Instant Pot

In the melting pot of New Orleans culture, our Irish heritage is one of the lesser-known components. However, the Irish played a pivotal role in the history and development of this great city. Lauren's ancestors' landing here can be traced to the year 1825. Today, many Irish pubs are scattered around town, and we refer to the area where many immigrants settled as the Irish Channel. Every year, in addition to attending local St. Patrick's Day parades and festivities, we like to celebrate the Irish by making this recipe.

The Creole dish of red beans and rice has been part of our cuisine for centuries. Traditionally, ham or pork was served on Sundays, and Monday was wash day. Because the beans could cook on the stove all day, it was the perfect meal to use the leftover ham and free up several hours away from the stove while tending to the laundry. You might even say this meal was one of our ancestors' original slow-cooker recipes!

EFFORT: NOT MUCH
PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES
COOK TIME: 6 HOURS
KEEPS ON WARM: 1 HOUR The ingredient list is designed for use in a medium (4- to 5 1/2-quart) slow cooker. See the cook's notes for ingredient lists for small (2- to 3 1/2-quart) and large (6- to 8-quart) models.

You can control the heat of this chili by increasing or decreasing the number of chiles; be sure to have good ventilation over the stove when pan-roasting them. If you have two large cast-iron skillets, save time by using both at once. If you like, serve the chili with other traditional garnishes, such as shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese, sour cream, and chopped cilantro.

Even though this fancy-sounding stew (pronounced boor-gen-YUN or boor-ge-NYON) takes a while to prepare, it’s well worth the time. Packed with beef and vegetables, it’s a complete meal in a bowl.

With cayenne for a bit of kick and imitation bacon bits for smoky flavor, this hearty combination of ground beef, red beans, brown rice, and vegetables is sure to be a family-pleaser.

Thanks to a wonderful blend of spices and dried fruit, ordinary chicken gets a Moroccan makeover in this meal-in-one dish. Don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients—this dish is simple to put together.

A blend of lentils, brown rice, winter squash, and aromatic vegetables, this dish is easy to prepare on the stovetop or in a slow cooker.

My brother Michael once told me the two questions I should ask anyone who claims to make real (i.e., Texasstyle) chili. Question one: What kind of beans do you put in it? Question two: What kind of tomatoes do you use? Both are trick questions, of course, because the answer to both is none. There are no beans and no tomatoes in real Texas chili. The full name is “chili con carne,” and that’s what it means: chile peppers with meat, and very little else. When done right, it’s a beautiful thing. With only one kind of chile and at least 6 hours of simmering, it’s got the round flavors and slow-burning heat that define a “bowl o’ red.” If you want something hotter, add up to 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, or to taste. I usually make at least two servings, because after eating the first one (with saltines, grated Cheddar cheese, chopped onions, and, okay, even pinto beans as long as they’re on the side), I love the second serving on a hot dog or burger, or as part of enchiladas (page 64).

Stock made on the low setting of your slow cooker will be clearer than one that has been brought to a boil on the stovetop. It’s cheaper to make stock than to buy it, and it tastes a whole lot better. And homemade stock can be refrigerated overnight so that most of the congealed fat can be removed the next day. I always keep bags of frozen poultry, meat, and fish bones in the freezer. Each time I have leftover parts from a recipe, I toss them into the bag, and when I have a sufficient amount of bones, I make a stock. And I always use organic meats, poultry, fish, and vegetables to avoid ingesting concentrations of pesticides.

Although native to China, peaches have been grown in Georgia since breeders began developing new varieties during the early 1900s. And while pecans are native to Texas, today they too are grown commercially in Georgia. This is a simple cobbler that requires little attention after the ingredients have been assembled and put in to cook, and it tastes simply delicious.

The name of this dessert or breakfast treat comes from colonial settlers in New England who substituted corn, or “Indian meal,” to make English pudding when wheat flour was in short supply. The pudding is sublime when served with clotted cream, whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream.

This is a flavorful variation on the timeless pineapple upside-down cake. Here dried apricots are used, but the cake can be made with a variety of dried or preserved fruits with equally good results. It’s excellent topped with a dollop of whipped cream, ice cream, or creamy Greek-style yogurt.

These poached pears are especially luscious with their Pacific Rim accent. Locally grown, in-season, organic pears are far superior for this slow-cooked dessert than store-bought fruit shipped from far away.

Making this rich, delicious dessert is a no-brainer in the slow cooker. Serve with freshly whipped cream.

The sugar in corn begins to turn to starch as soon as it is picked. So, to get the maximum flavor for your corn pudding, use very fresh corn, preferably picked the same day, or a high-quality frozen product. Serve alongside any kind of grilled meat, especially lamb, or with a simple salad for lunch.

Braised onions with raisins and almonds is a Spanish-inspired dish from the southwestern border of the United States. It makes a sweet topping for rice or side to any barbecued meat.

The gentle heat supplied by the slow cooker is an effortless way to temper chocolate without having to use a double boiler, standing over the pot to keep careful watch. With the small amount of chocolate required, the recipe works better in a 3-quart slow cooker rather than a 5-quart, for better control over the melting process. The recipe can also be doubled for double the chocolate indulgence.

So-called wild rice is actually a grain that grows in the Great Lakes region and has been harvested by the Ojibway and Cree Indians for centuries. Because of how long it takes to cook, wild rice is perfect for the slow cooker. Black walnuts, native to the central and eastern United States, have a very different flavor than English walnuts, though the garden variety English walnut can be used in a pinch.

Caramelized winter fruits atop these beans make for a wonderful variation of this traditional New England side dish.

Steaming bread in the slow cooker is a terrific, hassle-free way to bake bread of all kinds. Traditionally, the batter for this brown bread was poured into coffee cans and placed in deep kettles filled with water, then hung for hours over the fire to steam. Serve it with New England Baked Beans (opposite page) or toasted for breakfast with cream cheese.

This dish takes a bit more prep time than your average throw-everything-in-a-pot slow cooker recipe, but it’s well worth it. This luscious ragù can be served as a side for grilled steak or lamb, as a topping for pasta or rice, or as an entrée with a green salad and crunchy bread.

This wonderful chutney can be used as an accompaniment for grilled lamb, rice pilaf, or even spicy pumpkin muffins.