A Crock-pot in the Summer?

Yesterday I made a roast in the crock-pot. It was pretty warm outside and I didn't want to heat up the house, so I put the crock-pot in the garage. I would have put it on the back porch but it was raining off and on and I didn't want to have to worry about it in the rain.

Crock-pots are great for saving time and an easy meal. They are great if you are working and want dinner ready when you walk in the door. But in the summer, it doesn't make much sense to heat up your house with a crock-pot and then run the air-conditioner to cool it down. Covered porches are nice for crock-pots too. All the heat from a crock-pot can be outside (or in the garage) in the summer, unlike cooking on the stove or in the oven.

This meal I made was practically free. It is a venison roast. My husband deer-hunts and then we butcher the meat ourselves and freeze it. Then, the red potatoes (you can't really see them in the picture as they are down in the bottom of the crock-pot) were fresh from the garden. The celery, carrots and mushrooms I bought at the store. I got the mushrooms for .99 and used about half of them in other things so .50 for the mushrooms and then maybe .25 for the carrots and celery. So this meal cost about .75 in materials and we will get two meals out of it for four people. I also served fresh garden cucumber with it.

Some men spend a boat-load of money on hunting gear. Fortunately, my husband is not one of them. "Free" venison can get very expensive if a person spends a ton of money on hunting gear. Then a person has to pay for the license, the freezer, the freezer wrapping etc., so it is a bit more than .75. However, if I were buying beef, I would also get that on sale in bulk and put that in the freezer wrapped as well. I wish I could find an old video I saw once. It is about a hunter saying "Only the best for my family!" and he is talking about venison. After his ATV and hunting gear, he was spending a huge sum per pound on venison so....only the best! It was pretty funny, but I was unable to find it.

So crock-pots can be great for summer cooking....in the garage or outside and save time and effort as well.