Crockpot Recipe Question

jordanalexis90

Hey Everyone! I am rather new to this, just started consistently tracking a week ago!
Anyways I made a recipe in my crockpot for dinner tonight and I'm having trouble figuring out how I should count it.
The recipe is:
3 boneless skinless chk breasts
1 bottle of italian dressing
4 (halved) red potatoes
half a bag of carrots
1 tbs italian seasoning

My concern is that when I plugged in the recipe I used a whole bottle of italian dressing (which was over 1000 calories within itself), and when I ate the food obvisouly most of the italian dressing had become "broth-like" in the crockpot, so obviously I did not really eat all the calories of the italian dressing that was said. I'm sure it was actually pretty few calories that actually soaked into the food. I did not use any as sauce. So I am confused on how to figure out how many calories it really was. I try to eat close to my calorie goal and would like to be able to know how many calories I really ate so that I am not way under, as that dressing had soo many calories within itself.

sofielein

I'm sure it was actually pretty few calories that actually soaked into the food

You may actually be pretty sure you're wrong. Meat and vegetables can absorb an amazing amount of fats if cooked together.

But what freaks me out is to be honest is the culinary blasphemy you performed here: how on earth does anyone get the idea of using a salad dressing (italian sauce) in a crock pot, cooked into the food? This is just so wrong on many levels. Certain oils are best when cold, some when heated but even withing that range there are major differences. At the same time, how can you make a low cal dish (some chicken, carrots, all below 200 cals) and then soak them in something like a 1000 cal dressing? I don't get the concept at all. Get a proper butter-wine-garlic-basil-sautee for sauce and you will still be way below 1000 cals, i.e. learn how to cook and don't fool yourself into the "but I saw it all stayed at the bottom of the dish" idea. Sorry but this is really not the way to homemade. Search any chicken parmigiana on youtube and you will still be better off (culinary and caloriewise).

jordanalexis90

I actually cook quite a bit and a LOT of the things that I cook are from scratch. This was a recipe that I used from a friend, because I was in a bind and needed something to cook in a pinch with ingredients that I happened to have on hand. It actually had a lot of good flavor but if I would have realized that it was going to be so many calories I would have probably went for an alternative. Thanks for the input though, and next time you could maybe go about it in a less rude way, insuing that I know nothing about food or the likes, when in fact it's quite the opposite. I am sure you are a god and never eat things that are not 100% made by you using only the world's finest ingredients. And if this is true and you are a top rated chef come cook for me some time!!

sofielein

chop the onions fine
sautee them on 1 tbsp butter-1 tbsp olive oil until glassy-looking
somewhere halftime, add FRESH thyme leaves, basil leaves, finely chopped chili peppers (no seeds) and minced garlic
add your carrots and celeries chopped fine

*at this point, you can make a million versions of recipees, but let's continue this way

make sure to watch the garlic, you don't want those to turn brown or else everything will turn bitter

now, add 1-2 cups of white wine and watch carefully as it boils away, you want all the alcohol to go away
if you have any homemade chicken broth-chicken stock, add 2 cups, otherwise, add water
add faster cooking vegetables like mushrooms or already cooked beans or corn

this is the perfect base for any dish - you can, at this point, create a creamy sauce to it using half and half, créme fraiche, cheese, philadelphia and serve over rice or pasta, or you can just add more beans, peas, tomato paste, parmesan or have it as it is.

Edit: certainly a good time to add beef, homemade pasta to cook, chicken pieces, or any meat.

canambus

I cook in homemade sauces at times,or chicken broth. I don't worry about calories when it's chicken broth or lime juice but I do wonder how many extra calories I should count when it's a sauce denser in calories. I don't believe that its a crap ton of calories absorbed but I'm not an expert. The first reply is insinuating that you just consumed so many more calories than you thought and your an foolish. I disagree with that but hell I'm probably an foolish,too Hopefully someone with some knowledge on this subject respond to you because I am curious as well.

sofielein

Sorry for being "insinuating" my problem was taking the cooking out of the cooking. That is. 1. I know what I am putting in my pot 2. I know my harmony (how I am trying to achieve a certain taste and texture by not going overboard or eccentric in ingredients) so I basically I have a feel for a certain type of balance, it's like being a fashion designer and understanding why corsets are off limits

jordanalexis90

I cook in homemade sauces at times,or chicken broth. I don't worry about calories when it's chicken broth or lime juice but I do wonder how many extra calories I should count when it's a sauce denser in calories. I don't believe that its a crap ton of calories absorbed but I'm not an expert. The first reply is insinuating that you just consumed so many more calories than you thought and your an foolish. I disagree with that but hell I'm probably an foolish,too Hopefully someone with some knowledge on this subject respond to you because I am curious as well.

