How This Ancient Stew Led to the Invention of the Slow Cooker

Thanks to Crock-Pots and other slow cookers, it's possible to come home to a fully-prepared (and hearty) dinner after a long day without having to whip out your cutting board and turn on the stove.

We owe the invention of slow cooker recipes in large part to a traditional Jewish stew called cholent. The rules of Jewish Sabbath forbid working from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday, so those who hoped to observe the Sabbath had to come up with a clever way to cook without violating the rules -- which is where the beefy, bean-filled cholent came into play.

Check out the slideshow above to learn more about how cholent influenced slow cooking.

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