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I’ve owned a slow cooker for the last 6 years, but I’ve only recently started using it. My parents never used a slow cooker, so when I won it as a prize, I never really knew what to do with it.

But I recently brought it out, and I’ve been using it once a week for the last month, to give myself a break from cooking one night a week. (Well, to tell the truth, the recipes I’ve been doing are not completely hands-off, but oh-so delicious.)

The great thing about slow cooking, is that it takes cheap pieces of meat, and makes them fabulous. Meats that are tasty, but are chewy or tough when cooked by other methods.

My favourite: pork shoulder. They’re sold in 2-4lb bone-in roasts which will make 3-6 meals, and cost $5-$8. When slow roasted, the meat falls off the bone, is succulently tender, and loaded with flavour.

Place a few peeled carrots, cut in half width-wise, in the slow cooker. Add a peeled, quartered onion, a few cloves of crushed garlic, a few whole cloves (the spice), some sprigs of fresh thyme, and a bay leaf.

If the roast comes with a strip of skin, cut that off before cooking. Rub all sides generously with kosher salt and pepper. Heat a frying pan on med-high heat, and when quite hot, cook the roast on one side for 2-3 minutes to develop a nice golden crust. Repeat on all the other sides. This searing is the key to extra flavour when slow cooking. (Skip this step if you’re in a rush.)

Place the roast in the bottom of the slow cooker. (Push aside the vegetables, so the roast sits flat.)

Deglaze the hot pan with 2 cups of chicken stock, to which you add 2 Tbsp of tomato paste. Bring the liquid to a simmer, and scrape off any bits of pork. Pour the liquid into the slow cooker. Cover, and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

The roast is now ready, but if you have some spare time, you can make a fabulous jus from the cooking liquid.

Remove the roast from the slow cooker, and cover to keep warm. (I find the roast cools down very quickly, so I place it in a covered sauce pan in the oven at 200°F.) Pour the liquid into a small sauce pan, and bring to a boil. Let it reduce for a good half-hour.

To the broth mixture, add 2 Tbsp of brandy or whiskey (optional) and 1 tsp mustard. Separately, mix 2 Tbsp sour cream or plain yogurt with 2 Tbsp flour in a small bowl. Add a little of the broth mixture to the sour cream mixture to warm up, then return the yogurt to the broth. Continue simmering until it thickens slightly.

Serve the jus over the meat and mashed potatoes. Add a vegetable of your choice, and enjoy! A restaurant-worthy mouth-watering meal, for a few dollars per serving.