It has FOUR heat settings, Low, High, Simmer and Warm.
I've been using it for about a year now and everything has cooked perfectly, though mostly I use the Low setting. Nothing has ever overcooked or boiled.