CrockPot Jamaican Salmon

Day 194.

I like it when sweet and spicy flavors co-mingle, so I was intrigued by the idea of making a Jamaican dry rub of my own to use on chicken or fish.

That, and when ever I hear someone on TV name a dish "Jamaican Me Crazy" something or other, I simultaneously groan and laugh. Every. Single. Time.

We've had rather heavy meals lately, and needed to lighten it up a bit. Cooking fish in your crockpot is super easy, and results in a perfectly cooked, flaky fish, with no icky fish smell.

and! since you're cooking the fish in foil, the crock is virtually spotless when you're finished; an added bonus.

The Ingredients.

--aluminum foil (go for a good quality, not the cheapy dollar store stuff)
--1 pound thawed or fresh salmon

For the jerk rub:

-- 1/8 t cloves
--1/8 t ginger
--1/8 t nutmeg
--1 t salt
--1 t onion or garlic powder (I used onion)
--2 t white sugar
--1/4 t chipotle chili powder
--1/2 t cayenne pepper (this was TOO much for us. Don't use this much.)
--1/4 t black pepper
--1/8 t thyme
--1/2 t cinnamon

or buy a bottle of Jamaican jerk rub seasoning, and use about 1/4 cup.

The Directions.

Combine all of the spice run ingredients in a bowl. Spread out a length of foil, and put the fish in the middle of it. Rub both sides of the fish with the dry rub. Fold the foil over and make an enclosed packet. If it looks like there is a gap and it might leak fish juice out, use another piece to wrap around, just in case.

Put the foil packet into the crockpot. Do not add any water.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Fish doesn't take long to cook. The fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

Serve with rice or pasta and vegetables.

The Verdict.

The salmon cooked perfectly, but the spice rub was way too spicy for me. I needed a big bite of rice with each bite to act as a fire extinguisher. Adam wasn't home to taste it, he'll have the leftovers. I didn't even try to get the kids to eat any---it was much too spicy.

BUT! I still liked the flavor---I would definitely use a dry jerk rub again, but use much less cayenne, or leave it out all together and just stick with the chipotle chili powder and the black pepper.

CrockPot Crab with Sundried Tomatoes and Horseradish Spread

Day 201.

I was playing in the kitchen yesterday and came up with this crab spread. I couldn't decide if I liked it or not---even after I ate two rice cakes smeared with the stuff. Adam thought it was too fussy.

But! I got to use my Little Dipper. And I think that thing is just so darn adorable, that everything that comes out of it tastes like princess food. And that can't be a bad thing.

Ever.

The Ingredients.

--1 4.25 oz can of crab meat, drained

--2 T prepared horseradish cream

--5 reconstituted sun dried tomato halves

--1/4 cup parmesan/romano cheese

--3 fresh basil leaves

The Directions.

Soak the dried sun dried tomatoes in some hot water until they are soft and pliable. Chop. You could use the sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, but be sure to wring out the oil, or your pate will be awfully oily.

Drain the can of crab and add it to the little crockpot. Add the chopped sun dried tomatoes, the horseradish, chopped fresh basil leaves, and the cheese.

Mix with a fork.

Cover and cook (there isn't a temperature adjustment knob on the Little Dipper) for about an hour.

Serve with pita chips, corn chips, or on rice cakes.

The Verdict.

This was good, but maybe a bit too flavorful. I like horseradish, but maybe mixed with both the crab and the sun dried tomatoes was too much. It didn't stop me from eating a bunch, but it might have been better with fewer full-of-flavor ingredients.

The kids had no interest, whatsoever, in giving this dip/spread a try.

CrockPot Paella Recipe

Day 233.

I don't really know much about paella, other than the Costanzas invited the Seinfelds over for dinner and they refused.

And with that limited knowledge I attempted to make some. In the crockpot.

I do know that paella uses saffron, and I have quite a bit of saffron in the house, thanks to a gift.

I think I got the flavors right. This tasted good, but the rice turned to absolute mush, and ended up glued to the crock. I've made rice before, and thought I knew what I was doing. I was evidently wrong.

hmph.

The Ingredients.

