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"Just because something goes into the slow-cooker, that doesn&amp;#039;t mean it has to cook for 8-10 hours. I&amp;#039;ve been very pleased with the results of shorter cook times, especially with chicken thighs. For this Proven\u00A7al chicken, I bought a couple of chicken legs, skinned them, and separated them into thighs and drumsticks. I checked the temperature of the finished chicken, making sure it reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.  &amp;amp;lt;&amp;amp;gt;  I do have a question about slow cookers, though. Is the rule about always filling the slow cooker halfway a safety issue, or is it just to keep foods from burning? I often cut down on the amount of meat in a slow-cooker recipe and the crock isn&amp;#039;t filled halfway; it doesn&amp;#039;t burn, but I wondered if it&amp;#039;s still safe. Anyone know? I have discovered one more trick to making tasty meat in the slow cooker. Read it, and the recipe, below:  My second discovery about slow-cooker success is browning the meat in advance. I know, I resisted it at first, too. Doesn&amp;#039;t it defeat the whole purpose? But I found that we don&amp;#039;t really like many recipes in which the meat has not been pre-browned; it turns out kind of mushy and flavorless. So this recipe starts with dredging bone-in, skinless drumsticks and thighs in seasoned flour, then browning in oil for a few minutes on each side.  &amp;amp;lt;&amp;amp;gt;  Once the chicken was browned, I moved it to the slow cooker and then used the dirty pan to cook a diced onion and 2 minced garlic cloves. Once they were starting to soften I used 1/2 cup dry white wine to deglaze the pan. Then I added 1/2 a large can of whole peeled tomatoes, squeezing them in my hands to mash them as I added them.  &amp;amp;lt;&amp;amp;gt;  Simmered this a bit to thicken, then added that to the slow cooker, too, and cooked for 1 hour on high, then 3 on low. Served with chopped olives on top. More slow-cooker chicken:  Spring Vegetable and Chicken Stew Chili-Orange Chicken  Slow-Cooker Chicken Posole \u2014 Kim Walker "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/food-recipes/a48384/slow-cooker-monday-chicken-provenaal-2222/>