Daewoo Slow Cooker Review: Worth Buying?

You want a hot dinner waiting at 6pm without spending £80 on a multi-cooker you’ll use twice. That’s the exact gap the Daewoo slow cooker sits in.

I’ve spent several weeks running the Daewoo 3.5L Slow Cooker (SDA1364) through stews, curries, pulled chicken, and one very ambitious batch of overnight porridge. It costs under £30. It has one dial and three settings. There is nothing clever about it.

That simplicity is the whole story here. Some people will love it. Others will be quietly annoyed within a fortnight. This review tells you which group you’re in before you spend the money.

In a Nutshell

• Price and value: Around £27.99 on Amazon UK, which makes it one of the cheapest brand-name slow cookers you can buy. Daewoo also sells a 1.5L version for solo cooks and a 6.5L family size, plus a triple-pot model.
• Power draw: Rated at 160W, roughly the same as a couple of old-school lightbulbs. Running it for eight hours costs pennies compared with an oven.
• What’s in the box: A stainless steel outer body, a removable oval stoneware pot, a tempered glass lid, cool-touch side handles, and a small recipe booklet.
• Real capacity: The 3.5L figure is the pot’s brim volume. Realistic usable capacity is closer to 2.5L, which feeds two adults generously or three at a push.
• Best for: Couples, students, single-person households, batch cooks with limited counter space, and anyone nervous about energy bills.
• The catch: There’s no timer and no auto-shutoff. It cooks until you turn the dial. The steel exterior also gets genuinely hot and marks with fingerprints instantly.
• Rating: Amazon UK buyers give it 4.6 out of 5 across roughly 973 ratings, which lines up with what I found.

The Daewoo 3.5L Slow Cooker

Last update on 2026-06-09 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

The full name on the box is a mouthful. Most people just call it the Daewoo 3.5L.

Physically it measures 34cm wide, 24cm deep, and 21cm tall, and weighs 4.42kg with the pot in. That footprint matters. It slides under a standard wall cabinet with room to lift the lid, which several taller cookers do not.

The body is brushed stainless steel with a black plastic base and lid rim. There is one rotary dial on the front face with four positions: Off, Low, High, and Keep Warm. A small red LED tells you it’s live.

Daewoo’s own marketing lists the power draw as 180W in one bullet and 135–160W elsewhere. The Amazon spec sheet says 160W. That inconsistency is sloppy, but the real-world draw I measured sat in the low 150s on High.

Warranty is two years as standard, extendable to three years if you register the product on Daewoo’s site. That’s better cover than most sub-£30 appliances offer.

Unboxing and First Impressions

The box is plain brown card with a printed product shot. Inside, the stoneware pot sits nested in the body with a moulded polystyrene collar and a thin foam sheet under the glass lid.

My unit arrived intact. That’s worth saying, because ceramic pots and courier vans have a difficult relationship, and a handful of buyers report cracked bowls on arrival.

First thing I noticed: the stoneware is heavier than expected. It has real thermal mass, which is exactly what you want for even, gentle cooking.

Second thing: the steel picks up fingerprints the moment you touch it. Mine looked smudged before I’d even plugged it in.

There’s a faint factory smell on first heating, a sort of warm-metal-and-plastic note. It cleared after one empty run with water for about forty minutes. I’d recommend doing that before your first meal.

The glass lid is tempered, not thin plate glass, and it has a chunky plastic knob that stays cool. The fit is snug without being tight, so steam vents naturally around the rim rather than rattling.

Design, Build and Packaging Functionality

The cool-touch side handles are the best-designed part of this cooker. They’re wide, ridged, and sit far enough from the body that you can carry a full pot without gloves.

The base has non-slip silicone feet. On a laminate worktop the unit stays put even when you’re stirring hard.

Here’s the honest flaw: the outer steel body gets hot. Not scalding, but hot enough that you would not want a child leaning against it. Independent testing flagged the same thing, and it’s the single most common complaint I found in owner feedback.

There is no lid rest and no locking clip. If you want to transport a full pot to a potluck, this is not your cooker.

