Duh- it only took me about 15 years to figure this out. Spray your crock pot with Pam before adding your ingredients. You can clean it in a snap because your food hasn't had 8 hours to attach itself to the sides of your crock pot. Many people use the plastic liners for their crock pots, but the idea of plastic cooking all day freaks me out. I'd prefer to have aerosol chemicals cook all day with my food, personally.