I can't speak to the particular brands but I would "slow cook" all the time in my wall oven and continue to do so in my range oven. Just throw whatever meat (pork shoulder, brisket, etc) in a pot with some liquid (stock, beer, wine, apple juice, whatever) and set the oven to 225, 250, whatever you want. Has always worked like a champ for me. I've left my oven on unattended tons of time. Yep, I've used a fork to extract toast from the toaster, too. Even been known to ride a motorcycle! :) -Stooxie

Stew pot is actually closer, Linda. The style we currently call "Dutch oven" is a flat-bottomed kettle with a lid added. And is, of course, with its heavy, heat-holding design, ideal for stewing. Kettles originally were round bottomed (and some had legs), designed primarily to be hung over an open fire; either from a tripod or a crane. They did not have lids. There was a point, measured in gallons, where a kettle became a cauldren, but I misremember it right now. Thirteen comes to mind, but don't take that to the bank. Dutch ovens, of course, had three legs and a deeply recessed lid so you could put coals both under and on top, to provide even, dry heat. They were used on the hearth, not in the firebox. In the first quarter of the 19th century, "portable" cast iron stoves became popular. Initially kettles were still used by removing an eye and setting the pot right in the hole, over the open fire. Eventually they began modifying the pieces, flattening the bottom and adding a domed lid. A chicken fryer has a somewhat different configuration; being relatively wide for it's height (for stability), and with sidewalls that slope more sharply than those of a skillet. Chicken fryers, too, have domed lids; many of which are of the self-basting type. Now, if you really want to know about hearth trivia, ask me nicely and I'll tell you were the term "hob nobbing" comes from.

I've been very unhappy with a new Rival crockpot--as you will see if you read up on the newer pots, they cook at much higher temperatures, which I've tested and found true. The new crockpot reaches boiling point in about 2 hours or so on high and maybe an hour or so later on low, and keeps the food at a full boil for the remainder of the time. I mean, you can just see it roiling! All of my usual recipes were ruined. That's completely against what I need for starting something before work and serving usually 10 hrs later. It does have the downshift to "warm," but again, that is only after pretty long fixed times on high or low. So it might work if you abandon the low setting and use High which allows a shorter time before shifting to Warm. I also considered an elaborate scheme of delayed start, maybe an hour or so, with one of those timers hooked into the plug, but it was too hard to calculate the potential issues with bacterial growth and kill temps. You can tell there's a change in the cooking temps, because all the recipes with the new pots say something like, cook 3-4 hrs on high or 4-6 hrs on low, or some such. You won't find any going 8-10 hrs. How does that fit into the typical dinner-after-work, I ask you. When I got the new pot, I put my old one in the church rummage sale--big mistake! I've since bought another old model at a flea market; however, so far it seems to cook a little "cooler" than my own old pot ( I know, I sound like the Three Bears) , and when I tested with thermometer, I'm not sure it gets hot enough on low for food safety. But I think it will work on high and stay below the boiling point. I've tried to read a lot of reviews of various brands and see if there is one that cooks differently to make another purchase, but there is almost no info readily available about the time to temp, or whatever. This might be available from a manufacturer's website or customer service rep. Still hoping someday my old Crockpot and I will be reunited....

Pfmastin, below is the link to Amazon's page for Nesco's. Which one did you buy? I have a question. My old crockpot has the "circular" elements in it and it never browned chicken. How does the roaster brown meat when the condensation drips down on it from the lid? Although most of the reviews are good, many say it's too hot on the outside & you can burn yourself. How does that help keep the kitchen cooler? I'd love to bake a chicken in there and have it crisp up! And is the 6 qt. big enough for a large chicken?