--2 spicy sausage, cut up (I used chicken spicy Italian)
--1.5 lbs of thick fish steak (I used halibut)
--1 each of a yellow, red, orange bell pepper, cut in chunks
--1 small yellow onion, diced
--1 head of cauliflower florets
--2 T butter
--1/4 tsp kosher salt
--very healthy pinch of saffron (about 1/2 tsp)
--2 cups chicken broth
--1 cup rice (I used white. I should have used brown.)

The Directions.

Dump the rice and chicken broth into the crockpot and stir. Stir in the saffron and the salt. Add the butter, and chopped onion, cauliflower, and bell pepper. Add the cut up sausage and the fish to the top.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4, or until rice has absorbed the liquid and is cooked and the fish is flaky.

I cooked ours in a 6qt Smart Pot for 7 hours on low and it was too long. The rice disintegrated.

The Verdict.

I think I put in too much liquid. I used the standard 1 cup rice to 2 cups liquid measurement, but didn't take into account the juice from the meat or vegetables. I'd like to try this again, but with brown rice and with only 1 1/2 cups of broth.

I really liked the flavor, and Adam and I ended up picking out the meat and the vegetables and got enough to eat that way. The kids had quesadillas.

Saffron has a strong smell. I needed the kitchen windows open, and today I have them open again with the fans on to air out the house. I didn't realize the smell would be quite so strong. It isn't unpleasant, but I am one who prefers her house to smell like vanilla scented candles or Glade Plug-Ins.

which means I guess I prefer chemicals. I've been totally brainwashed.

CrockPot Barbecued Shrimp Recipe

Day 246.

This recipe is taken directly from The Pioneer Woman. We had the best weekend, ever, and spent the night with our good friends at their new house. My friend, Nancy, says, "bring your crockpot and make something really good. I'm going to invite my sisters, and their boyfriends, too."

Nothing like a little pressure....

But you really can't go wrong with a PW recipe, and I had bookmarked her spicy barbecued shrimp eons ago, and was waiting for a good occasion to make it.

I know I've said it before, but the crockpot rocks. It totally and completely rocks. I love bringing food to people's houses, but it always becomes a bit awkward when you need to prepare and cook the food while you are there. Will the oven be available? How about a stove burner? You just don't come across that problem when visiting with a crockpot dish. There is always, always an available outlet, and you can easily stash the crockpot in the bathroom or garage if your host is low on counter space.

The Ingredients.
adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks!

--2 pounds fresh raw shell-on shrimp (ask the fish guy for shrimp in the 21-25 per pound size range)
--1 stick of butter (it's a lot, but it was supposed to be 2!)
--1/4 cup olive oil
--1/4 cup gluten free Worcestershire sauce
--1-2 T Tabasco sauce (I used 1 1/2)
--1 tsp ground black pepper
--1 tsp kosher salt
--3 lemons, juiced
--1 T chopped fresh basil

The Directions.

You'll need a 5 to 6 quart crockpot for this meal.
Rinse the shrimp, but don't soak them too much. Dump them into the crockpot.

Add the stick of butter, olive oil, and Worcestershire sauce. Measure out the tobasco, salt and pepper, and throw that in there, too. Juice the lemons, and add that, and top with the freshly chopped basil. Toss just a bit with a big spoon to mingle the flavors. The butter will be in a big stick, but that's okay.

If you are wearing a white shirt, it will get sprinkled with oily Worcestershire spots. You will feel sad, but a good friend will hand you a raspberry martini so you'll stop caring.

Cover and cook on high for about 2 hours, checking every 30 minutes. You'll know the shrimp is done when it has turned pink, and can be peeled easily. I turned ours off at exactly 2 hours. It was perfect.

Serve with bread to sop up the juice. We did do that. My little one who has celiac wouldn't touch a shrimp if it was covered in chocolate, so I wasn't terribly worried about gluten goobers. If you are GF, I'd make a fresh loaf of your favorite bread to go along with this. The juice is amazing.

The Verdict.

This was so good, I think I only got to eat one or two. We had 8 grown-ups and at least 2 kids who gobbled the shrimp. This is a very fun get-together dish, something that I would definitely serve again. I was thrilled with the way the shrimp cooked in the crockpot--they were perfect.

CrockPot Halibut in White Sauce with Broccolini

Day 274.

Good morning! I made a halibut in white sauce for Sunday lunch. It was good. It wasn't as good as the parmesan tilapia, but that's probably to be expected. I am having fun experimenting with fish in the crockpot. I wouldn't have been pushed to try it out without this challenge, and now I really don't think I'll go back to the stove top or oven---it's just too easy in the crockpot and I can not get over the no-fish-smell.

