Often found dwelling at the back of the kitchen shelf and tied to memories of brightly lit potluck parties, the slow cooker has a reputation as more of a tool of convenience than a glamorous cooking appliance.

But not much beats the pleasure of feasting on successfully braised meat, and the slow cooker is tops when it comes to creating hearty meals that are best left alone to develop flavor for long stretches of the day. This can mean perfectly cooked short ribs, fork-tender stews of lamb and creamy bowls of toothsome polenta...