How do I cook in a slow cooker??

[SereneHome]

Yes, I know, I am probably the only person who never used one nor ever wanted to use one. But my SIL keeps gifting us slow cookers of various sizes (don't ask!). My husband asked me try using one before he agrees to get rid of them all.

I am thinking of doing a pot roast.....I looked up some recipes and they seem to include flour and chicken stock and all kinds of mixes....Do I need all that? Will it burn or something if I don't add a bunch of stuff? I was thinking of just putting beef, some liquid, spices and veggies and that's it.

So, what do I do?

 

[PeterPan]

Well you can throw stuff in and it will cook, sure. And a beef roast will probably taste fine no matter what. If you just want to dump, I would use a lipton onion soup mix on it.  No liquid. Just carrots/onions, the roast, and the soup mix.

If you want it to taste BETTER and see what a slow cooker can actually be, look up the Cook's Illustrated recipes. They've put out two or three books of them. Usually they have you brown up some aromatics first and actually get some flavor developed. If you have a microwave, they'll usually have a way to do that step in the micro, easy peasy. Makes a HUGE difference. If you want to know how good the food CAN be before you decide to toss, that's what you do. There's this salsa verde chicken recipe I got from there that is SO crazy good. 

[EmilyGF]

I really like the cookbook, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook. I'd try a few recipes from that book if you can get it from the library. She cooks from basic, generally unprocessed, ingredients.

Things don't really burn in the slow cooker, unless it is really dry. With a cut of meat, you often don't need to add much or any water because the meat will let out water as it cooks. For example, I "basted" a whole chicken in my slow cooker yesterday. All I added was salt and paper. The liquid came from the chicken.

Emily

[MEmama]

Idk, I’ve never figured it out. It seems to me that to use one you’d have to do all meal prep in the morning and who has time (when working & school) or inclination (now) to do that? 

Obviously slow cookers work for some people but don’t feel bad if it doesn’t for you. I’ve never come across any meal that I would make in one even if the timing meshed better with my schedule. 
 

Oh! I have used one for making applesauce. That worked well and helped keep the kitchen cool.
 

[PeterPan]

8 minutes ago, MEmama said:

meal prep in the morning

You can prep the night before, put the insert in the frig with a lid, and then in the morning pop it in your crockpot. 

Yes, if you want fast and cooking at the last minute, you want an Instant Pot, lol.

[alisoncooks]

I totally love my slow cooker. I use it several times a week.  Mostly for meats/shredded chicken (pulled pork, salsa verde chicken, pot roast) or for soups/stews. (We're having taco soup this week!) 

I did not use the crockpot for the first decade of my marriage, but then I found a cookbook that I liked and it took off. Most of my currently-in-use recipes come from  food blogs. 

[PeterPan]

51 minutes ago, EmilyGF said:

I really like the cookbook, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook.

Thanks for this recommend btw. I had seen the Not Your Mother's Canning hehe, so this should be fun.

[IvyInFlorida]

One great recipe to cut your slow cooker teeth on is to put a beef roast in and pour over a jar (one of those tall skinny ones, not enormous) of pepperoncinis with the liquid.  Cook all day on low (I tend to start it about 8am) and then shred the beef with 2 forks.  Serve on a hearty bread like a ciabatta roll with melted cheese for Tangy Beef Sandwiches. 

[IvyInFlorida]

Another easy, excellent one is to put some chicken drumsticks (about 6 or so) in the crockpot and sprinkle generously with salt.  In a little bowl, mix some dijon mustard, honey, 1/2 tsp curry powder, and a couple TB of oil (I use coconut but whatever you want is fine, including butter) and pour over.  Cook on low about 6 hours until skin gets roasty and meat looks done.  My boys/husband really gobble this up.

[IvyInFlorida]

Another easy, excellent one is to put some chicken drumsticks (about 6 or so) in the crockpot and sprinkle generously with salt.  In a little bowl, mix some dijon mustard, honey, 1/2 tsp curry powder, and a couple TB of oil (I use coconut but whatever you want is fine, including butter) and pour over.  Cook on low about 6 hours until skin gets roasty and meat looks done.  My boys/husband really gobble this up.

