Slow Cooker Liners

[TwilightJoy]

Hi ladies!

Does anyone use liners in their CrockPot / Slow Cooker? I never have, but am considering it. I love using my crockpot, but have been so tired with this pregnancy that dishes haven't been getting done. Both DH and I hate scrubbing our slow cooker, so sometimes it sits on the counter for 2 or 3 days before one of us washes it.

Has anyone been able to find a "safe" plastic liner that's BPA free?

I'm thinking about this one:

www.amazon.com/PanSaver-Multi-Use-Cooking-Cooker-Liners/dp/B001V9K8Z6/
http://www.pansaver.com/ezclean/

But can't find anywhere if it's BPA free or not. I emailed the company, but am waiting to hear back.

Any thoughts?

TIA!!!

[ChristmasLover]

It seems safest not to cook in plastic at all.  It's tempting for convenience, though.  

[CelloMomCars]

Hang in, I hope your tiredness is a phase and it will pass!

I agree with ChristmasLover:  especially when you're pregnant, you want to be very wary of plastic around your food.  You certainly don't want to be heating it up, it encourages leaching out of various additives.  Plastic manufacturers are not required to state what additives they put in the plastic.  My personal suspicion is that BPA is just the beginning:  we'll unearth other problems yet.  Watch "Bag it", or "Plastic Planet" (same info, Euro version) for a critique of plastic.

Meanwhile, have you tried adding more water to your crock pot dishes?  Or else soaking it in hot water before you start cleaning?

[Bruebee]

does your crockpot  have a removable crock? I'm lucky my 20+ year old one does. I usually soak it overnight then stick it in the dishwasher. I hope your energy level comes back up soon. :)

[rnra]

I love my slow cooker.  After we've eaten and I've scooped out the leftovers, I quickly fill it back up with water and turn it on high for an hour (or however long it takes me to get to the dishes).  Then everything usually just dumps right out.  I pop the crock part in the dishwasher, and it's done.  

I wouldn't feel comfortable cooking in plastic.

[meemee]

are you saying your food sticks in the slow cooker?

why do you need to scrub so much?

you need to play with your timing and heat if it is sticking.

well you still have to clean the liner right? so where does that save you work - unless you throw out the liner after every use.

if you have a one piece crockpot it would be better to buy a two piece crockpot where you take the ceramic piece out to cook.

ever thougth about a pressure cooker? its the same concept as the crockpot - just in the opposite direction. so instead of taking 4 to 8 hours to cook, you cook in 20 to 30 minutes. again you have to master the amount of water and cooking time. 

but no i would never cook in plastic. 

aah i just looked at it. looks like a sheet of plastic you put into the crock pot right? why cant you use aluminum foil instead? same concept right. except you are cooking in aluminum if that bothers you. 

[Imakcerka]

Yeah those plastic liners have been around for years and so far so good.  All you have to do is toss them.  And really it's not different than cooking your Turkey in one of those bags in the oven.  It's fine to use them.  Especially if it makes life easier for you which is what this is all about. 

And yes sometimes they're hard to clean and tossing out the bag is much easier.

[KristyDi]

Originally Posted by rnra 

I love my slow cooker.  After we've eaten and I've scooped out the leftovers, I quickly fill it back up with water and turn it on high for an hour (or however long it takes me to get to the dishes).  Then everything usually just dumps right out.  I pop the crock part in the dishwasher, and it's done.  

I wouldn't feel comfortable cooking in plastic.

This is what I do and it works great!

[TwilightJoy]

Thanks so much for the support, ladies. If you have any other ideas, please send them my way!

Originally Posted by Bruebee 

does your crockpot  have a removable crock? I'm lucky my 20+ year old one does. I usually soak it overnight then stick it in the dishwasher. I hope your energy level comes back up soon.

I'm thinking I need to invest in a smaller crock pot that has a crock that will fit in our dishwasher. My 6 quart one doesn't fit.

Originally Posted by rnra 

I love my slow cooker.  After we've eaten and I've scooped out the leftovers, I quickly fill it back up with water and turn it on high for an hour (or however long it takes me to get to the dishes).  Then everything usually just dumps right out.  I pop the crock part in the dishwasher, and it's done.  