I actually counted the whole bottle in my recipe and included that number into my calorie count for the day which is why I was concerned. If I only ate a small portion of those calories I would rather know that then not know that and eat way below my calories for the day! I too would just like an informed answer that would help me! Instead of telling me I am a horrible cook, committed some type of food crime, and that I am horribly wrong in assuming that most of the entire bottle of italian dressing wasn't absorbed!!

jordanalexis90

I find that my sarcasm does not translate via computer (duh). anyways I was not really insulted by your comment! Just didn't find it particularly helpful in this scenario! I love cooking and while I may not be up to par with you, was just looking for a little advice about a recipe I used today, and already ate (so the crime has been committed hehe).

SailorSarah311

I have marinated chicken in Italian sauce before, and then baked it in the oven. I'm not sure what the first poster is saying about cooking "dressing" in a crockpot. People do it all the time. I'm afraid to say that you probably did consume more calories than you think, but it wasn't the whole 1000 calories from the bottle. That's the problem with salad dressings though. They will say so many calories per x amount of tablespoons, and before you know it you've consumed 2x as many calories as you had planned. Next time try to steer clear of cooking with a whole bottle of dressing. A little is ok, and you could probably thin it out with some water. I trust that you know what you are doing, so really it boils down to reading the labels and knowing how much to add to the meal. I realize that this recipe was done as a quick fix, so I can't harp too much. Anyways who am I to judge on how you cook? We all make minor mistakes. Just use this as a learning lesson for next time.

sofielein

It must be the root canal treatment I have gotten today making me extra grumpy, I could probably critisize anyone getting in my way

BUT please do not cook up salad dressings, I think I am pretty sure about this one being a no no : ]

neanderthin

I actually cook quite a bit and a LOT of the things that I cook are from scratch. This was a recipe that I used from a friend, because I was in a bind and needed something to cook in a pinch with ingredients that I happened to have on hand. It actually had a lot of good flavor but if I would have realized that it was going to be so many calories I would have probably went for an alternative. Thanks for the input though, and next time you could maybe go about it in a less rude way, insuing that I know nothing about food or the likes, when in fact it's quite the opposite. I am sure you are a god and never eat things that are not 100% made by you using only the world's finest ingredients. And if this is true and you are a top rated chef come cook for me some time!!

Don't take it personally......lots of wannabe chefs giving advice over the internet. Just take the volume of the Italian dressing and take a guess on how much you ate or divide it among the servings.

jordanalexis90

Yes yes! next time I will use much less salad dressing! The recipe called for a bottle so that is what i went with this time!! also once I actually broke this up into a nice size portion for myself (6 portions from the meal) it was only 5 calories from the meal so wasn't too bad! I was only curious because my crockpot was about half way filled with liquid obviously from chicken and potatoes but also seemed to be quite "italian dressing-y" for lack of a better term!!

AlyssaJoJo

It's better to over estimate than to under. And the best thing is you tried a new recipe and if you liked it, now you can start making changes to make it healthier. You'll find that the longer you do this the easier that will be. I LOVE to cook which is how I got here and have really started to love finding ways to change a recipe for the better. But I would suggest just counting the whole bottle. You're putting it in there so take accountability for it. I do a lot of crock pot cooking and end up dumping out a good amount of juice at the end of things, but I still count it because you will never know what's all in the food and what's not. Good luck though!!!

jordanalexis90

It's better to over estimate than to under. And the best thing is you tried a new recipe and if you liked it, now you can start making changes to make it healthier. You'll find that the longer you do this the easier that will be. I LOVE to cook which is how I got here and have really started to love finding ways to change a recipe for the better. But I would suggest just counting the whole bottle. You're putting it in there so take accountability for it. I do a lot of crock pot cooking and end up dumping out a good amount of juice at the end of things, but I still count it because you will never know what's all in the food and what's not. Good luck though!!!

Thanks and I did just what you said! Counted the whole bottle!! Because of my schedule I make things in the crock pot about 2 times a week. If I didn't dinner wouldn't be until 8 o'clock lol!! If you have any time I would love some new healthy quick crock pot recipes!!

blondemom1979

I have heard of cooking in Italian dressing too, as a mater of fact a friend who has lost over 80 lbs sautes veggies and chicken breast in the stuff all the time. I bake awesome tea biscuits with mayo in them as well as a crazy chocolate cake that has tomato soup in it lol. I may not be a fancy cook either but I cook every night for my kids and who ever else they drag home and I never get any complaints. We have a saying in my family as well: To each their own

sweetnlow30

I have a similar recipe that calls for a pouch of Italian dressing mix. I use the Club House "salads n dips" powder. You could mix that with a bit of water and use it in place of the oil dressing. It would have a similar taste for way less calories

sofielein

Sorry OP I just landed in the wrong topic - apparently there are recipes encouring people to use salad dressings in their cooking, this is not something I can approve of so please disregard my previous messages which you already did : )

but i'm glad i got your topic goin hey )

