Any thoughts on crock pots?

[fantym1]

Bump.
I have a 2 qt crockpot bought @ Thrift store for, I think $3 or so, several yrs ago. It has 3 settings: hi, lo & warm. The appliance draws 95 watts & yes, I have solar.
I've also used the 12v model. The 12v, in a car, requires U be moving down the rd so as not to drain battery. Don't start ur engine w/it plugged in - it'll fry the pot, ask me how I know :angel: .
I use 6-in thin bungees to keep the lid in place whilst traveling & place on a small mat to contain any slop-over (JIC of sudden stop).
I bake bread/cornbread (use parchment paper so it comes out easily & is reusable 4-5x), potatoes; cook rice/whole grains (decrease the water amt by about 1/2 C); cook/heat up hot pocket-style stuff (small can of bicuits, patted out thin, dollop of cooked, drained food, roll-up; a dusting of honey powder if fruit), etc.
I find a crockpot very versatile/convenient. The Aroma therapy is also nice!

 

[PlethoraOfGuns]

Crock pots are great because they cook great food while using very little power. As another has stated, Forresty Forest used a crock pot for years, convinced me to have a crock pot in my last rig. His crock pot died, so now he has the Ninja Foodi. I found a good deal on a store return one, so now I use that. I can still use it as a crock pot, but now I can pressure cook, air fry, saute, souvide, steam, and even bake! The last two weeks I've been try to cook breads in it, I'd say almost a success. Pressure cooking is very fast and energy efficient. But anyway, if you like slow cooking and want one device to do lots of everything, maybe look into a deal on an Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi.

 

[gizmotron]

... if you like slow cooking and want one device to do lots of everything, maybe look into a deal on an Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi.

Yep, and you can Broil too. I found something that is a great add-on accessory from Sear' N Sizzle. It's a grilling grate. You can grill meat indoors like an outdoor gas or charcoal fired grill. It leaves grill marks on your meat. I've used the Ninja Foodi for things like barbecued pork ribs. It cooks meals right from the freezer too. You give them a little pressure cook and then switch over to air fry to finish them off. 

I put a watt tester on my 6.5 quart version. It runs between 1100 and 1325 watts at 110 volts AC. So you need a bunch of batterie capacity or a clean sine wave generator. Would love to see a thread in the solar section about running these "Big Dog" cookers. I have yet to run my own tests so far. I'm still busy with my van build.

 

[fantym1]

"... Crock pots are great because they cook great food while using very little power ..."

For some, this is the point :idea: .

 

[gizmotron]

yep, that's the point.

 

[gizmotron]

So I went looking for solar tests with the Ninja Foodi and this was the first one that I found. I'm blown away over the pressure cooking test. It's way less draw on the batteries than I thought it might be. It's a boring video, and the cooking recipe is not very impressive. It's a dash of salt and pepper and then 45 minutes of cooking. Yuck. Learn to cook.

here:

 

[gizmotron]

Here is a video more to the point on slow cooking with a 700 watt Instant Pot Duo Mini. He does a 4 hour slow cook and shows how it effects the batteries.

 

[fantym1]

So, what ur saying is a 95w (max, according 2 data plate) on a 300w inverter requires more power than a 700w appliance on a 1000w inverter over a 4 hrs time period ... ?

 

[gizmotron]

So, what ur saying is a 95w (max, according 2 data plate) on a 300w inverter requires more power than a 700w appliance on a 1000w inverter over a 4 hrs time period ... ?

My understanding of these slow cookers is that there is a wattage required to get them up to speed and then another power usage to keep them going. Your 95 watt slow cooker might be that it comes up to speed reel slow. I had one that did. It took forever to get hot and start cooking. You can test all this.

 

[fantym1]

Gizmotron: thanx 4 the info!

My crockpot gets 2C water between 190 - 200°F in 2 hrs (on hi), depending on ambient temp.
My fave use is making fresh yogurt.

 

[frater secessus]

I use a crockpot to cook when I have excess solar power. RIght now I am baking potatoes.

some recipes

 

[Dingfelder]

Here's a link explaining...
Indicating food poisoning and x amount of deaths per year from, but how many years have crock pots been around, and how many cases do you think were from it?
https://www.thespruceeats.com/are-hotter-cooking-crockpots-good-or-bad-479985

5k/yr according to article. Still, people of old used to leave meat out to age for days on end, and weren't dropping like flies because of it. And we have to consider that 5k out of somewhere north of 350 million is a pretty small amount, and doesn't necessarily take into account any other factors like co-morbidities or other risk factors, like unsafe food handling in general. Good link, good read, thanks.

 

[Calaverasgrande]

I'm reconsidering getting one of these since I've been wintering at campgrounds with 30 amp hookups.
Going to put a shore power hookup in my van soon so I can avoid running a cable under the back door.
My chef brother in law uses his to proof dough, make tempeh, and cook normal stuff like soup and beans.

