Food and Recipes Slow Cooker Recipes 40 Simple Slow-Cooker Recipes for the Busy Back-to-School Season By Southern Living Editors Southern Living Editors Since 1966, the editors of Southern Living have been carrying out the mission of the brand: to bring enjoyment, fulfillment, and inspiration to our readers by celebrating life in the South. We inspire creativity in their homes, their kitchens, their gardens, and their personal style. We are a friend they can trust, a guide to the seasons, a helping hand during the holidays, and a relentless champion of the Southern way of life. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on July 3, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Between back-to-school shopping, sports practices, and twice-daily school runs, it can feel impossible to make time for eating dinner, let alone for cooking dinner. Those long back-to-school days stretch into hungry nights—it's unavoidable. That's when you know it's time for the slow-cooker. The slow-cooker is your key to stress-free weeknights. It's the year-round kitchen MVP, and it's definitely the unsung hero of back-to-school season. Plug it in, set it, and forget it. (It will make your life easier, we promise.) We've rounded up some of our favorite slow-cooker recipes for you to try now. Consider this recipe collection your own personal Southern Living slow-cooker cookbook. These are the family-favorite meals that the kids will request again and again. Don't let the back-to-school blues get you down. Spice up your weeknights with a few recipes that are delicious and oh-so easy. Kids like chicken? From Honey-Apricot Glazed Chicken to Chicken and Cornbread Dumplings, there's a flavor for every taste. Crazy about tacos? Read on for our Slow-Cooker Pork Tacos Al Pastor and Barbacoa Brisket. We have the back-to-school weeknight recipe classics, too, like mac and cheese, spaghetti, chicken soup, and chimichangas. 01 of 40 Slow-Cooker Chicken Tacos Caitlin Bensel Recipe: Slow-Cooker Chicken Tacos Taco Tuesday can be the least stressful dinner of the week with the help of your slow-cooker. 02 of 40 Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup with Bacon Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Christine Keely; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall Recipe: Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup with Bacon Unlike most vegetable soup recipes, this convenient version doesn't require you to stand over the stove stirring all afternoon. 03 of 40 Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken Caitlin Bensel Recipe: Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken While we suggest serving this dish over rice, there are so many other ways you can enjoy it for dinner, including but not limited to tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, nachos, and over potatoes. 04 of 40 Slow-Cooker Pork Roast Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl Jones; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall Recipe: Slow-Cooker Pork Roast Cutting your veggies in the recommended sizes will ensure that they are finished cooking at the same time as your pork. 05 of 40 Slow Cooker Tomato-Basil Meatloaf Photo: Victor Protasio Recipe: Slow Cooker Tomato-Basil Meatloaf If you think meatloaf isn't for busy weeknights because of the longer cooking time it requires, we have good news. It's possible to serve this hearty dish any day of the week thanks to your slow cooker. 06 of 40 Herbed Beef Ragu Southern Living Recipe: Herbed Beef Ragu Let this sauce cook on low for 8 hours and all that's left to do at dinnertime is to boil the noodles of your choice. This recipes feeds 6 to 8 people, so if you have a smaller family you can even freeze half for later. 07 of 40 White Chicken Chili Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: White Chicken Chili With this chili recipe, once you've gathered the ingredients, you're already halfway to getting dinner on the table. 08 of 40 Lemon Chicken Soup Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Lemon Chicken Soup Using a rotisserie chicken will help this soup come together with little time or effort on your part, but it still delivers plenty of flavor and nutrition. 09 of 40 Slow Cooker Goulash Jennifer Causey Recipe: Slow Cooker Goulash When picking out a roast, we suggest choosing a roast with marbling which is key to making the sauce. 10 of 40 Easy Slow-Cooker Chicken Southern Living Recipe: Easy Slow-Cooker Chicken Yes, you can cook a whole chicken in your slow cooker. 11 of 40 Spaghetti Casserole Jennifer Davick Recipe: Spaghetti Casserole Bake your spaghetti into a casserole for a dinner that will double as leftovers all week long. 12 of 40 Slow Cooker Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic Jennifer Causey Styling: Lindsey Lower Recipe: Slow Cooker Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic Bone-in thighs help keep the chicken from drying out as it cooks and gives the dish maximum flavor. 13 of 40 Meatball Sliders with Tomato Sauce Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Meatball Sliders with Tomato Sauce It's the entree that launched a thousand great dinners. Kids can't get enough of these tasty meatball sliders. 14 of 40 Soulful Chicken Soup Iain Bagwell Recipe: Soulful Chicken Soup Chicken soup isn't just for sick days. It's also a comforting back-to-school supper. 