The Slow Cooker, An Invaluable Tool For Health When You Have Limited Time
“Just as the quality of the fuel supplied to the furnace regulates the heat created, and the consequent working of the machine, so the food given to the human furnace, creates according to it’s quality, energy; and thereby gives greater or less power to the muscle.” (p 11 Maxick, How to become a great athlete)
Context
There’s a saying that your diet accounts for 80% of your progress and that is partially true. Often this is prefaced to set you up for some kind of supplement selling. Create the problem then profit from it. However, I strongly believe in eating healthy and avoiding most of the temptations that are out there that are described as, “Food.” It’s not just calories in and calories out, it's also the quality.
I’ve heard both from video as well as in person, anecdotes about people eating food here and in other places like Europe and there being massive differences in their body composition despite their portion sizes being relatively the same. Will there ever be a study on this? Well if it hurts the money food companies make here then it's probably not gonna happen as these companies have influence over various medical entities.
Though I’m not a labcoat, I do notice patterns…
But in this uncertainty, we can gain better control over our lives through the preparation of our own food. I believe getting back to more natural ingredients will fix a plethora of health problems. As a 5th-century BC physician by the name of Hippocrates once said, “All disease begins in the gut.” The more I look at various research studies(Especially the stuff that gets ignored), as well as anecdotal evidence the more this appears to be the case. The better one’s health the less the hospital bills will be. For me, I believe fitness and health are true health care. One of the easiest ways to gain better control over the food we make is through the use of a tool such as the slow cooker.
Resolution
The slow cooker or crock pot got its start in 1940 by Mr. Irving Nachumsohn.
He was an electrical engineer who started Naxon Utilities Corps where he spent time inventing various things. The slower cooker was a tool to bypass using the oven to heat food during the summer making the house hotter than it already was.
Power: This is where the first advantage of it is that it is more energy efficient than most other cooking appliances, saving you money on your energy bill. I will not only use it as a way to cook food but I’ll also use it to reheat food as I don't enjoy the taste of microwaved food.
Convenience: The slow cooker is convenient. I prepare all my ingredients on the side, have them diced up, then toss them in at various times and go back to whatever else I was doing. I’m not one to stress about searing various pieces of meat properly or how to cook to bring out the best flavors so the hands-off nature of the slow cooker is a time saver.
Learning Curve: With the hands-off nature of the slow cooker, another benefit, is that there’s a low learning curve. If you’re new to cooking/always ate out, just throwing in some chopped-up meat with some vegetables will get you the most bang for your buck. I would place the difficulty of a slow cooker between frying an egg and using an insta pot.
Easy Clean: The slow cooker is also easy to clean. Often it's best to leave it in the sink and soak it in hot water for a bit then clean it out.
Mass Cooking: It will allow you to cook multiple servings at once. This is key to meal prepping. Preparing enough food in a condensed amount of time in order that this food will last you for a few days. When I was working for a home improvement construction company I would leave before the sun came up and return long after it went down. My weekends with my church were also busy so the more I could use the time given to me was crucial.
Greater Independence/freedom from restaurant food: I try to avoid fast food as much as I can. If I’m traveling I’ll be out of luck in most situations. The quality of food in these places is suspect and I find myself getting hungrier a great deal quicker after eating this stuff like it’s made out of cardboard or something. I’ve also realized I’m more likely to get sick when I eat out regularly as the, “Ingredients” in most of this stuff tend to mess with my terrain. And for how much this stuff satiates me it sure is expensive. 1 Ib of ground beef from my local producer for five to six dollars compared to six dollars worth of a paper-thin burger patty and a highly processed bun.
Tactics
The slow cooker can be used in a variety of situations. I will usually cook something for the week that is a mixture of beef heart/liver, along with a few vegetables especially onions, and something cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower. If I want to add something extra I’ll throw in some legumes especially black beans as they’re my favorite.
Some sites recommend throwing in hard vegetables to cook first and then the meat. I usually do the opposite but I'll switch it up for the next few months and see how that goes.
It’s also advised to use cheaper cuts of meat when utilizing the cooker. On average it’s either beef organs or ground beef. I will occasionally use chuck roast which comes out nice as well.
On days when I’m fasting, I’ll throw in some shrimp, coconut milk, black beans, and cauliflower. These meals are staples for me as I don’t do any lavish cooking as I used to when I was in Okinawa.
It’s recommended to add grains last which is something I do follow. I’ll cook my rice separately in an insta pot then bring it over to the slow cooker and turn the slow cooker setting on, “Warm.”
If it fits your schedule you can honestly use it overnight as well. Have some type of oatmeal or breakfast stew ready for when you wake up.
Looking Forward
The slow cooker is an ideal cooking tool for the busy individual. Safe, easy to use, and requires little hands-on attention. Get away from the restaurant food and back to greater health/independence.
Thank you for making it to the end and if you have any questions send them my way.
