I have owned several slow cookers over the years. The most recent one was a beautiful one that I purchased at Target, black and white from Crock Pot. However after reading a number of articles online, I realized that I might have a problem on my hands with the lead. I researched the matter and discovered that the glaze often contains lead. Upon researching further, I discovered that the Cuisinart model was BPA free. It is not easy to find kitchenware that is BPA free. I was pleased to see that. The next question was, was it lead-free? I called Cuisinart and they adamantly indicated that the slow cooker was lead free. For someone who needed to use her crock pot daily, almost 24/7, I really need a healthy crock pot. What is the point of cooking healthy foods if the container that I cook them in, is hazardous to my health? I was hesitant about the bulk aspect of the unit because I have a small kitchen and was concerned that it would take a lot of space. However based on the Amazon reviews and on the fact that the slow cooker is both BPA and lead free, I decided to order it. I could not have made a better choice on the planet!!!! First of all, this is the FIRST slow cooker that I have owned that is cool to the touch. Second, my food does not boil on low, and I lose ZERO water content. I needed an excellent slow cooker to make bone broths which have tremendous medicinal qualities (see Weston A. Price Foundation). And I had read about some persons being so serious about bone broths, that they had a perpetual broth going. To do that, I did not want to come home to a fire because of a deficient slowcooker. With this Cuisinart, I can make a lot of bone broth, the broth keeps going for 3 days, and after 24 hours, I do not have to worry, it goes to warm and then shuts down. because it is cool to the touch, my counter is not heated as was the case with the cheap crock pot brand. As for the bulk size, the slow cooker looks very beautiful on my counter. I have so far made lots of chicken broth, delicious, beef broth and fish broth. I use the bones for beef (knuckles, cartilage and feet as well as bone marrow), for fish (the heads) and for chicken (feet, back, head). I have noticed great improvement in my health, digestive system, excellent sleep. Please read online about all of the benefits of bone broth which man has been doing for thousands of years. Anyway, you will NOT regret purchasing this cuisinart. It is really of a very good quality. Enjoy!!!!Whatever negative review may be out there, I would not worry about it. It is probably a unique single incident. You will ENJOY your Cuisinart slow cooker. And for the price, BPA and Lead free!!!! Enjoy. Read more
This is a great crock pot. I am an avid crock pot cooker and make just about everything in my crock pot, even breakfast. I have had many crock pot brands and have used them till they just stopped working. My last crock pot which I replaced was an old Rival that served me for 11 years. Upon it retirement which put me back into the crock pot market I marveled at all the new and updated features available. I wanted one that was programmable since I do much of my cooking over night. I noticed with some of the negative reviews of this model along with other brands that I was considering was that the programmable feature has been troublesome with shutting off. This was the most common complaint with all the crock pots with this particular feature. I assumed it be to a problem with all crock pots with this feature so I could not hold this against the product as with other brands with the same feature. I own many Cuisinart products, pots, pans and coffee maker to name a few. I have had very good success with this brand and chose the crock pot based upon my experience with the Cuisinart products that I own and use. Upon first use of the this crock pot I was very pleased. We love southern food and cook it often. One of our families favorite is crock pot grits breakfast casserole. It cooks all night long and is ready in the morning. With our schedules a crock pot breakfast is just about the best shot we have at a good home cooked breakfast. Most of the other crock pots that I have used in the past burnt the grits some which we have gotten used to and just eat around the burned parts. The Cuisinart crock pot did not burn the grits, we were so surprised and pleased. It cooks a lot cooler which is good, the other ones even on low cooked at a higher temps often lightly scorching the meals. I will have to say that I am once again very pleased with the Cuisinart Products and Quality. This is the first crock pot that I have not bought at Wal-Mart which is not surprising that the quality is much better and the meals come out much more appealing. You can not go wrong in my opinion with the Cuisinart Crock Pot. It is a great crock pot with wonderful results. Read more
This is the first slow cooker I’ve ever owned. I bought it after much consideration. Cook's Illustrated recommded the 4 qt. version of this and Kitchenaide for a 6 qt. cooker. The reviews for the Kitchenaide were all over the map and it was considerably more expensive, so I crossed my fingers, hoping the 6 qt. Cuisinart would be as good as the 4 qt. So far it has been great. I cooked a large brisket over night & then put the brisket in the fridge until the next day. Easiest and tastiest brisket I’ve ever cooked. I live at over 5000 ft. & many of my friends (all with different kinds of cookers) have complained about their slow cookers getting too hot & boiling rather than braising food. This Cuisinart doesn’t seem to do that, and for everything I’ve cooked in it, it has done well. Like the stay warm feature. The crock is heavy but it is pretty easy to clean. The Cuisinart's overall dimensions are smaller than several others on the market. Even so, I do have a bit of trouble fitting the cooker into a bottom shelf in my kitchen. The best part of getting this is that I don’t have to turn the oven on in the summer in order to have a pot roast. Read more
