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garnish the wings with the cilantro and serve from the cooker set on warm.

serves 8

Chapter 4

Something Fishy Going On

When I first got my slow cooker I didn’t cook seafood in it. Then I decided that there had to be a way to cook seafood in the pot without disintegrating. Soon, I realized that I could poach salmon perfectly, make a delicious Moroccan tagine, and prepare Mediterranean seafood stews without fear. The slow cooker takes great care of seafood and the result is a tender, moist, and flavor-filled dinner.

Acadiana Shrimp Barbecue

Shrimp cook quickly in a slow cooker, but the sauce for these succulent butter-soaked crustaceans can loll around in the pot all day, coaxing every bit of flavor out of the garlic, herbs, and spices. This dish is similar to many that are served in the French Quarter in New Orleans. Serve over rice or tossed with pasta, and with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the sauce.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

¼ cup olive oil

8 cloves garlic, sliced

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

¼ cup Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup lemon juice

3 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined (see savvy)

½ cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

put the butter, oil, garlic, oregano, thyme, pepper, cayenne, paprika, Worcestershire, and lemon juice in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.

turn the cooker up to high and add the shrimp, tossing them in the butter sauce. Cover and cook for an additional 10 to 5 minutes, until the shrimp are pink.

transfer the shrimp from the slow cooker to a large serving bowl and pour the sauce over the shrimp. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

serves 6–8

* * *

seafood savvy

This dish is also delicious made with fish fillets; 2 pounds halibut, salmon, or sea bass fillets can be cooked for 1 to 1½ hours on high.

Beantown Scallops

Scallops have a clean, sweet taste, and although they have a tendency to get tough when overcooked, a sherry-butter sauce bath keeps them at a low and slow temperature, ensuring you will have scallop perfection.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

¼ cup dry sherry

2 pounds dry-pack sea scallops (see savvy)

½ cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

put the butter, oil, garlic, paprika, and sherry in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slower cooker.

cover and cook on low for 4 hours. Turn the cooker to high and add the scallops, tossing them in the butter sauce. Cover and cook on high for 30 to 40 minutes, until the scallops are opaque.

transfer the scallops and sauce from the slow cooker to a serving platter. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

serves 6

* * *

scallop savvy

Look for “dry-pack” scallops—other scallops are injected with a preservative and are not as fresh, turning rubbery in the slow cooker. Dry-pack diver scallops will have been harvested recently and are far superior—you will pay a price, but it’s well worth it.

Garlic Crab Claws

This is messy, but oh so good to eat! Spicy garlic wine butter coats these crab claws, and the pot can be put on the center of your dining table for everyone to serve themselves. Make sure to provide crackers, picks, and bibs for your family to be able to pick apart the crab. I crack the crab shells or cut them with kitchen shears. That way, more garlic butter will seep into the crab, giving it a more spicy, sweet flavor. Make this for a casual dinner on the porch or deck, and serve the claws in shallow bowls to catch the juices, accompanied

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

½ cup olive oil

10 cloves garlic, sliced (see savvy)

2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning

2 cups dry white wine or vermouth

1 lemon, thinly sliced

3 to 4 pounds cooked crab legs and claws, cracked (see savvy)

put the butter, oil, garlic, seasoning, wine, and lemon in the