15 of 40 Black Bean Chimichangas Jennifer Davick Recipe: Black Bean Chimichangas This recipe for Black Bean Chimichangas is as fun to make as it is to eat. 16 of 40 Slow-Cooker Beef Nachos Laurey W. Glenn Recipe: Slow-Cooker Beef Nachos Could there be an easier or more kid-pleasing dinner than nachos? Only if it's this recipe, which is customizable and also made in the slow cooker. Win-win. 17 of 40 Slow-Cooker Tomato Sauce Alison Miksch Recipe: Slow-Cooker Tomato Sauce This will become your go-to tomato sauce in no time at all. 18 of 40 Slow-Cooked Barbecued Chicken Becky Luigart-Stayner Recipe: Slow-Cooked Barbecued Chicken Skip the pre-cooked chicken at the grocery store and make your own with this easy recipe. 19 of 40 Easy Enchilada Bake Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Easy Enchilada Bake This has all the flavor of enchiladas with none of the labor-intensive prep. 20 of 40 Slow-Cooked Cowboy Brisket and Beans Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Slow-Cooked Cowboy Brisket and Beans Channel your inner cowboy and round up dinner with this delicious brisket-and-beans dish. 21 of 40 Slow-Cooker Pork Tacos Al Pastor with All the Fixings Greg Dupree Recipe: Slow-Cooker Pork Tacos Al Pastor with All the Fixings Put all the fixings on the table, and the kids will love putting together their own tacos. 22 of 40 Chicken and Cornbread Dumplings Iain Bagwell Recipe: Chicken and Cornbread Dumplings We always love chicken and dumplings for an easy supper, but we're really over the moon for this slow-cooker version that incorporates cornbread. 23 of 40 Slow-Cooker Pork Tacos with Fresh Tomato Salsa Greg Dupree Recipe: Slow-Cooker Pork Tacos with Fresh Tomato Salsa Switch up taco night from the usual ground beef or chicken by serving pork shoulder as the main ingredient. 24 of 40 Uncle Jack's Mac-and-Cheese Hector Sanchez Recipe: Uncle Jack's Mac-and-Cheese Mac-and-cheese is comfort food at its finest, and you'll love the easy prep of this recipe that can be served as a main or side. 25 of 40 Honey-Apricot Glazed Chicken Iain Bagwell Recipe: Honey-Apricot Glazed Chicken Simmer for a few hours, and you'll be on your way to a delicious chicken dish with complementary (and irresistible) sweet and sour flavors. 26 of 40 Tangy Slow-Cooker Pork Shoulder Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Tangy Slow-Cooker Pork Shoulder Whip up a pork shoulder in the slow cooker on Sunday, and you'll have the base for any number of dinner entrees all week long. 27 of 40 Coriander-Coconut Braised Ribs Iain Bagwell Recipe: Coriander-Coconut-Braised Ribs Think ribs are a no-go for weeknight dinner? Think again, thanks to this easy recipe with flavors both parents and kiddos will crave. 28 of 40 Slow-Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with Spaghetti Hector Manuel Sanchez Recipe: Slow-Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with Spaghetti Bookmark this chicken cacciatore recipe for a classic weeknight supper that's sure to please. 29 of 40 Slow-Cooked Barbecued Chicken Sandwiches Becky Luigart Stayner Recipe: Slow-Cooked Barbecued Chicken Sandwiches Barbecued chicken is a solid sandwich choice at any time of year, but it's especially satisfying during back-to-school season. 30 of 40 Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili Photo: Oxmoor House Recipe: Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili Lighten up your classic chili with this memorable version that uses ground turkey as the source of protein. 31 of 40 Chicken Thighs with Carrots and Potatoes Jennifer Davick Recipe: Chicken Thighs with Carrots and Potatoes This slow-cooker recipe is a no-fail, fuss free, and kid-pleasing meal that allows you to cook the main dish along with the sides at the same time. 32 of 40 Chicken Sausage and White Bean Stew Jennifer Davick Recipe: Chicken Sausage and White Bean Stew As summer turns to fall, you'll need more hearty recipes like this one. 33 of 40 Slow-Cooker Chicken Lettuce Cups Alison Miksch Recipe: Slow-Cooker Chicken Lettuce Cups Lighten up dinner with this satisfying salad alternative. 34 of 40 Barbacoa Brisket Photo: Jennifer Causey Recipe: Barbacoa Brisket What can't you do with barbacoa brisket? It's a perfect base for all your greatest weeknight dinner ideas. 35 of 40 Chicken-and-Spinach Lasagna Oxmoor House Recipe: Chicken-and-Spinach Lasagna Sneak some leafy greens into this lasagna for a slightly healthier and soon-to-be signature lasagna that you'll want to make every week. 36 of 40 King Ranch Chicken Southern Living Recipe: King Ranch Chicken Lean on the slow cooker to make king ranch chicken casserole even easier. This recipe is one for the books. 37 of 40 Slow-Cooker Sweet Potatoes with Bacon Alison Miksch Recipe: Slow-Cooker Sweet Potatoes with Bacon Sweet potatoes and bacon are a dynamic back-to-school duo. 38 of 40 Baked Four-Cheese Spaghetti with Italian Sausage Jennifer Davick Recipe: Baked Four-Cheese Spaghetti with Italian Sausage Take your classic spaghetti up a notch—and cut down on prep time—with this delectable four-cheese, slow-cooker version. 39 of 40 Slow-Cooker Beef Sliders with Pickled Peppers Photo: Hector Sanchez Recipe: Slow-Cooker Beef Sliders with Pickled Peppers Kids love sliders, and so do we. Back to school has never been so tasty. 40 of 40 Creamy Slow-Cooker Tarragon Chicken Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Recipe: Creamy Slow-Cooker Tarragon Chicken Serve this chicken with the starch of your choice, like rice, egg noodles, or mashed potatoes. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit