I use it to cook meats. Some people will only eat meats if they are cooked hot enough to brown them.Heating meats hot enough to brown them burns the oils in them. I always insure that there is enough water present in whatever meat I'm cooking so that can't occur.It would also be better if the crock were white instead of black. The black shows the slightest white mineral buildup which gives the crock an unclean appearance. See PhotoI've used this crock pot about every day since receiving. Does everything a crock pot is supposed to do. Put in ingredients and forget it for a few hours.Update:Have used about one year and the white lettering for temperature settings is rubbing off. Will replace with a Sharpie marker which may or may not work. Otherwise, actual crockpot is great.1 has a travel bag2 has 4 legs3 actual volume is 4.5 quarts4 has a large rubber band to hold lid for travel.It has 3 temperature settings, low, high and keep warm. Works fine. Very easy to clean. The only negative thing I found was that the lid nob was kind of dome shaped allowing moisture to get trapped between nob and lid.I’ve had the same crockpot for 50 years and it still works really well. However, the glass top is chipped so I decided it was time to get a new one. I ordered the Betty Crocker brand because I grew up thinking great things about Betty Crocker. Today I used it for the first time. Oh it’s doing what it supposed to do - slow cooking a meal, but I almost burned my hand touching the pot. I can’t believe the outside gets as hot as it does. My other crockpot doesn’t get hot like that not now, not ever. I’m so glad I didn’t throw it out. There’s no way I would leave home all day with this crockpot on. I’ll use it, but I’m really disappointed in how it’s functioning.love itThe only thing I dislike about it is that it's a 5 quart capacity not a 6 quart.Gave this crock pot as a gift and she said the color was a perfect match to her kitchen.Shipping box was in very good shape.Bought this item specifically because I needed to carry corn chowder to my Thanksgiving destination. Despite a tight band designed to hold the lid on to the crock (I made sure I followed the directions for this), some of the chowder splashed out and made a mess inside the travel bag.