[PeterPan]

13 minutes ago, IvyInFlorida said:

One great recipe to cut your slow cooker teeth on is to put a beef roast in and pour over a jar (one of those tall skinny ones, not enormous) of pepperoncinis with the liquid.  Cook all day on low (I tend to start it about 8am) and then shred the beef with 2 forks.  Serve on a hearty bread like a ciabatta roll with melted cheese for Tangy Beef Sandwiches. 

Ooo wow, what other meats could you do this with? I really like the peppers on italian subs from our local pizza shop. I'll bet this would taste kind of similar, yum. The vinegar would help tenderize the meat. 

[Farrar]

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

You can prep the night before, put the insert in the frig with a lid, and then in the morning pop it in your crockpot. 

Yes, if you want fast and cooking at the last minute, you want an Instant Pot, lol.

That's how I do it. I only use it maybe once a week or once every two weeks on average, but when I do, I cook dinner and do the prep for the slow cooker at the same time. I let dinner cook and pop the slow cooker thing in the fridge when it's all set up. I have the advantage of having a dh who is up all night for work so sometimes I have him start it in the night so it's ready for lunch.

[Farrar]

By the way, I would *not* do a roast in the slow cooker as your first slow cooker meal. I've actually found that this is one of the trickier things to get to come out just perfect. To me, the absolute easiest things in the slow cooker are chicken. Either pulled bbq chicken (put boneless breasts and thighs in with some bbq spice and half a cup of sauce, then pull it apart and add more sauce and serve as bbq sandwiches) or I do drumsticks in the slow cooker (either with teriyaki sauce or bbq sauce) and when they're done, I carefully take them out and put them under the broiler for a few minutes to make the skin a little crispy.

If you do choose to do a roast, the one trick I'd use is to brown it a bit first. Just like when you cook it in the oven, it does help the flavor.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, EmilyGF said:

I really like the cookbook, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook. I'd try a few recipes from that book if you can get it from the library. She cooks from basic, generally unprocessed, ingredients.

Our library had it, and turns out they have a *2* person slow cooker book, score!! 

 

1 minute ago, Farrar said:

If you do choose to do a roast, the one trick I'd use is to brown it a bit first.

I have this scar on my wrist from years ago when I splashed oil trying to brown a roast to put in the slow cooker. Now I don't eat beef, lol. But seriously, it's good advice but be careful. 

[barnwife]

28 minutes ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Another easy, excellent one is to put some chicken drumsticks (about 6 or so) in the crockpot and sprinkle generously with salt.  In a little bowl, mix some dijon mustard, honey, 1/2 tsp curry powder, and a couple TB of oil (I use coconut but whatever you want is fine, including butter) and pour over.  Cook on low about 6 hours until skin gets roasty and meat looks done.  My boys/husband really gobble this up.

Well, I've certainly done honey and mustard on chicken in the crockpot, but never added curry powder. But as we like curry, I guess this is something we will need to try. Thanks for a super easy recipe to try!

[73349]

Plain sweet potatoes are great. Wash them, put them in whole, leave on Low 6-12 hours (the bigger they are, the longer). They come out soft and delicious.

Edited October 2, 2020 by Carolina Wren

[SereneHome]

I love America's test kitchen recipes and I have done their pot roast but in the oven. But I did have to brown it first, which was  a pain.

I guess I will try some chicken or something....I just see no use for us to have one, arghhhh.  

[Bootsie]

I use my crock pot a lot for stews and soups.  I also use it for days when we don't know exactly when we will be eating, or I will have several people coming in to eat at different times.  In those instances, I am maybe not "cooking" in the crockpot but I am reheating and warming.  When I cook spaghetti sauce, or taco meat, or something similar I cook a big batch and freeze some.  Then on a busy day, I defrost it, and put it in the crock pot--then when we have different schedules for the day someone can easily fix a taco when desired.  

[HS Mom in NC]

Here's my favorite 2 easy meals for 1 crockpot cooking session and one clean up the kitchen session:

Pot roast Meal

When I cook a pot roast in a slow cooker I slice 1 or 2  onions (white and/or yellow)  and put half of the slices as a layer on the bottom of the crock pot , then I slice many garlic cloves and put half of them on the onions, then I put a chuck roast (not browned) on top of the onion/garlic layer. Next I put the other half of the onion and garlic on top of the chuck roast.  I cook that on low starting right after lunch (around noon.) At dinner, around 6:00, I turn it off and serve half of the meat with brown gravy (a mix from a packet +1 cup of roast juices from the crockpot in a sauce pan on the stove top,) mashed potatoes (usually instant,) and peas (frozen, nuked in the microwave.) I put the other half of the roast aside for another meal.  When pot roast dinner is done I save all leftover juices and onion/garlic mix from the roast and prep the next meal immediately before I start cleaning up the kitchen. 

