If the liquid is fat, then yes, the food can burn.

Also, some foods will scorch on the bottom of the pan even if there’s still quite a bit of liquid. Thick mixtures are most likely to do this.

If you boil black beans in water and don’t stir, you get a burned crust at the bottom of the pan.

How very interesting to me. Thank you both.

Puddings and custards most certainly can burn while still liquidy. I would guess it’s the high sugar content. Some sweet desserts like that you purposely don’t scrape up what might be stuck to the bottom of the pan to keep the stuck to the bottom stuff on the bottom and not incorporated into the rest of the concoction.

Yes, Any food that settles on the bottom of the pan may burn.

I have burned tomato juice when canning.
I’m sure I threw it out. Today I would bottle it and consider it “fire roasted”.

If it is a cheap pot, and an electric burner, you can burn all sorts of stuff with water in it.

To my great surprise, I burned tomato sauce in a new (to me) slow cooker. Obviously plenty of liquid.

Prior to that I had always used Crockpots and they have very specific and accurate temperature ranges. For other brands, this is not always the case as I discovered.

And it’s also apparent why the company guards its trademark nname so zealously. TThat’s why no other company can legally call their devices crockpots.

And after that horrendous experiene I’ll never use anything else. It’s a crockpot or nothing.

Interesting. I suppose just using the simmer is the solution?

_ I suppose just using the simmer is the solution?_

Yes, also pans with thick bottoms help. You can set the heat really low and it, well, simmers. The whole floor of the pot evenly simmers the food.

Thin pots have hot spots directly over the flame or electric element.

I bought what appeared to be a brand new Crockpot® secondhand, @Buttonstc, and it turned out to have only one setting: high. I just sent it to recycle and replaced it with a ‘new’ Crockpot® from the 70’s or 80’s that came with the papers still in it ($3).

Which is a good point, @flo. It’s difficult, if not impossible, to burn food in a properly working, properly set, Crockpot, if you’ve had a problem.

Thanks all. Multi-tasking.