The dial has a satisfying click between positions. It’s mechanical, not electronic, so there’s nothing to fail in a power cut and nothing to reprogram.

Packaging is minimal and mostly recyclable. Daewoo hasn’t gone in for glossy sleeves or plastic window boxes, which suits the price point.

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How It Actually Cooks

This is where the Daewoo earns its keep.

I ran a standard beef stew on Low for eight hours. The result was properly tender, with a sauce that reduced slightly at the edges but never caught or burned.

Root vegetables in a tagine came out soft and lightly caramelised where they touched the pot wall. That’s a sign of even heat distribution, which cheap cookers often get wrong by running hot in one spot.

High brings a full pot to a gentle simmer in roughly two to two and a half hours. Low takes about four hours to reach the same point and holds it.

Pulled chicken thighs on Low for six hours shredded with a fork. A red lentil dahl on High for three hours was excellent and needed no extra liquid.

The weak link is Keep Warm. It holds food at a safe-ish temperature but drifts cooler than I’d like over long periods. I wouldn’t leave a meal on it for more than an hour or two.

One practical note: slow cookers don’t reduce liquid the way an oven does. Cut your usual stock quantity by about a third or you’ll get soup.

Running Costs and Energy Use

This is the reason a lot of people buy a slow cooker in 2026, so let’s be specific.

At 160W, running the Daewoo for eight hours uses roughly 1.28 kWh. On a typical UK unit rate that’s somewhere around 30 to 35 pence for the entire cook.

An electric oven pulling 2,000W for two hours uses 4 kWh. The maths is not close.

The 1.5L Daewoo runs at 100W and the 6.5L at 265W, so the savings scale sensibly across the range.

Real-world caveat: this only saves money if you actually use it. A slow cooker gathering dust behind the toaster costs more than the oven you kept using.

The 3.5L size helps here. It’s small enough to leave out permanently, which is the single biggest predictor of whether a slow cooker gets used.

I’d also add a heatproof mat underneath if you’re leaving it on a wooden worktop overnight. The base warms up, and that’s cheap insurance.

Cleaning and Everyday Handling

Both the stoneware pot and the glass lid are dishwasher safe. Mine went through a standard 65°C cycle repeatedly with no crazing or dulling.

By hand, the glazed interior releases stuck-on food after a ten-minute soak. Nothing needed scrubbing, even after a sticky barbecue pulled pork.

The steel exterior is the maintenance nuisance. It needs a wipe with a damp cloth and a buff with a dry one after almost every use, or it looks grubby.

Slow cooker liners fit this model well if you genuinely hate washing up. A pack of 25 costs a few pounds and turns cleanup into a bin toss.

The pot has no handles of its own, only two shallow indents. Lifting it out full and hot is a two-hands-and-a-tea-towel job.

Storage is easy. The lid nests inside the pot when inverted, and the whole thing lives happily in a standard base cabinet.

What Real Owners Say

Across Amazon UK, the average sits at 4.6 out of 5 from around 973 ratings. On the Middle East listing it’s 4.5 from over 2,600 reviews, which is a much bigger sample and tells the same story.

The recurring praise is consistent: it cooks well, it’s cheap to run, and it’s simple enough for anyone to operate. Several reviewers bought it specifically for elderly parents or students for that reason.

The recurring criticisms are equally consistent. Size comes up constantly, with buyers split between “perfect for two” and “smaller than I expected.”

Durability is the more serious theme. A visible minority report the Low setting failing after a year or two while High keeps working, which points to a thermostat or switch contact issue.

Daewoo’s wider customer service record on Trustpilot is mixed, with complaints about missing parts and slow responses. Buying through Amazon rather than direct gives you a cleaner returns route.

I haven’t had a fault in my testing window, but a few weeks isn’t a durability test. Register for the three-year warranty.

Who This Slow Cooker Is Not For

I want to be blunt here, because a £28 appliance that doesn’t suit you is still £28 wasted.

Skip it if you need a timer. There is no programmable function and no auto-shutoff. You turn it on, and it cooks until you turn it off.

Skip it if you want to sear in the pot. The stoneware is not hob-safe or oven-safe. Browning meat means a separate pan and an extra wash-up.