AlyssaJoJo

A lot of time I will throw some chicken breasts, black beans, corn, salsa, sour cream, and cheese into a crock pot and cook it until I can shred the chicken. I work LONG hours and this recipe works so well for me because I can eat it many different ways. Over rice, as a taco, by it's self, etc. Soups are a really really good thing too. And it doesn't have to be always broth items. While chicken soup is amazing you can still do split pea soup and even chicken wild rice soup. I find a lot of stuff on pinterest - that site has been a life saver for me!! Also there's a recipe section in here and a lot of those recipes are really really good. And the one website you will see over and over on here is www.skinnytaste.com

blondemom1979

ooooo forgot to add if you are a Pinterest member...there are tons of crock pot ideas, even some that involve buying in bulk and freezing packaged whole "meals" that you pop in before you go to work, I have been thinking about having a preparation bee with my sister in law to try it

jordanalexis90

Sorry OP I just landed in the wrong topic - apparently there are recipes encouring people to use salad dressings in their cooking, this is not something I can approve of so please disregard my previous messages which you already did : )

but i'm glad i got your topic goin hey )

hahaha true!! I appreciate you posting none the less! we each have our own opinions!

neanderthin

Sorry OP I just landed in the wrong topic - apparently there are recipes encouring people to use salad dressings in their cooking, this is not something I can approve of so please disregard my previous messages which you already did : )

but i'm glad i got your topic goin hey )

Your cooking 101 is showing and for the sake of a crockpot.........

jordanalexis90

A lot of time I will throw some chicken breasts, black beans, corn, salsa, sour cream, and cheese into a crock pot and cook it until I can shred the chicken. I work LONG hours and this recipe works so well for me because I can eat it many different ways. Over rice, as a taco, by it's self, etc. Soups are a really really good thing too. And it doesn't have to be always broth items. While chicken soup is amazing you can still do split pea soup and even chicken wild rice soup. I find a lot of stuff on pinterest - that site has been a life saver for me!! Also there's a recipe section in here and a lot of those recipes are really really good. And the one website you will see over and over on here is www.skinnytaste.com

Oh man I make a "salsa chicken" that's about the best thing ever! very similar to yours! my sister must have it everytime she comes to visit

jordanalexis90

ooooo forgot to add if you are a Pinterest member...there are tons of crock pot ideas, even some that involve buying in bulk and freezing packaged whole "meals" that you pop in before you go to work, I have been thinking about having a preparation bee with my sister in law to try it

yes oh my!! pinterest is about the closest thing to heaven on earth dont know what i'd do without it!

sofielein

btw you have any other photos of whatever you are wearing? not sure if it's a scarf - shirt combo but it looks damn nice! is that polka thing just a scarf?

jordanalexis90

I have a similar recipe that calls for a pouch of Italian dressing mix. I use the Club House "salads n dips" powder. You could mix that with a bit of water and use it in place of the oil dressing. It would have a similar taste for way less calories

great idea! I have used those pouches before didn't even think of that!

jordanalexis90

btw you have any other photos of whatever you are wearing? not sure if it's a scarf - shirt combo but it looks damn nice! is that polka thing just a scarf?

yes it is a scarf with an oversized sweater! about my favorite outfit ever! scarf is from a little boutique around here! can't get enough scarfs!!

squeakyfish

What about just pouring out the liquid contents of the crockpot and measuring/weighing that, then subtracting that value from a full bottle of dressing? Would that work?

sofielein

okay, I think I just got some new color ideas for the summer then. (still won't be cooking with salad dressing lol!)

I think yellow (like very yellow) skirt with blue top white dots? or white skirt blue top yellow scarf with white dots, hmmmm....

trb85

It must be the root canal treatment I have gotten today making me extra grumpy, I could probably critisize anyone getting in my way

BUT please do not cook up salad dressings, I think I am pretty sure about this one being a no no : ]

You're probably one of those "No cheese with fish" people too.

sofielein

Oh, yes, I am one of "those" if that makes you feel safer and better

jordanalexis90

okay, I think I just got some new color ideas for the summer then. (still won't be cooking with salad dressing lol!)

I think yellow (like very yellow) skirt with blue top white dots? or white skirt blue top yellow scarf with white dots, hmmmm....

oh man now I want to go shopping