Some days you want a home-cooked meal but can’t be bothered to actually cook. Your slow cooker might just be the hardest working appliance in your kitchen while you do absolutely nothing. These hands-off recipes let you toss ingredients into the pot, hit a button, and return hours later to dinner that’s ready to go.
Slow Cooker Country Style Ribs
These country style ribs let you enjoy fall-off-the-bone meat without babysitting the grill or oven. Just combine the ribs with peach preserves, honey, and BBQ sauce in your slow cooker, then relax while they become incredibly tender over several hours.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Country Style Ribs
Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Legs
Toss these drumsticks in your crock pot with tangy barbecue sauce and let the slow cooker handle dinner while you handle Netflix. The chicken legs come out juicy and flavorful with zero effort on your part.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Legs
Crock Pot Beef and Noodles
This comfort food classic cooks itself while you’re doing literally anything else around the house. The beef becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender after hours of slow cooking, then gets mixed with noodles for a hearty meal that feels like a hug.
Get the Recipe: Crock Pot Beef and Noodles
Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
Recreate your favorite restaurant dish without leaving the couch thanks to your trusty slow cooker. The chicken simmers all day in a creamy, cheesy sauce that rivals the original, and you don’t have to stir or check on it once.
Get the Recipe: Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
Crock Pot Chicken Spaghetti
Let your slow cooker turn simple ingredients into a family dinner winner while you tackle other things. This recipe combines tender shredded chicken with pasta and a rich cheese sauce for a meal that pleases everyone at the table.
Get the Recipe: Crock Pot Chicken Spaghetti
Brown Sugar Pork Chops
These pork chops cook to perfection in your crock pot while you relax or run errands. The brown sugar creates a sweet and savory glaze that makes ordinary pork chops taste like something special with virtually no work from you.
Get the Recipe: Brown Sugar Pork Chops
Crock Pot Ramen
Skip the stovetop stirring and let your slow cooker create a bowl of steaming ramen while you binge your favorite show. This hands-off approach takes ramen to the next level without requiring you to hover over a pot.
Get the Recipe: Crock Pot Ramen
Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs
These chicken thighs prove that set-it-and-forget-it cooking can produce restaurant-quality results. The slow cooking method keeps the meat incredibly moist and flavorful while you’re free to do whatever you want for hours.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs
Slow Cooker Smothered Steak
Transform tough cuts of steak into tender, gravy-covered perfection while you’re planted on the sofa. This recipe does all the hard work of breaking down the meat fibers over low heat, resulting in melt-in-your-mouth steak with rich gravy.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Smothered Steak
Olive Garden Gnocchi Soup
Bring the restaurant experience home without any of the actual cooking effort. This copycat soup simmers away in your crock pot, developing rich flavors while you relax, and tastes just like the original.
Get the Recipe: Olive Garden Gnocchi Soup
Slow Cooker Cranberry Pot Roast
This pot roast cooks itself to perfection while you’re busy doing absolutely nothing in the kitchen. The cranberries add a subtle sweetness to the beef that develops beautifully over hours of slow cooking.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Cranberry Pot Roast
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Let your crock pot simmer this classic comfort soup while you recover from whatever life threw at you today. The chicken becomes incredibly tender and the flavors meld together perfectly without any stirring or attention from you.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Slow Cooker Loaded Potato Soup
This creamy potato soup develops rich, deep flavors while you’re camped out on the couch. Load it up with your favorite toppings like cheese, bacon, and green onions for a restaurant-style soup made at home with minimal effort.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Loaded Potato Soup
Slow Cooker Beef Tips
These beef tips become fork-tender while your slow cooker does all the heavy lifting. The meat breaks down beautifully over several hours, creating its own rich gravy that’s perfect over rice or mashed potatoes.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Beef Tips
Beef Goulash
This Hungarian-inspired stew simmers away in your crock pot, filling your house with amazing aromas while you do other things. The beef becomes incredibly tender and the paprika flavors develop into something really special over hours of hands-off cooking.
Get the Recipe: Beef Goulash
Slow Cooker Short Ribs
These short ribs fall off the bone after hours of slow cooking while you’re free to relax or catch up on other tasks. The rich sauce develops complex flavors on its own, creating a restaurant-quality meal with almost no effort.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Short Ribs
Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Skip the restaurant line and let your slow cooker recreate this beloved soup while you stay in your pajamas. The soup develops the same creamy, cheesy consistency as the original without requiring constant stirring or attention.
Get the Recipe: Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Crock Pot Chicken and Stuffing
This complete meal cooks itself while you handle everything else on your to-do list. The chicken stays juicy while the stuffing absorbs all the flavors, creating a dinner that tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen when you actually didn’t.
Get the Recipe: Crock Pot Chicken and Stuffing
Slow Cooker Brunswick Stew
This Southern classic feeds a crowd while you’re doing absolutely nothing except maybe napping on the couch. The combination of chicken, pork, and vegetables creates a hearty stew that simmers to perfection without any supervision.
Get the Recipe: Slow Cooker Brunswick Stew