Skip it if you’re cooking for four or more. The usable volume is around 2.5L. Go for the 6.5L model instead.

Skip it if you have young children or limited mobility. The hot exterior and the heavy, handle-free pot are real safety considerations.

Skip it if you want one appliance to do everything. A multi-cooker that pressure cooks, sautés, and slow cooks costs three to four times more and replaces three gadgets.

Everyone else, read on.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Genuinely excellent cooking results for the money, with even heat and no hot spots or burnt edges
• 160W draw makes long cooks extremely cheap compared with oven cooking
• Dishwasher-safe stoneware pot and tempered glass lid keep cleanup simple
• Compact 34 x 24 x 21cm footprint fits under wall cabinets and on small worktops
• Cool-touch handles and non-slip silicone feet make it stable and safe to move
• One dial, three settings, zero learning curve
• Two-year warranty, extendable to three on registration
• Available in 1.5L, 3.5L, 6.5L and triple-pot versions

Cons

• No timer, no auto-shutoff, no programmable modes
• The steel outer body gets hot during use
• Keep Warm runs cooler than ideal for holding food long term
• Stainless finish shows fingerprints immediately
• Stoneware pot has no proper handles and is heavy when full
• Not hob-safe, so no searing in the pot
• Scattered reports of the Low setting failing after a year or two
• Conflicting wattage figures across official product listings

My Verdict After Several Weeks

No products found.

The Daewoo 3.5L is a good slow cooker pretending to be nothing more than a good slow cooker. I respect that.

It does the one job well. Food comes out tender, sauces come out rich, and the electricity meter barely notices.

What you’re giving up is convenience features. No timer means you either work an eight-hour day that matches an eight-hour Low cook, or you buy a plug-in mechanical timer socket for a fiver and solve it yourself.

That workaround is what I’d actually recommend. It turns a £28 cooker into something close to a £60 programmable one.

Would I choose it over a Morphy Richards Sear and Stew at £44? If counter space is tight and I already own a decent frying pan, yes.

Would I choose it over a proper multi-cooker? No, but that’s a different budget and a different kitchen.

For students, couples, small-space cooks, and anyone testing whether slow cooking suits their routine, this is a sensible, low-risk buy. It is worth the money.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you leave the Daewoo slow cooker on overnight?

Yes, on the Low setting. That’s what slow cookers are built for, and the sealed lid plus thermostat control make it safe for eight to ten hours. Sit it on a heatproof mat, keep it clear of curtains and wall cabinets, and don’t run it on a damaged cable or extension lead.

How many people does the 3.5L model feed?

Realistically two adults with leftovers, or three adults. The 3.5L rating is the pot’s total brim volume, and you should never fill a slow cooker past about three-quarters. For four or more, buy the 6.5L version instead.

Is the pot oven or hob safe?

No. The stoneware pot is dishwasher safe only. Putting it on a hob or under a grill risks cracking it. Brown your meat in a separate frying pan first if your recipe calls for it.

Why is my food watery?

Slow cookers trap almost all the steam, so liquid doesn’t reduce. Cut your usual stock or water by roughly a third. If it’s still thin at the end, remove the lid and run it on High for the final thirty minutes.

Does the Daewoo slow cooker have a timer?

No. It has a manual dial with Low, High and Keep Warm, and it runs until you switch it off. A plug-in mechanical timer socket costs a few pounds and gives you the same practical result.

Is 160W really enough to cook safely?

Yes. Slow cookers work by holding food between roughly 80°C and 95°C for hours, not by blasting heat. The low wattage is the design, not a shortcut, and it’s why running costs are so low.

How does it compare to the 1.5L and 6.5L Daewoo models?

The 1.5L runs at 100W and suits one person or a side dish. The 6.5L runs at 265W and handles a family of five. The 3.5L sits in the sweet spot for most households and is the version I’d default to.

What’s the warranty situation?

Two years standard, extended to three years if you register on Daewoo’s website. Buying through a major retailer gives you a simpler returns process, since Daewoo’s direct customer service gets mixed reviews.