When it reaches ninety degrees outside, the last thing you would want is to be baking in the kitchen either. That is what slow cookers are for. These crockpot meals prepare themselves over the course of the day, and help you pack in the protein. They cool your kitchen as they cook, and all you need to do is set them in the morning. Come home to a meal that is already prepared.
1) Slow Cooker Pot Roast
It is possible to create a pot roast that will fall apart without using an oven by using a chuck roast, some vegetables, and a little broth. While you are out of the kitchen, the slow cooker does all the work. It is a full meal of lean protein and comfort food all in one pot.
2) Slow Cooker Chili
Ground beef, beans, and tomatoes simmer to create a delicious chili. Set it in the morning and it will be ready when you are. High protein, high flavor, and no need to heat the oven.
3) Butternut Squash Black Bean Chili
This meatless chili utilizes black beans for protein and squash for substance. With little effort, the slow cooker makes it silky and rich. No one misses the meat in this one.
4) Pulled Pork
Place a pork shoulder in the slow cooker in the morning and by dinner you have a mountain of protein you can shred. It’s perfect to serve on buns, rice, or even a salad to help feed a crowd. There’s no need for a grill, oven, or even to sweat over the stovetop.
5) Crockpot Salsa Chicken
For shredded chicken with a kick, you really only need chicken breasts and salsa. It cooks while you are busy and comes out juicy every time. Perfect for tacos, bowls, or nachos.
6) Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
Ground turkey maintains the leanness of this chili, while retaining all of the flavor. Combined with beans and tomatoes, it’s a complete protein dinner. On a hot day, set it and forget it.
7) Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
Cook a few chicken breasts with some seasoning, and you’ll have shredded chicken that lasts you for the week. The ultimate high-protein meal prep that never warms up the kitchen. It works for tacos, bowls, salads-you name it!
8) Chicken Tortilla Soup
Chicken, beans, corn, and tomatoes simmer all day to create a soup with real staying power. You can finish it off with crushed chips and cheese for a restaurant-style bowl. It’s perfect to let the crockpot do the work while keeping the kitchen cool!
9) Lentil Soup
Lentils are an inexpensive source of protein that cook easily in a slow cooker. Just add tomatoes, broth, and an onion. You will return to a pot of food that is ready to heat and feed the entire famiy.
10) Slow Cooker Chickpea Curry
With a few hours in the slow cooker, chickpeas and coconut milk transform into a delectable curry. This plant-based protein source is satisfying in more ways than one. Served over rice, it’s a complete meal with no oven needed.
11) Beef and Butternut Squash Chili
When you add butternut squash to beef chili, it adds a heartiness to the chili and a slight sweetness. The slow cooker combines all of the ingredients together to create a dish that is a meal on its own. It is cozy and doesn’t require you to heat up your kitchen like an oven would.
12) Slow Cooker BBQ Ribs
Ribs are placed in a crockpot for a long time at a low temperature until the meat can easily be separated from the bone. The ribs are also finished with sauce but do not require a grill to complete the process. All of the satisfaction can be yours with none of the heat in the kitchen.
13) French Dip Sandwiches
Slow-cooked beef roasts in a rich broth and then heaps onto a roll with the juice for dipping. It’s a treat and a protein-packed meal. With a slow cooker, there is no fuss and no oven needed.
14) Pork Carnitas
We will make taco truck worthy carnitas by finishing slow-cooked pork with a crisp. Put it in the crockpot and forget about it and it’ll do all the hard work for you. Load it into tortillas and you’ve got dinner for all.
15) Slow Cooker Beef Stew
As you go about your day, beef, potatoes, and carrots are simmering in a rich and appetizing stew. It’s simply honest comfort food. No oven and no standing over the stove.
16) Slow Cooker Barbacoa
The spiced beef will cook to the perfect barbacoa texture to be shredded and used for tacos or burrito bowls. The crockpot does all the work for you, and for a big batch of protein, there’s no heat involved.
17) White Bean and Rosemary Stew
Rosemary, tomatoes, and white beans are cooked into a cheap, filling stew packed with plant protein. It makes for a great set-it-and-forget-it meal for when you’re busy. Serve with some crusty bread and you’re good to go.
18) Crockpot Chicken and Rice
You can make this easy recipe for chicken and rice stew. It’s cheap and easy to prepare, and considering its cost, will stretch to feed all of your family! You simply throw it in the oven and forget about it.
19) Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers
With the slow cooker, you will have a delicious dinner of sausage, peppers, and onions, that you can serve on bread or pasta. It will keep your kitchen cool while it cooks all day.
20) Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken
For a protein source to use throughout the week, the buffalo chicken sauce reduces to a spicy, pullable protein that can be added to wraps, salads, or used in a sandwich. No oven with all the flavor.
21) Short Rib with Mashed Potatoes
After a day in the slow cooker, the short ribs go in tough and come out fork-tender. To make the meal feel more decadent, their short ribs can be served on top of some mashed potatoes. All of that added protein and no oven heat!
22) Crockpot Taco Meat
Try our seasoned ground beef or turkey simmered into taco meat. Dinner is ready whenever you are. Each person can customize their own bowl or taco. Best of all, it’s a family favorite that won’t heat up the house
23) Slow Cooker Minestrone
With little work, you can prepare a thick Italian soup made of beans, pasta, and vegetables. It is a great crockpot recipe and utilizes the ingredients you have available. It is inexpensive, and it tastes better the next day.
24) Slow Cooker Meatballs
Letting a pot of meatballs and sauce simmer for hours is about as simple as preparing dinner gets. Meatballs taste great served over pasta, in a sub sandwich, or just eaten directly from the pot. They are a high protein, completely hands-off meal option.
25) Crockpot White Chicken Chili
The creamy chili makes for a nice change from the standard recipes being white beans, green chiles, and chicken, and it cooks all day to come out rich and satisfying, as well as, being high in protein and requiring zero heating of the oven.
26) Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes
Ground beef simmering in a delicious zesty tomato sauce to be served on buns is a classic meal kids love. A crockpot means you don’t have to stand at a hot stove!
27) Slow Cooker Kalua Pork
After spending a day in the slow cooker with some salt, pork shoulder transforms into smoky, shredded Kalua pork. It is absurdly easy and is perfect for serving a large number of people. For a no-oven protein-packed dinner, serve it over rice.
