CrockPot Slow Cookers were a standard staple in suburban kitchens in the 70s and 80s.
In the 90s and 2000s, they dipped out of style for a while and then came back, full-force, to kitchens all over the world due to the economic downturn.
The original slogan from the 70s that Crock-Pot used in commercials was:
“cooks all day while the chef is away.”
And this worked REALLY well with the old-school pots that were on the market.
These pots usually were cylindrical in shape and heated only from the bottom of the pot.
Most of these pots also did not have a removeable inserted pot – instead the ceramic cooking pot and the metal cooking base were fused.
This made clean-up difficult and the heat-only-from-the-bottom way of cooking wasn’t ideal when it came to getting food heated through quick enough to ward off bacteria.
SO.
During the “down turn” of slow cooking (90s thru early 2000s, as described earlier)—
Manufacturers decided to Improve the pots and make them safer and more user friendly.
Inserts were redesigned and could now be removed from the cooking base which helped with clean up.
You could now put the cook pot into the dishwasher!
The heating element was also redesigned to heat food from the bottom AND the sides of the pot.
This kept the FDA and scientist-type people happy and kept food borne illness away.
BUT. There was a side effect from this reconfiguration.
The food no longer COOKED ALL DAY!
And that continues to be a problem for many many people. I know, because they write to me!
I’ve pointed out that all the newer pots on the market (the ones over $40… don’t get mad, that’s just what the technology costs!)
have timers in them which mean that if your recipe calls for only a 6 hour cook time but you are out of the house for 12 hours, it’s okay because your pot will automatically flip to a “warm” setting until you arrive home.
