Okay, so I need cooking advice, re. Slow cooker

So today we had our first meal from my huge freezer stash.  It was called "Mongolian Beef", and it was made with onion, stewing beef, soya sauce, hoisin sauce, and a myriad of other things.  The thing is that I leave for work at 7:30 in the morning.  I set it for 8 hours, and then it switched to "warming" for another hour.  I get home at about 5.  It was tasty, but dry and the sauce was a bit burned.  

I was thinking about buying a slow cooker with a timer so I can set it to start at about 9am, but that would leave the meat sitting out on the counter for an hour and a half.  That can't be good.  I also wondered if perhaps my slow cooker was a bit too big, and that is why it was burning.  I doubled the liquid in the recipe to ensure there was enough and to try to avoid drying.  There was tons of liquid in there, but again, it was burnt.  

Any slow cooker gurus out there that have any tips for me? 

 

Was it defrosted first?  Maybe cook from frozen?

It was defrosted, yes.  But I read that it wasn't a good idea to put frozen meat in the slow cooker for safety reasons.  Encourages bacteria growth or something.

Hi Marny,
I've been doing the prep ahead/freeze/ and crockpot meals for a while now. I always cook from frozen and haven't had any cases of food poisoning yet ( thank goodness ). The tricky part is getting the frozen clump of food to fit into the crockpot, it often takes some manipulating but it does work. I set the pot on low at about 7 am, and often call one of my sons at 3 to have them switch the setting to warm otherwise the meat gets dry. Good Luck

Thanks.  Maybe I'll give it a try from frozen. 

Hi...was the liquid you doubled the soya sauce and hoisin sauce?  When I use my crockpot (which is very often), if I'm away all day, always on low.  Seems odd that your sauce was a bit burned, cause your pot creates steam.  I've used mine for whole turkey breasts, whole chickens, roasts, stews, chili, soup (everything but the kitchen sink), pumpkin pudding, casseroles, applecrisp, mashed potatoes, stuffing, so as you can see I've used mine lots...Don't give up!!  crocking is the best!!  Patti K.

Well giving up won't be a problem.  I made 44 freezer crockpot meals the other day, so I am fully committed!  Haha

It was burned all around the edges, and the whole sauce had a burnt taste.  I doubled the liquids ( 1/2 cup each of water, soya sauce, hoisin sauce.

I just checked the actual recipe and 8 hours on low for that recipe would be way too long as the meat is already cut up.  When I do a pot roast from frozen it takes 8 hours on low. Your crock pot may also cook on a the hot side even on low.   If you get one with a timer, I'd throw it frozen before you leave for work and have it start a few hours later and leave it on low until you get home. If your meat was dry tasting even though there was enough liquid, the meat got overcooked. 

Thanks for the info!

I am hijacking my own post!  Tracey, any info on Karen?  I haven't been online much, but I don't see her anywhere, so a bit curious/concerned.