Carla Hall shares top 10 slow cooker tips and spicy-sweet chicken stew recipe

We are ringing in the new year with a delicious array of new food trends!

Slow cooking may not be the newest culinary technique, but with a cult following from slow cooker books to blogs and Instagram pages, home cooks who are ready to sit back and let the machine do the heavy lifting are embracing the low and slow lifestyle.

Celebrity chef Carla Hall joined "Good Morning America" to share her top tips to perfectly utilize a slow cooker as well as her favorite low and slow recipe.

Carla’s Top 10 tips for using a Slow Cooker

1. For that deep rich flavor, sear the meat or chicken before slow cooking. (The insert for my slow cooker is able to go on the stovetop for searing.)
2. Less liquid is needed, because it's not evaporating at a high temperature during the cooking process. Unless you're cooking rice, beans or pasta, half the liquid called for in the recipe.
3. The slow cooker brings out the natural flavors in foods, so less salt is needed.
4. Use slow cooker for tough cuts of meat. Low and slow cooking breaks down the meat structure resulting in very tender texture.
5. Add soft foods near the end of the cooking time: pasta, peas, asparagus, etc.
6. Add dairy (such as cheese, milk and sour cream) near the end of the cooking time.
7. Low and slow/braised cooking recipes can easily be converted to using a slow cooker. Recipes that are dry cooking/roasting are not good for slow cookers.
8. Seafood such as shrimp, fish and scallops should be added during the last 15 minutes of cooking.
9. Fresh vegetables such a carrots, potatoes, onions and other root vegetables are perfect for the slow cooker.
10. Frozen or canned vegetables should be added at the end of cooking time.

Spicy-Sweet Chicken Stew

This is definitely one of those stews that gets better as it sits. The heat and sweet flavors really develop and balance each other.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:1 habanero chile
One (28-ounce) can whole San Marzano tomatoes
Olive oil
One 3-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped2 garlic cloves, finely chopped2 fresh or dried bay leaves1/2 teaspoon dried thyme3 1/2 cups water1 ripe banana, peeled1 ripe mango, peeled and pitted

Directions:
Cut a slit in the chile. This will prevent the seeds from spilling into the stew and making it incredibly hot. Empty the can of tomatoes into a large bowl. Gently squeeze the tomatoes with your hands to crush them into large chunks.
Fill a large Dutch oven or casserole with oil to a depth of 1/8 inch. Heat over medium-high until hot but not smoking. The oil should dimple and have wavy lines. Season the chicken generously with salt and add to the hot oil skin side down, spacing the pieces apart. Don’t crowd the pan; work in batches if you have to.
Reduce the heat to medium. When the skin is dark golden brown, turn the pieces over.
Continue cooking until the bottom is dark golden brown. Transfer the chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken if necessary.
Add the onion, pepper, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper to the skillet. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is nice and soft, about 7 minutes.
Stir in the bay leaves, thyme and chile. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the water and tomatoes. Heat to a boil, then adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer.
Nestle the chicken pieces in the sauce, skin side up, and add any accumulated juices from the plate. The sauce shouldn’t cover the skin. Partially cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes. If some pieces are done before others, remove them first and place them on a plate.
While the chicken cooks, puree the banana and mango in a food processor or blender until smooth. Stir the mixture into the sauce when the chicken is done. Remove the chile from the stew and serve hot.
Serve over Perfect Baked Rice.

Carla's suggestion to make it hot: Cut the slit in the chile even bigger or, if you can take it, cut the whole thing in half to make this dish spicier.