Barbacoa Meal

 The juices, onions, and garlic go into the blender and are pureed. I pour that into the largest skillet I have and add Mexican(ish) spices: cumin, cayenne, oregano and a cup or two of green chili sauce (bottled and located next to salsas in the international aisle at the grocery store.)  I shred the meat with a fork and put it back in the skillet and let it simmer for a few minutes.  Then I cool it and put it in the fridge for Barbacoa with tortillas the next day. The flavors are better the next day because they've had time to meld overnight. I make room in the fridge for the skillet with the lid on so I can just put it on the stove top and heat it up the next day. I make the slaw while the Barbacoa is cooling. Then I clean up the kitchen.

I usually serve Barbacoa with my easy South of the Border Slaw, which is also better if it's had at least a few hours to meld. It will keep in the fridge for a few days.

South of the Border Slaw

Either buy packaged plain slaw mix that has only cabbage and carrots in it or shred a cabbage and carrots in whatever ratio you prefer.  I do half and half. Add in the following things to taste: olive oil, the juice of 2-4 limes, and salt and black pepper, remembering that salt and lime together are a fabulous flavor combination, so don't be shy. You can serve this basic recipe (which I usually do) or you can add in chopped raw red bell pepper and some chopped cilantro. Some people prefer to put the slaw on top of the Barbacoa inside their tortilla while others like it on the side.

[MEmama]

2 hours ago, PeterPan said:

You can prep the night before, put the insert in the frig with a lid, and then in the morning pop it in your crockpot. 

Yes, if you want fast and cooking at the last minute, you want an Instant Pot, lol.

But if I’m going to meal prep in the evening, wouldn’t I just be making dinner then?  Plus ugh, all the extra dishes and fridge space...believe me I’ve tried, but it’s just not something I can wrap my brain around. Then again, I don’t spend much time on dinner, 30 minutes max, so I’ve just never had a need. Obviously YMMV. 

[*Jessica*]

3 hours ago, SereneHome said:

Yes, I know, I am probably the only person who never used one nor ever wanted to use one. But my SIL keeps gifting us slow cookers of various sizes (don't ask!). My husband asked me try using one before he agrees to get rid of them all.

I am thinking of doing a pot roast.....I looked up some recipes and they seem to include flour and chicken stock and all kinds of mixes....Do I need all that? Will it burn or something if I don't add a bunch of stuff? I was thinking of just putting beef, some liquid, spices and veggies and that's it.

So, what do I do?

 

You tell your husband to find a recipe and cook it if he wants to keep one so much!

[Clemsondana]

We crock pot ground beef dishes like taco meat, sloppy joes, and, in winter, chili.  Sometimes I do the prep in the morning and other times i do it the night before and just take the insert from the fridge in the morning and put it on to heat.  I also like to cook whole chickens this way if I'm going to make chicken salad or a casserole - the chicken is tender and easy to shred, no fuss, and you get a good concentrated stock that can be used in other dishes.  My family likes stone-ground grits that take an hour to cook, something that is never going to happen in the morning, so I sometimes put the ingredients in the crock pot right before bed and turn it on low and they have grits ready when they wake up - I'd assume this could be done with oatmeal or other breakfast grains.  There's a peachy pork chop crock pot recipe that I used to do all the time when my kids were little because the food was so tender that it was easy for them to eat...I probably ought to dig that out again.  

[Scarlett]

2 hours ago, MEmama said:

Idk, I’ve never figured it out. It seems to me that to use one you’d have to do all meal prep in the morning and who has time (when working & school) or inclination (now) to do that? 

Obviously slow cookers work for some people but don’t feel bad if it doesn’t for you. I’ve never come across any meal that I would make in one even if the timing meshed better with my schedule. 
 

Oh! I have used one for making applesauce. That worked well and helped keep the kitchen cool.
 

I totally LOVED morning meal prep for dinner when I was home with my ds.  It is harder when you work.  I also used to prep my meatloaf in the morning and then pop in the oven an hour before dinner.  Not a slow cooker thing, but it sure saved my sanity.  

