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A slow cooker is the lazy genius of the kitchen: toss stuff in before class or work, and dinner is ready when you get home.
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Most of the slow cookers here are America's Test Kitchen picks, from a simple traditional model to one with an enameled cast-iron crock you can sauté in first. Heads up: ATK found most cookers hold less than the box says, so check the measured capacity on the Hamilton Beach card before you double a recipe. Want one machine that also pressure cooks? Its top multicookers are here too. Then make life easy: liners a Shop TODAY editor reviewed for near-instant cleanup, NBC Select's favorite cheap thermometer, and containers for a week of leftovers. Each card shows the drawback the testers called out.
Who this is not for. Skip this if you want a full week of lunches planned out; the Meal Prep list covers containers, scales and the whole prep routine.
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Best for searing and slow cooking without a second pan
America's Test Kitchen's best Dutch oven slow cooker: an enameled cast-iron crock with straightforward controls, and you can sauté aromatics right in the pot before slow cooking.
Heads up. The round crock is a tight fit for long cuts of meat, the bare rim needs drying and oiling to prevent rust, and it's heavy for its size
Best for reheating leftovers without a plastic tub
TechGearLab's Best Bang for Your Buck food storage: ten glass containers that go in the microwave and oven without their lids, so leftovers reheat in the same dish.
Heads up. TechGearLab found the containers fairly small and they don't nest for storage
means three independent outlets recommend a pick, means one, and limited evidence means none has yet. I research these picks. I have not tested them myself. How I pick · Broken link, wrong price range or an outdated pick? Tell me
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Questions people ask
What size slow cooker should I get?
America's Test Kitchen says a 6- to 7-quart stated capacity is a must, because few slow cookers actually hold as much as the box says. Its traditional pick is sold as 6 quarts but held about 3.5 in reviews.
What features matter most in a slow cooker?
ATK prefers digital models that switch to warm automatically when the cook time ends, a glass lid so you can check without lifting it, and an oval or rectangular crock that fits big roasts. Stay-cool handles and a latching lid help when you carry it.
Slow cooker or multicooker?
A slow cooker is simple and made for low-and-slow. A multicooker adds pressure cooking for fast weeknight meals. ATK's Best Buy multicooker, the Cosori, did well at both, while its winning Instant Pot struggled to slow-cook large cuts of meat.
Best slow cooker
