Juicy, falling apart beef, or a tale of two crockpots.

[FloridaMelon]

I have a rival that cooks very hot, and a Farberware that cooks very slow. The high on the Farberware is about the same as the low on the Rival.

I remember when my old slow cooker (a JCPenney Crockpot knockoff) would make pot roast in 10 to 12 hours that was perfectly moist, yet falling apart tender. I am experimenting with the Farberware to try to recreate this.

Some years ago on this forum Red Apple Guy told me what the "falling apart" temperature was and I didn't keep that number in a safe place. I remember that he told me I'd never get that temp on low since my "low" on the Farberware wasn't as high as the internal temp needed for "falling apart" (in pork, I think). My experience on low in the Rival was overcooked meat.

So today I'm experimenting with 1 hour on high, several hours on low, and then one or two hours on high.If I keep trying I may find the magic numbers.I'm doing a boneless shoulder chuck roast.

[Red Apple Guy]

Hey Floridamelon,
the temperature is somewhere in the neighborhood of 200F. If the meat cooks at 180F for long periods of time, it might well fall apart, I don't know. But if I cook meat on the smoker or crockpot, 200F is what I shoot for if I want to "pull" the meat (shred).

Red

[FloridaMelon]

Thanks. I was able to get it up to 189 on low for 11 hours, next time I think I'll turn it up to high for the last couple of hours.

It was fine but not "falling apart". Practice practice practice.

I also cooked the onions on the side and added them in at the end. I don't think 11 hours of slow cooked onions would have helped the flavor any.

[Red Apple Guy]

FloridaMelon
Which crockpot did you use for the beef?
Red

[FloridaMelon]

I used the Farberware.I was able to shred it, but it didn't "fall apart".

[Red Apple Guy]

I have a crockpot that cooks about 240F on high. That's BBQing temperature, so I will occassionally cook a roast on high. For my pot that's a 6 to 7 hour cook if I remember correctly (it's been a while).

Red

[tomatomustard]

How are you measuring the temp of your pot? I've tried tucking thermometers in mine but I never feel like I'm getting an accurate reading.

[Red Apple Guy]

Hey Tomatomustard

I measured the low and warm settings with a crockpot half full of water and used an instant-read thermometer. I really don't recall how I measured the high setting temp. It may have been in the literature on my cooker. One way, would be to heat oil and measure that temp but that's best done if you have enough used vegetable oil to fill the pot half full.

Red

[tomatomustard]

I guess I never really thought about doing it that way. I was always trying to put the thermometer in between the lid and pot.. that makes a bit more sense

[Red Apple Guy]

Water in the pot will influence the cooking temperature in the air space. The more the water, the closer the temperature will be to 212F as it boils and condenses on the lid.

Red