[Clemsondana]

I wonder if it's just a lifestyle and cooking style issue.  We have some meals that can be done in 30 minutes, like stir-frys, and a crock pot isn't helpful for that kind of cooking (although I love the instapot for rice on those days).  I also don't tend to use it on days when I have a lot of time in the evening to play around in the kitchen.  But, on days when we're out and about in the afternoon and need to be able to eat before a ball game, it's great to do the prep in the morning or the night before and then just have the meal ready when I get home.  If I'm doing a multi-step thing like a chicken casserole, sometimes it's helpful to not need to keep an eye on the 'cook the chicken' part of it, so putting a whole chicken or a bag of chicken breasts in the crock pot to cook is more convenient than putting them in a pot of water and making sure that they don't boil over.  If I'm cooking the chicken in a pot, I need to be there for that hour - I can't just leave the pot on and go run errands all afternoon, but I can dump chicken in the crock pot and have it ready when I get home.  The same is true for chili - I need to let it simmer for at least an hour, but I'm not always home an hour before dinner.  Even for something like BBQ chicken - I may have 10 minutes to dump a bottle of sauce on some chicken at 7:15 before I head to co-op, but I'm not necessarily home at the right time to put it in the oven for dinner. 

But, your schedule or cooking style may not fit with this.  I find that crock-pot use ebbs and flows with the kids' activities and also the seasons (we garden and eat very differently in the summer vs winter).  I could imagine that with different diet and schedule needs, we might not use it much.  

[SereneHome]

28 minutes ago, *Jessica* said:

You tell your husband to find a recipe and cook it if he wants to keep one so much!

We don't have that kind of relationship

[*Jessica*]

1 minute ago, SereneHome said:

We don't have that kind of relationship

😞 I’m sorry.  

[SereneHome]

1 minute ago, *Jessica* said:

😞 I’m sorry.  

Why??

[Arctic Bunny]

There are lots of things I like in the slow cooker, but a roast is my least favourite. I use it for pulled pork, though, and casserole-type dishes.

Slender Kitchen’s Eggplant and Lentil Picadillo

 

[PeterPan]

https://www.amazon.com/Slow-Cooker-Revolution-Easy-Prep-Ground-Breaking/dp/1936493578/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=slow+cooker+revolution&qid=1598287408&sr=8-2  This is the one I have that has that crazy good chicken recipe. There are more in the series.

I own several and use them around holidays to keep things warm. You can make mashed potatoes ahead and warm them up day off. You can cook scalloped potatoes in them all the way. Noodles. Whatever. Sloppy joe. I agree that it can be seasonal. We're all so busy eating food for when it's hot, but soon we'll settle into our comfort food, winter food. Crockpots are great for cooking down a ham. 

So yeah, you might feel it more if you wait a month. 

[PeterPan]

1 minute ago, arctic_bunny said:

There are lots of things I like in the slow cooker, but a roast is my least favourite. I use it for pulled pork, though, and casserole-type dishes.

Slender Kitchen’s Eggplant and Lentil Picadillo

 

Oh man, I can't imagine my dh if I made this. He'll *sorta* eat lentils. I made something recently, oh yeah it was yellow squash casserole, and he comes in late at night and takes a spoon on a plate into the dark basement to eat and wind down. After a while, he's like WHAT is this? Bwhahahah! Can you imagine if eggplant infiltrated! LOL 

[PeterPan]

For op, maybe go another direction besides meat? Side dishes. Rice pilaf. Dump cakes. Dulche de Leche. Carmelized onions for french onion soup. There are other things people do with these. It's a great time of year for crockpot dump cakes. Can of fruit, dump the mix on top, pats of butter, boom.

There are usually videos for this. Find the right feed in your FB and you'll be inundated with them. 

https://www.eatingonadime.com/crock-pot-apple-pie-dump-cake/

[Spy Car]

4 hours ago, SereneHome said:

Yes, I know, I am probably the only person who never used one nor ever wanted to use one. But my SIL keeps gifting us slow cookers of various sizes (don't ask!). My husband asked me try using one before he agrees to get rid of them all.

I am thinking of doing a pot roast.....I looked up some recipes and they seem to include flour and chicken stock and all kinds of mixes....Do I need all that? Will it burn or something if I don't add a bunch of stuff? I was thinking of just putting beef, some liquid, spices and veggies and that's it.

