Hi-am making my first beef stock in a long time and would like to be able to leave the house while it's doing its simmering thing. I'm wondering if anyone has any experience using the slow cooker for this purpose? I'm thinking the low setting would probably do it, but then again...?

I have never done this but it might work. The key is just to keep the stock at the proper simmer and if your slow cooker can do that then it might work.

I say give it a whirl while you are home one day and then you will know for sure. Hope this helps!

Hi,
Is a slow cooker a pressure cooker?
Enda

No slow cookers and pressure cookers are not the same thing. Pressure cookers use pressure to cook foods - in less time. While slow cookers cook things over a long and slower period of time.

Well, I blasted ahead and tried it-it took awhile (2-3 hrs) to get to the simmering stage on the High setting and I left it overnight.

A couple of small issues I encountered-my cooker was pretty full so I didn't have room for the sediment to float up. Consequently my stock is a bit cloudy, but I plan to use it for a stew base so it doesn't matter to me. It's currently setting and cooling in the fridge so it may clarify some more.

The second issue is I wonder if it "overcooked". My total time was about 17 hrs.
Although it smells wonderful, I haven't tasted it yet. What are the consequences-if any-of simmering longer than 12 hrs?

BTW Enda, slow cookers consist of a ceramic pot inside an electric heating appliance. A brand name in North America is the Rival Crock Pot. I don't know if you have such devices in Europe.

Good for you for experimenting yourself. You are right that if your stock is a bit cloudy, it will still be fine for stews, etc.

As for cooking time, 17 hours does seem a bit extreme. The consequences of overcooking can be that the ingredients will start to break down and make the stock even more cloudy and it may even affect the flavor. That being said, as long as it tastes fine, you should be ok.

You might want to try it in a pot next time. After going through the effort, did you wind up with enough stock? Slow cookers tend to be quite small.

I ended up producing 6-8 cups, a decent amount.
I think if I were to try it again, I'd start it in a pot for the initial simmering and skimming, and then transfer to the cooker if I needed to go out and leave it unattended.
Maybe it would be easier to stay home!

The vast majority of slow cookers, even on their lowest setting, are too hot for proper stock-making. A stock should be simmered overnight, or about six to eight hours, at the barest simmer (mijoter), which means the presence on the surface of just a very occasional bubble.

Too hot, too long just pulverizes the solids used to make the stock and you'll never get it to clear. Seventeen hours is too long without a doubt.

I was worried too about leaving my stock overnight or leaving the house while the stove was on.

The first time was in a temporary rental on one of those ghastly glass-top stoves. I bought a really cheap thin metaled 20 quart pot and was worried the whole time I'd return to the apartment greeted by fire trucks as my cheap pot melted onto the stove and set off the alarms. Not so.

Second time was on my wonderful gas stove. Same cheap pot but my goodness I couldn't believe how much better the stock turned out with the even heating only gas can give you.

Oh, and I did it one more time on that glass top, I left it over night while we slept, or at least the family slept--I kept waking up and running into the kitchen to make sure it didn't melt and set the place ablaze.

I'd say, don't worry about leaving the pot if you have to leave, just be sure it's at the correct simmer and why waste the energy it takes to make a few cups when for the same amount of energy you use you could make a few quarts at a time.

I buy my chicken parts in bulk, like 20lbs of backs necks and feet. If I could get a 100 quart pot and it would actually fit on my stove, I'd be in stock heaven.

I freeze them in 1 cup zip locks laying flat on the shelf.

Hope this helps.

I tried to make beef stock in my slow cooker last week. It was a super hot day and having the stove on for hours was not an appealing thought! We started the stock on the stove to be able to skim it, but put it in the slow cooker with the lid on out on the back porch for most of the hours of cooking. I set it on low, but it was closer to a boil than a simmer in my opinion. The stock smelled wonderful on the stove but after being in the slow cooker, smelled nasty. I strained it, and am using it in stews, but I don't think it works well. I wouldn't try it again.

I make all my stocks in my slow cooker. It is much more economical for a small household. One or two roasted chicken carcasses covered well with cold water. I start it after dinner and strain it with I get up in the morning. Mine never comes to a full boil but a nice simmer. It comes out perfectly. A bit too slow for fish fumet but chicken or beef on low. I even use it for vegetable stock on (not overnight though).