Cooking water in it sounds like a good idea to help it clean easier! And maybe I can rest for that hour!

Originally Posted by meemee 

are you saying your food sticks in the slow cooker?

why do you need to scrub so much?

you need to play with your timing and heat if it is sticking.

Should I adjust it higher or lower? I work full time for an insurance company, with a 1/2 hour commute, so I'm out of the home for 10 hours a day at least. I put the food in it in the morning, set it on low, and then we eat when I get home. It does have a Warm setting- would that cook food in 10 hours? Or should I put it on high?

[meemee]

Originally Posted by TwilightJoy 

Should I adjust it higher or lower? I work full time for an insurance company, with a 1/2 hour commute, so I'm out of the home for 10 hours a day at least. I put the food in it in the morning, set it on low, and then we eat when I get home. It does have a Warm setting- would that cook food in 10 hours? Or should I put it on high?

do u turn it on and then out the door, or do u turn it on and then in an hour or so out the door?

because this is not a cook time issue. its a stirring issue. esp. dense stuff like beans do like to stick. i have not experimented with ceramics but i turn my steel pans into nonstick by first waiting for the pan to heat up and then putting oil in it. wait for oil to heat and then cook. pan has to be super clean though. no white film which sometimes can happen. dont know if the same thing happens with a crockpot. maybe if you believe in nonstick you can look into it and get a small non stick one. 

if u have an hour before u leave, put it on high for the hour, stir it a couple of times, then turn it low, one more stirring and then leave. 

otherwise i'd just leave it as it is and invest in a smaller one that would fit in ur dishwasher. 

mama hats off to you. at the end of a 10 hour day whew!!!!!

[TwilightJoy]

Loud and clear, ladies, no cooking in plastic!

Originally Posted by ChristmasLover 

It seems safest not to cook in plastic at all.

Originally Posted by CelloMomCars 

especially when you're pregnant, you want to be very wary of plastic around your food.  You certainly don't want to be heating it up

Originally Posted by rnra 

I wouldn't feel comfortable cooking in plastic.

Originally Posted by meemee 

but no i would never cook in plastic. 

Would you cook in nylon? Is nylon different than plastic? I got a response back from the PanSaver company:

Thank you for contacting us and expressing interest in our slow cooker liners! Our products are not any kind of plastic at all. Our product is made of nylon material and a proprietary blend that is food safe! They do not contain any BPA or DEHP. Our products are manufactured here in the USA and are Kosher, NSF and FDA certified, as well as inspected under ISO 9000 regulations. We sell these products to well known chain restaurants, hospitals and schools. You need not worry about the safety of using PanSaver slow cooker panliners.

[CelloMomCars]

Nylon is a synthetic polymer, meaning a plastic.  Let us be generous and say that the PanSaver statement is disingenious and misleading.  (Ugh.  Who wants to start the advertising version of Mythbusters with me? Some companies think they can sell us anything).

UL IDES Plastics Database http://www.ides.com/info/generics/22/Polyamide-Nylon

Plastipedia http://www.bpf.co.uk/Plastipedia/Polymers/Polyamides.aspx

Not only that, nylon gets hydrolysed, i.e. falls apart, in strong acidic environments (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon).  Any stew in which you use tomatoes, tomato sauce or tomato paste is pretty acidic.  Your liner may not fall apart, but it will get attacked.

PanSaver is right about one thing:  all plastics are proprietary mixtures, even the ones with those straightforward looking "recycling" labels contain additives and modifiers that manufacturers don't have to specify.  My personal guess is that BPA is just the first of a long string of troublemakers.  More bad news:  teflon is a plastic.

Sorry to dash your hopes for an easy clean-up. I'm with rnra:  heating some water in your cooker will go a long way to loosening up anything that's cooked on.  Add a bit of baking soda for a booster.  We know that's safe to eat!

I know:  why don't you report PanSaver to Consumerist.com?  They're good at exposés.

[Imakcerka]

I'll lick the plastic liner if saves me time.