So, what do I do?

 

The beauty part is that there is almost nothing you can do "wrong." 

You do not need flour or chicken stock. For a pot roast "just putting beef, some liquid, spices and veggies" will be fine. Easy on the liquids.

Bill

[SereneHome]

I will say that I am surprised at all the ideas, I never would have thought to put some of the things mentioned into a crock pot. I just always associated it with pot roasts....I have no idea why lol

So thank you for giving me all kinds of interesting ideas and things to try.

[Forget-Me-Not]

I’m doing a chuck roast in mine today. 2 cans of beef broth, 2 packets of dry onion soup mix, 2 cups of water. Sometimes I add in baby potatoes and baby carrots a couple of hours before serving, but tonight the kids will make French dip sandwiches and use the broth to dip. DH and I are low-carb at the moment, so we’ll just eat the meat and have a side of veggies.

[IvyInFlorida]

I've got a copycat of Moe's queso going in my small one right now so it will be ready for our Mexican-themed supper tonight.  It really can be useful if, like a previous poster said, you have more time and energy in the morning than you do at supper time.  Which is me!

A good site to check out is Heavenly Homemakers.  She has a lot of very simple slow cooker ideas.

[Spy Car]

1 hour ago, Danae said:

If you want out there ideas, try this blog:  https://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2005/01/table-of-contents-year-of-slow-cooking.html

She made a new crockpot recipe every day of 2008. Play dough. Haggis. Rice pudding. Jalapeno poppers.  

Haggis?

Every husband's favorite. LOL.

Bill

[Arctic Bunny]

8 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Oh man, I can't imagine my dh if I made this. He'll *sorta* eat lentils. I made something recently, oh yeah it was yellow squash casserole, and he comes in late at night and takes a spoon on a plate into the dark basement to eat and wind down. After a while, he's like WHAT is this? Bwhahahah! Can you imagine if eggplant infiltrated! LOL 

My kids will eat this for days. Like, a giant crockpot on Sunday, school lunches all week. DH does not know about the eggplant. 

[marbel]

I  use it for only a couple of things, but they are sort of important to  me, so I keep the slow cooker.

Pulled pork or chicken is the easiest thing and the best place to start. Use pork shoulder, not a lean roast, and not all white meat chicken.  I will also put a whole chicken in to cook, then when it's done, pull off the meat, put the bones and skin back in the crockpot, and cook all day the next day for broth. (Some people run their slow cooker all night for broth, but my family doesn't like the smell of food cooking all night long.)

For beef, use a chuck roast, that takes long slow cooking well. The pepperoncini idea upthread sounds a lot like Mississippi pot roast.  The recipe I use does call for browning the meat first, but it is worth it.   I also cook corned beef in it.

One thing I have found is that chicken cooked too long loses all its flavor. That's fine if the chicken is in a soup or sauce - the flavor goes into that. But for a recipe that is rather plain, you want to cook the chicken just till done. 

Having said that, if the crockpot disappeared tomorrow, I would manager with a Dutch oven, as the crockpot really doesn't do anything that a Dutch oven won't, it just takes longer. 

I also agree with the poster who said to tell your husband to find a recipe if he wants to keep the crockpot so badly!

 

[SereneHome]

Oh may be I'll just try it for bone broth.

And again, I am not "telling" my husband anything, we don't have that kind of relationship.

[Bootsie]

My mom never owned a crock pot while I was growing up.  For the first few years I had mine, I thought there was one use--making queso.  One of the primary uses of mine is to take items to covered dish meal (well before COVID).  I probably use mine more in the summer than in the winter in that items I would cook slowly in a Dutch oven for a nice warm, homey feel heat up the house in the summer too much.  I would not want to turn on the oven in the summer, for example, to make bake potatoes, but I can cook them in the crock pot.  

[PeterPan]

1 minute ago, Bootsie said:

For the first few years I had mine, I thought there was one use--making queso. 

Ooo, I know someone who makes serious queso in a crockpot!! I'm sure it's not healthy, but my oh my. Slather, drool...

[Bootsie]

1 minute ago, PeterPan said:

Ooo, I know someone who makes serious queso in a crockpot!! I'm sure it's not healthy, but my oh my. Slather, drool...

Oh yeah--the other thing I thought slow cookers were for was Lil Smokies; every party had to have a crock pot of queso and crock pot of Lil Smokies.

