Slow Cooker Woes

unknown

Hey everyone!

I just recently got a crockpot as a gift from my parents. I was absolutely thrilled about it until I realized that I can practically never use it on a weekday.

I'm out of the house nearly 10 hours on weekdays, and I just haven't seen any recipes that are long enough without being so long that I wouldn't be eating dinner until 9 at night. (The time isn't necessarily the problem, it's just that I'm hungry when I get home from work and that's a long time to wait.)

Does anyone know of any recipes that fit this time frame? Or do I really need to just get a crockpot that will turn itself to warm after a given amount of time?

unknown

I am out of the house for about 10 hours during the day as well. The only thing I think that doesn't work well for that period of time is chicken, it gets hopelessly dried out.

I use the crockpot for beef roast, with potatoes/carrots, or I will put in a pork shoulder with either bbq sauce or a jar of salsa verde and use it for burrito bowls. Chili, soups, and stews can basically cook all day on low and the longer they are in, the more developed the flavors.

The only other advice I have for that period of time is make sure there is enough liquid in there...

Here's a link to a website with a lot of slow cooker recipes, and some that are organized by longer cook times:
http://crockingirls.com/recipes-category/long-crockin/