 

[Treknik]

I have crock pot, rice cooker, and insta-pot but vastly prefer my simple GSI pressure cooker. It looks like it survived 3 tours in a war zone but is dead simple.
shorturl.at/pyAFU

 

[vanbrat]

I see some folks here worried about safe food handling and getting temps up quickly. There are some things to do that helps somethings. If preheat the pot as you chop things up to go into the pot and add heated liquid to start it heats faster. If you are worried about the meats, make sure it is cut up as small as you can for whatever you are doing. As in small stew bites and cut up a whole chicken into single pieces... roasts into small chunks..... small meat balls instead of large meat loaf ETC ETC...

 

[frater secessus]

Full disclosure: I have a stovetop pressure cooker, thrift store crockpot, rice cooker, and would likely use excess solar power to run a 200w-400w micro instant pot (1qt?) if such a thing were available. Hit me up if you know of such a device with pressure function.

So, what ur saying is a 95w (max, according 2 data plate) on a 300w inverter requires more power than a 700w appliance on a 1000w inverter over a 4 hrs time period ... ?

• The 4-hour slowcook test used 24.5Ah, let's say 24.5Ah / ~12.5v = 306.25Wh
• 95w x 4 hours = 380Wh

Disregarding the inverter internal consumption for a moment I assume the difference is temperature control and possibly better insulation. Analog crockpots like we (you and I) have tend to be always-on (100% duty cycle) vs a larger temp-controlled device that would cycle power to hold a precise temp. A crock with temp control and good insulation might be as efficient as an Instant Pot in any unpressurized modes. I suspect IP in pressure modes requires less Wh than a crock to cook the same dishes.

Digression: I bought a temp controller to wire into my crock (and other devices) but haven't started that project yet.

It's way less draw on the batteries than I thought it might be.

The current demand is the issue, IMO, moreso than the overall Wh/Ah. Whether DIY or solar generator (as in the ninja foodie vid) it costs more money to build a system that will support 1000w AC loads vs one that supports 150w AC loads.

To use that video as an example, his Goal Zero 1000 cost $1000+, while the smaller GZ150 that would run a crock is $199.

For DIY, an analog crock will run happily off a 200w MSW inverter ($25+) while the digital Ninja Foodie would take a 1200w+ PSW inverter ($150+).

Bottom line - IMO if one already has a system that can deliver the current then an instant pot thingy can make sense. Buying/building a system just to accomodate the Instant Pot is $$$.

 

[CobbtownAcres]

Has anyone here been using a crock pot of some sort? Please tell your experience.

The mini crock pots are great for those who have the ability to power it. However, they are only big enough for 1 to 2 people at most. A mini crock pot uses up 1/2 a Jackery 240 for one meal.

 

[crofter]

I'm reconsidering getting one of these since I've been wintering at campgrounds with 30 amp hookups.
Going to put a shore power hookup in my van soon so I can avoid running a cable under the back door.
My chef brother in law uses his to proof dough, make tempeh, and cook normal stuff like soup and beans.

My van has a vertical access point by the taillights to run the cord thru, might work for ya. There was a rubber plug in the bumper area that I removed to pull wire. Hope that helps.
-crofter

 

[fantym1]

...

• The 4-hour slowcook test used 24.5Ah, let's say 24.5Ah / ~12.5v = 306.25Wh
• 95w x 4 hours = 380Wh

The current demand is the issue, IMO, moreso than the overall Wh/Ah. Whether DIY or solar generator (as in the ninja foodie vid) it costs more money to build a system that will support 1000w AC loads vs one that supports 150w ...

TY for the comprehensive analysis, I.e. I understood that (yay!). TBI sorta sux, by moments.

I generally turn mine on high for 2 hrs - turn it off while walking the dogs, which usually takes me an hr - it "coasts" during that time & is still hot when I get back(*). Then I turn it back on high til food is done, or time to walk the dogs again 2 hrs later - rinse/repeat. In strong sunlight, my solar system has pretty much returned to 13.7 or 13.8 v during the walk.

But then I was 12 yo b4 Rural Electrification came to our area, so often I find it IBM (It's By Magic).

* when weather's cold, I have a Styrofoam cooler (a friend gets insulin shipped), that I lined w/aluminum oven liners. Crockpot tucked in & covered w/wool army blanket

 

[GntlStone]

TY for the comprehensive analysis, I.e. I understood that (yay!). TBI sorta sux, by moments.

I generally turn mine on high for 2 hrs - turn it off while walking the dogs, which usually takes me an hr - it "coasts" during that time & is still hot when I get back(*). Then I turn it back on high til food is done, or time to walk the dogs again 2 hrs later - rinse/repeat. In strong sunlight, my solar system has pretty much returned to 13.7 or 13.8 v during the walk.

But then I was 12 yo b4 Rural Electrification came to our area, so often I find it IBM (It's By Magic).

* when weather's cold, I have a Styrofoam cooler (a friend gets insulin shipped), that I lined w/aluminum oven liners. Crockpot tucked in & covered w/wool army blanket

Your early years just make you better equipped for this lifestyle than many of us.

Your knowledge is invaluable to us here.