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Hi posset - hope all is well with you.

After posting to Moglia yesterday, I did wonder whether the tinned tomatoes are breaking down during the day, thus creating more liquid, especially if they are plumb tomatoes. If that were the case, chopped tomatoes might make a marginal difference.

I always end up with a lot more gravy than I need, so I just take what I need of the main contents and serve in a bowl - it's nearly always casserole beef with me. Then I boil and mash some potatoes and add some Dijon mustard or horse radish sauce before forming into quenelle shapes with a couple of spoons and dropping into the casserole - as you would a dumpling. They then begin to dissolve, and the flavour as they mix with the beef gravy is yumshush! It does thicken the gravy somewhat as well.

You could always remove some of the liquid and hard boil to reduce the water content and concentrate the flavour. That might be a 'pan too far' at the end of the working day though! But maybe will give you the time to have a glass of something cold and relaxing while you wait?

On the 'slow' setting a slow-cooker cycles at around 93-95c which is barely a simmer, consequently there will be very little 'reduction' taking place, plus any steam that rises will condense on the lid and so drip back into the pot.

If you want to 'reduce' the contents, you will need to turn your slow-cooker up to high and remove the lid.

But adding a thickening agent might be easier and quicker for you.

If you brown your meat before putting it into the cooker, you could dust it with flour just before transferring to the cooker.

Or mix a little cornflour or arrowroot with about 20 mils of water and add that to the pot - tomato puree can help to thicken as well.

You will need a certain amout of fluid in the pot to enable an even cooking process.