I think this recipe falls under the category of “Things I hated as a child, tolerated as a young adult and came to love as I grew older.” I did not particularly care for Kielbasa when I was growing up (perhaps because it was always paired with sauerkraut?) even though I thought I would like pork-based sausage in any form that crossed my plate. As I grew older and my tastes changed, I have started to make this recipe quite often. While I remember my parents making something similar in the summer months, I tend to make this most often when the weather turns cold and you want an easy, comforting meal to come home to after a hard day. I’ve noticed a lot of people tend to treat this as a recipe you just “dump” the ingredients in and let the crockpot work its magic, but I’ve learned that this becomes much, much better with just one added step.
And yes, of course you could just dump all the ingredients in and it would still be a good meal but I think the results are better with my “secret” to taking something that is fairly mundane and turning it into something special.
The Ingredients of Slow-Cooker Kielbasa, Green Beans & Potatoes
1 lb. Kielbasa
3-5 Red potatoes (sliced into six pieces each)
1 lb. Green Beans
2-3 Garlic cloves (sliced thin)
1 c Chicken Stock (preferable homemade)
Salt & Pepper
Equipment: 6-7 quart Slow Cooker
The Secret to Slow-Cooker Kielbasa
This is what I call the secret to making this dish taste so much better than just assembling the ingredients in the slow cooker and calling it a day. Just as I would certainly sear the pieces of a chuck roast before putting them into a crockpot or dutch oven to make Pot Roast, I’ve learned to do the same with Kielbasa when I make this dish. Browning or searing the meat will release the fat, give it some nice color and also an amazing depth of flavor.
The Maillard reaction is a chemical reaction that takes place from cooking in high heat and produces a caramelization effect from the amino acids and reducing sugars. It was first named in 1912 after the French chemist Louis Camille Maillard when he was trying to reproduce protein synthesis. These reactions can produce literally hundreds of different flavor compounds depending on the conditions (time, temperature, type of food.) Roasted coffee, toasted marshmallows, golden French fries, black garlic, roasted malt (used in beer and whiskey), roasted peanuts and fried onions all get their flavor from these reactions taking place.
Simply cut the kielbasa rope into rounds and place them onto a foil-covered cookie sheet. Place it under your broiler set to high and then keep a close eye on it because you don’t want it to burn! Flip the pieces once the top part has a nice brown color and the fat starts to pool on the foil. Once both sides of the kielbasa rounds have some color and you see the fat leaking out, mix them (and the fat!) with the green beans, red potatoes and garlic. Pour the chicken stock down the side of the crock pot to rest in the bottom as you don’t want to “wash” the fat off the potatoes before they have started cooking. Finish with a couple of good cranks of fresh-ground pepper and replace the lid then set the slow cooker to LOW for 4-6 hours.
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