[Joker]

This is my favorite roast recipe. I don’t do the celery (don’t like it) or onion (allergic).  I never  do the remove everything and strain it for gravy in saucepan at the end because it is always plenty thick enough when roast is done. I do brown it first but it’s worth it to me. 
https://damndelicious.net/2019/04/12/slow-cooker-pot-roast/

I also use it for baked potato soup, chili, and shredded chicken quite often. 

[KatieJ]

I got a crock pot for a wedding present 45 years ago next month. I used it a ton! It is my favorite tool in thr kitchen. I finally had to retire it snd I now have a Ninja. I can brown the meat in it and then  add the rest of the ingredients and walk away. 

Even tho there are just two  of us, it gets used many times a month. I do roasts, chicken breast, pork loins, and lots of soups, which I refer to as planned over meals. 

[SereneHome]

 

4 minutes ago, Joker said:

This is my favorite roast recipe. I don’t do the celery (don’t like it) or onion (allergic).  I never  do the remove everything and strain it for gravy in saucepan at the end because it is always plenty thick enough when roast is done. I do brown it first but it’s worth it to me. 
https://damndelicious.net/2019/04/12/slow-cooker-pot-roast/

I also use it for baked potato soup, chili, and shredded chicken quite often. 

What confuses me about a lot of those recipes is that meat has to be cooked before putting into crock pot

Did you see her lemon chicken orzo soup? I make one on the stove, she has one in the crock pot, but cooks chicken first. 

[SounderChick]

I love it because I hate cooking. Also my energy is always lost at 4/5pm.  I do a lot of just put in meat add sauce.  Like seriously unwrap ham poor in can of Dr. Pepper don't think about it until it's time to eat.

[domestic_engineer]

You can use a crockpot to be frugal .... to make broth, to cook dried beans (without an overnight soak) to freeze for future use, to make bean soups. 
 

You can use a crockpot for convenience.... a turkey breast in the crockpot for a holiday feast is sooooooo easy and frees up oven space. 
 

you don’t always have to prep in the morning. Some recipes only take the afternoon to cook so one could start it at lunch time.   I often pick recipes based on cook time and when I’m available to prep the ingredients. Generally you can change the cook time by a factor of two (or 1/2) if you use the other heat setting.   Also, If you prep ahead of time, you don’t have to put the liner in the fridge; just put the ingredients in a ziploc bag or other manageable container the night before. Then in the morning, dump the contents in the crockpot. 

[Clemsondana]

7 hours ago, SereneHome said:

 

What confuses me about a lot of those recipes is that meat has to be cooked before putting into crock pot

Did you see her lemon chicken orzo soup? I make one on the stove, she has one in the crock pot, but cooks chicken first. 

The searing of the meat is to add extra flavor because things don't brown in the crock pot.  When I have time, though, I sear first even if I'm cooking a roast in a dutch oven because you get a richer flavor.  It's not essential, but it won't be quite as good.  It's why my grandmother's roasts were the best - she browned every side of the roast before putting it in the oven.  Yum!  I didn't check the soup recipe, but most recipes that I have for soup, whether crock pot or stove, call for cooking and shredding the chicken first, or at least the first step is 'cook and shred chicken'.  Some crock-pot people keep a stash of cooked ground beef and shredded cooked chicken in the freezer so that they can throw together crock pot recipes quickly.  I do that sometimes - cook a big batch of chicken in the crock pot, shred and freeze in 2-cup portions for soups and casseroles. 

[Joker]

2 hours ago, ClemsonDana said:

The searing of the meat is to add extra flavor because things don't brown in the crock pot.  When I have time, though, I sear first even if I'm cooking a roast in a dutch oven because you get a richer flavor.  It's not essential, but it won't be quite as good.  It's why my grandmother's roasts were the best - she browned every side of the roast before putting it in the oven.  Yum!  I didn't check the soup recipe, but most recipes that I have for soup, whether crock pot or stove, call for cooking and shredding the chicken first, or at least the first step is 'cook and shred chicken'.  Some crock-pot people keep a stash of cooked ground beef and shredded cooked chicken in the freezer so that they can throw together crock pot recipes quickly.  I do that sometimes - cook a big batch of chicken in the crock pot, shred and freeze in 2-cup portions for soups and casseroles. 

Yeah, I sear the meat even when not using a slow cooker so that has never seemed weird to me.