The Ingredients.
recipe from Slow and Simple

--24 oz halibut (or other white fish. Halibut is pretty hearty, so adjust cooking time as necessary)
--2 T flour (I used Pamela's)
--1 T white sugar
--1/4 cup butter, melted
--1/3 cup white wine (or chicken broth)
--2/3 cup fat free milk
--juice from 1 lemon

The Directions.

Microwave butter in a glass bowl, and whisk in the flour. In a separate bowl, combine the milk and the white wine. Slowly add the flour mixture to the milk and wine, stirring the whole time. Squeeze in the lemon. If you dump the cold milk and wine into the flour mixture too quickly, the flour and butter will separate again, and the butter will harden and create weird gloppy lumps that will float to the surface.

Ask me how I know this...

Add the sugar to the sauce mixture. Put the fish (mine was frozen solid) in your crockpot, and cover with the milk and wine liquid. Lay the broccolini on top. Cover and cook on high for about 2 hours, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.

The Verdict.

It needs salt. My halibut had some bones that I wasn't aware of, which was the biggest problem with this meal. We had it for Sunday Linner? Dunch? (we ate at 3) and all ate a good amount. My kids would have prefered salmon or the parmesean tilapia, though.

Cedar Planked Salmon Cooked in the CrockPot

Day 338.

I bought a cedar board a while ago, and planned on using it in the summer, but never got around to it. This is a fun way to cook fish in the crockpot---it's different, and the cedar provides a hint of smokey and woodsy flavor to the fish. My kids love fish, and each ate a bunch, which thrilled me so much we got frozen yogurt for dessert.

The Ingredients.

--1 singe-use cedar plank, cut to size
--1 lb salmon
--2 limes
--1 tsp cumin
--1 tsp salt
--1 tsp garlic powder
--1 tsp rosemary
--1 tsp onion powder
--1 T honey

The Directions.

Have your amazing husband (or other handy-type person not scared of saws) cut the cedar plank to size. He cut the board to fit the 6 quart crockpot, but it fit in the 4 quart, too.

Soak the plank in water for at least an hour.

While it is soaking, combine the dry spices in a bowl. Rub the salmon on all sides with the spice rub, and then drizzle on the honey. Top with slices from 2 limes, and slide it all into a plastic storage bag. Refrigerate while the board is soaking---at least one hour, but overnight in the refrigerator is fine.

When the time has passed, put the wet cedar plank into the bottom of your crockpot. Put the salmon (with the lime slices) directly on the board.

If you are using a great-big-huge crockpot, put a sheet of foil over the salmon and scrunch it down to create a smaller area for the steam and heat.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Check the salmon---it should flake easily with a fork. If it doesn't, cook on low for an additional 30 minutes and check again.

The Verdict.

Moist, delicious fish. I've cooked fish in the crock numerous times now, and each and every time I'm blown away at how easy it is and how the fish remains moist and flaky---without a hint of fish smell in the house.

The cedar plank was fun, and it certainly is dramatic to serve the fish that way, but if you don't have one, the fish will be just as good wrapped in a foil packet.

other crockpot fish recipes:
foil packet tilapia
fillet of sole with pesto
salmon with a sweet and spicy rub
lemon and dill salmon with spinach

CrockPot Lobster Bisque

Day 360.

Merry Christmas! If you are finding your way to the computer today, I figure you should get something good.

So you're getting lobster.

in the crockpot.

Life is so very good.

The Ingredients. 3 cups chicken broth
8 oz clam juice
14.5 oz stewed tomatoes (and juice)
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 onion, diced
1 large leek, diced (just the white part!)
1 T dried parsley
2 tsp Old Bay seasoning mix
1 tsp dill
1 cup heavy cream (to add later)
2 lobster tails (to add later)
lemon slices as garnish, and to squeeze in at the end

The Directions.

Use a 5 quart or larger crockpot, and combine the broth, clam juice, tomatoes, onion, mushrooms, leek, parsley, Old Bay, dill, and parsley. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, high for 4-5, or until onions are translucent and flavors have melded.

Use an immersible blender to blend into a chowdery broth. Add lobster tails. Cover and cook on high for 30-45 minutes, or until lobster tails have turned pink and the meat is fork tender. Remove lobster tails from crockpot. Stir in heavy cream.

