A chill in the air = slow cooker season!

I was excited to wake up to a nip in the air this morning. Mmmmmmm slow cooker weather!

When you are trying to stretch those dollars further, there is hardly a more economical meal maker than the slow cooker ... or crockpot as they say in the USA.

Look what we're having for tea tonight!

Do please excuse the grubby finger marks on the stainless steel exterior of my slow cooker and look into the hearty goodness of the meal!

Here's what I like most about cooking in the slow cooker ....

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  sooooooooooooo easy - once it's in the cooker, consider it done! Put it on in the morning, leave it on low all day and dinner is done for the evening! Convenience plus! 
• 
  
  budget friendly -  by being able to use cheaper cuts of meat - the slow cooking process tenderises these cheaper cuts so you can make great value healthy dinners
• 
  
  super way to use up all the veges at the bottom of the crisper - cuts back on food wastage
• 
  
  if you are cooking for just one or two, you can make a load and freeze for later!
• 
  
  delicious aromas fill the house all day!

There is a Facebook group dedicated to sharing slow cooker recipes and it can be found here. There are heaps of members (just over 26,500!) and as it's an Australian group the ingredients actually make sense and are easily sourced.

Here though is the recipe for tonight's slow cooked meal - which was all prepared by 9.00am!

Simple Slow Cooked Tandoori Beef

Don't be put off by the name as it is actually very mild and totally delicious!

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  1 bottle of Taylors Tandoori marinade - this is the brand stocked by most butchers and is around $3.75 for the bottle - wellll worth it mmmmmmmmmmmm
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  approx 1kg of beef, diced - cheaper cuts work just fine as the meat will be melt in your mouth tender by the time this is done
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  veges - I added 3 onions (sliced), 4 potatoes (cubed), about half a sweet potato (cubed), a handful of green beans (sliced) and 3 stalks of celery (chopped)
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  a little bit of water - not much more than a dribble as the cooking process will release moisture

Split the meat into 3 portions. Brown each portion in a non-stick fry pan and add to the slow cooker bowl. This step is not necessary if you wish to save on washing up, but it does enhance flavour and is therefore worthtaking the time to do.

To the beef, add the veges.

Then add the entire bottle of Taylors Tandoori marinade. Put a dribble of water into the bottle and swirl it around to get the last out. Add this to the crockpot.

Stir thorougly to mix everything through.

Put slow cooker onto low setting.

Walk away and come back for dinner tonight!

*this can be served with rice or extra mashed potato if you need to pad it out for many hungry folk

*can be cooked on higher setting for less time if need be

*monitor whilst cooking to see if any extra liquid is needed - unlikely though!

If you have a tried and tested delicious slow cooker recipe that you would like to see featured here, just send me an email here!

Happy slow cooking!

So, what did you do today?

Were you careful with your money today?
Did you use your resources wisely and stretch your dollar till it couldn't stretch any more?

Here are a couple of thrifty tips to incorporate into your daily living and over time they WILL make a difference! You may have heard these concepts preached before ..... BUT have you adopted them? If not, why not?

Be sparing in your use of appliances. Turn off equipment that is rarely used because standby mode is still an energy drain. Avoid tumble-drying your clothes and instead harness the freshness of the sun. Let your hair dry naturally a few days a week - better for your hair and the electicity bill both! Do you really *need* every gadget that you have plugged in this week?

Monitor the price of petrol. It is likely you will find the cheapest days to refuel are Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. Aim to put petrol in your car when it is cheapest and not on a Friday afternoon when the price has peaked for the week.

Stock up on grocery specials. When shopping, if you notice a great price on a non-perishable that is  regularly on your shopping list, it is wise to stock up if (a) you have the storage room and (b) you are certain that you will use it. Great savings can be made on goods such as laundry powder, toilet paper and dishwashing liquid if you know the special price represents good value. If you've got nowhere to store them this becomes a bit of an issue .... but hey, it could be a great motivator for clearing some space!

Try a cheaper alternative. Ditch brand loyalty and trial a less expensive version of a product. You may find that the taste or performance exceeds your expectations. If you don't want the neighbour discovering that you serve your kids home brand bikkies just empty the packet into a Tupperware container and throw away the packaging! She'll never guess!

As you can see, it's really not rocket science. In fact it's pretty much habit forming once you start. So, how were you thrifty today?