Our Easy Crock Pot Recipes for Beginners are our favorite tried and true slow cooker recipes that turn out great every time! If you are looking for easy fail-proof crock pot recipes, these are the dishes for you!
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Easy Crock Pot Recipes for Beginners
Cris here.
Here on Recipes That Crock, most of our recipes are generally quick and easy to throw together in your slow cooker. However, with so many recipes to choose from, the site can be a little overwhelming for beginners or anyone looking for some great recipes to start out. So, I thought I would jump on here and share my suggestions of where you should begin if you want some simple recipes that turn out great every time, regardless of your skill level in the kitchen.
Tips for Beginners
Before we get started I thought I might give you some information and tips to help you as you start out with your slow cooker. You might also find our post about How to Fix Common Slow Cooker Issues useful if you ever run into problems.
Difference between Crock Pot and Slow Cooker
On this site we use the terms crock pot and slow cooker interchangeably. While Crock-Pot is a brand of slow cooker (and one we love), folks often use the term crock pot as another word for slow cooker. All of our crock pot recipes can be made in any brand slow cooker.
If you need help picking out a slow cooker, check out our Amazon Influencer Shop where we have noted our recommended slow cookers that we have tested in our kitchen.
Choosing Slow Cooker Recipes for Beginners
Using your crock pot is very easy and I know you will quickly find success with your slow cooker. Below are a few things to keep in mind when choosing recipes as you are first starting out for the best chance of success.
- When choosing recipes at the beginning, stick to main dishes and soups until you get to know your slow cooker. These dishes tend to be easier for beginners with better results with less of a need to watch closely.
- Until you get to know your slow cooker well, avoid recipes that involve pasta, rice and baking techniques. Cooking times will vary greatly for recipes and any recipe that needs to rise to “bake up” like many cakes and some casseroles. These dishes tend to be a little harder for beginners but become a lot easier once you build experience with your crock pot.
- All slow cookers cook a little different. Some cook hotter than others depending on age, type of crock pot, pot size and quirks of individual units. For that reason you will often see a cooking time range of a few hours. Always assume any cooking time online is just a basic guideline. You will need to test the recipe in your slow cooker to know about how long that recipe takes in your unit.
- If you are using an electric pressure cooker with a slow cooker feature (Ninja Foodi, Instant Pot or Crock Pot Express) you will almost always have to add cooking time to most crock pot recipes when slow cooking. I generally find that I have to add around 2 hours to a typical crock pot recipe when making it in my electric pressure cookers using the slow cook feature.
Easy Crock Pot Soup Recipes
Slow cooker soups are great recipes for beginners! There are few things more comforting than a delicious bowl of soup that has slow cooked in amazing flavor for hours. You will totally shock yourself at how simple it is to make something so good! Let us show you how.
Easy Main Dish Crock Pot Recipes
A basic rule of thumb for any meat in the crock pot is if it is dry or chalky, it has likely been overcooked. However, if it is tough, it will become tender if you cook it a little longer. Meats with fat in them tend to cook up best over longer cooking periods. However, meats with little fat like chicken breasts and some pork cuts will dry out if cooked too long.
If you struggle with getting cooking times right, a programmable meat thermometer could become your secret weapon. Don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone.
Slow Cooker Beef Recipes for Beginners
Beef recipes are some of the best slow cooker recipes for beginners. Beef tends to withstand long cooking times better than chicken and pork and often produces an incredibly flavorful dish. Always remember if your beef dish isn’t tender, try cooking it a little longer. Try some of these beef crock pot recipes and see just what your slow cooker can do.
Easy Crock Pot Chicken Recipes
Chicken is a popular ingredient in a lot of slow cooker recipes. The key to making a great chicken dish in your crock pot is to not overcook it. If you really love chicken breasts, you might find they cook up tender and flavorful in a few hours rather than all day, depending on your slow cooker. If you need to make your chicken dish cook longer due to your schedule, try substituting boneless skinless chicken thighs for breasts. They will hold up better over longer cooking times and tend to be more flavorful.
Pork Recipes for Slow Cooker Starters
Cooking pork in your slow cooker can produce a super tender dish. The trick is finding the right cooking time for your recipe in your crock pot. If you find your crock pot pork recipes to be dry, you are probably over cooking them. However, if they are too tough, cook them a little longer and you will be shocked at how tender the dish will become.
SAVE THIS ENTIRE LIST OF RECIPES TO YOUR RECIPE BOX
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MORE Easy Slow Cooker Recipes
Still looking for easy crock pot recipes? Try our Recipe Finder to find exactly what you need.
Next Steps for Beginners
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- Do you have an electric pressure cooker? Check out our Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners.
Her site Recipes That Crock is dedicated to helping everyone find delicious recipes to serve their families every month.
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