Ladle into dishes, and serve with lemon slices and lobster meat. You can take the meat out of the tail, and mix it in the soup, or leave it intact and pick at it at the table.

The Verdict.

We liked this an awful lot. I'd say it makes enough to feed 4 adults, especially if you distribute the meat from the lobster tails into the soup. We had a lot of fun eating this, and felt quite fancy. My kids both liked the lobster, and thought the soup part was "yummy." But they also thought sucking on the lemon slices was the best part of their dinner.

Crab and Corn Soup CrockPot Recipe

 

Amie promises me that it's cooling off even in Arizona, and it's officially Soup Season.

I'm so glad.

The Ingredients.

serves 6

1 quart chicken broth (4 cups!)

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup finely chopped onion, or 1 tablespoon dried minced onion flakes

1 (32-ounce) package of frozen corn

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 (6-ounce) can lump crabmeat, drained and picked through (don't use Krab. it's not gluten free, and it's weird)

1 cup half and half or heavy cream (to add later)

1 avocado, sliced (to add later)

The Directions.

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Pour the broth into your crockpot, and add butter and onion. Stir in frozen corn, garlic, butter, cayenne, and the crabmeat (make sure you pick through canned crab---shells often occur!) Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4 hours, or until the onion is cooked through and translucent. If you'd like a thicker broth, pulse a few times with an immersible blender, or scoop out a cup or so and blend in a traditional stand blender, then stir it back in (carefully!).

Add half and half or cream. Stir well, and ladle into bowls or bread bowls, and garnish with avocado slices.

The Verdict.

I had a soup just like this on the boardwalk in Monterey, CA, and this really brought me back to that occasion. It's rich and hearty without being too heavy, and the crab flavor is subtle and beautiful. I LOVE the velvety feel the half and half provides---I'm sure you could get away with using a lower fat variety of milk, but it just won't be the same.

seafood schtoup schtuff:

lobster bisque  (this was the Christmas Day recipe in 2008!)

cioppino

fish chowder

barbecued shrimp (not soup. just amazingly good)

New England Clam Chowder in the Slow Cooker

I feel very lucky that we live pretty close to the coast. If we hopped in the car, we'd see the ocean within 15 minutes --- that's pretty cool.

I'm kind of embarrassed that we don't take advantage of this as often as we should. 

My kids love the beach. Adam loves the beach. I love the beach. 

Yet most of our weekends are filled with boring stuff like Costco runs, random sporting events, assorted kid birthday parties, and Drop Dead Diva marathons on Netflix (oh Drop Dead Diva, how did I only just now discover how completely awesome you are?).

So I brought the beach to us. No mess, no sandy feet, and no bird poop.

(and it totally rained this entire weekend anyway.)

The Ingredients.

serves 6

there's no half-and-half in this picture. I didn't buy it yet!

1/2 pound bacon, cooked and diced

1 (6.5-ounce) can minced clams, drained

5 small red potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 onion, peeled and diced

1 cup sliced celery

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

4 cups chicken broth

2 cups half-and-half (or you could use heavy cream)

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (to add later)

optional: bread bowls for serving. If you're gluten free, I've made them myself by using boxed bread mix, then plopping 4 round dough blobs on a piece of parchment paper--they bake right up, and are perfect!

The Directions.

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Brown the bacon on the stovetop, and drain the accumulated grease (I saved bacon from breakfast-- about 6 4 slices (I accidentally ate a few...)

Put the bacon into your crockpot, and add clams. Add all the vegetables and spices and pour in the broth. Cover, and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or until the onion is translucent and the potatoes squish easily with a fork.

Use a hand-held stick blender and pulse a few times to naturally thicken the soup. Stir in half and half and shredded cheese. Ladle into wide-mouthed bowls or bread bowls.

The Verdict.

This is an awesome chowder. The canned clams really do a great job of flavoring the broth and the soup, and are terribly inexpensive, and will keep in the pantry for a long time. They're a great canned item to keep on hand. My kids lapped up their servings and played with their new art supplies. 

While I cried. Because of Drop Dead Diva.

other stuff you might like:

fish chowder

canned soup in the Little Dipper

Crab and Corn Soup

Kiwi Crate Art Box Review