38 Crock Pot Meal Prep Ideas for Easy Dinners the Whole Week
All you need is a few minutes and a few ingredients to make delicious crock pot dinners happen.
VICTOR PROTASIO
The crock pot may just be the best kitchen appliance in the world. You throw in a few ingredients in the morning, go about your day, and you come home to a meal ready to go. That's why easy crock pot recipes are such a mainstay for meal prepping—low effort, delicious rewards!
And the good news: You aren't just stuck with slow-cooked meats as meal options when it comes to easy crock pot recipes. You'd be surprised what dishes you can make in a slow cooker—everything from deep-dish pizza to (yes!) dessert. Check out some of our favorite easy crock pot meal prep ideas to help make your busiest weeks easier to manage—and keep you from reaching for the takeout menus.
Crock Pot Pulled Pork Tacos
Delicious crock pot pulled pork comes together in minutes and serves six. The pork can be made on meal prep day and heated with the tortillas for about 15 minutes when you're ready to eat them.
Not ready to have all the tacos at once? Store the meat separately from the tortillas and assemble the tacos on the night you want them. Everyone can add their own favorite toppings for a customized taco experience.
Slow Cooker Deep Dish Pizza
Store-bought pizza dough and sauce help make any night pizza night and cut prep time to just 20 minutes. The sky's the limit for pizza toppings! You can prep any toppings you'd like during meal prep day, then pop them on when you're ready for pizza.
Don't forget that you can do half with grownup ingredients and half with simple tomato and cheese if you have fussy eaters. And if you have leftovers, you can wrap them in foil and store them in the fridge.
Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili With Sweet Potatoes
Loaded with bell peppers, sweet potatoes, and a variety of beans, this veggie chili is a crowd-pleaser. You can chop all the veggies in advance and store them until you're ready to throw everything in the crock pot, or even use frozen pre-cut sweet potatoes if you're really crunched for time.
Chili freezes well, so you can make a big batch and freeze it until ready. Remember to pull the frozen chili out a day in advance and put it in the fridge; otherwise, reheating it will take a long time.
Chicken Pasta Soup
This comfort food classic that serves six is a crock pot meal prep staple you'll want to keep in regular rotation. You'll only need to spend about five minutes prepping, and the vegetables can be chopped on meal prep day and stored in the fridge.
Soup freezes well, so add this to your list if you're doing a freezer meal prep day. Just reheat it on the stove when you're ready to eat.
Crock Pot Mexican Beef Sliders
While Barbacoa (the beef) usually needs hours of basting and roasting, the slow cooker tenderizes the meat so it'll fall off your fork. You can make the beef in advance, refrigerate it, and reheat it when you're ready.
Barbacoa also freezes well; thaw it overnight and reheat it in a pan on the stovetop or in the microwave. The recipe makes eight servings, so as a bonus, any leftover meat can be used later in the week for tacos!
Crock Pot Angel Food Cake
Yes, you can make cake in a crock pot! Mix the ingredients, pop the pan into the crock pot, and you'll have a delicious dessert a few hours later. You can bake this in the slow cooker on meal prep day while chopping veggies and baking chicken.
And angel food cake can be frozen in individual slices if you want to save it for later. Just wrap each slice tightly with plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Top with your favorite fruit mixture, and you'll have a cake that's sure to become a family favorite.
Big Batch Black Beans
If you're looking to up your meal planning game, making big batches of base ingredients can help you easily get meals on the table for the week. The best part? Cooking in the crock pot means there's no need to soak the beans, which is the most time-consuming part of making them.
Use the crock pot to meal prep this bean recipe, and use them all week in tacos or burritos, a fast chili, or to top salads or baked potatoes.
Sweet and Spicy Pork Tenderloin
Slow cooking puts the "tender" in this pork tenderloin dish, which only needs about 20 minutes of prep time to whisk together the sauce. A soy and brown sugar glaze melded with beef stock will make your roast juicy and flavorful. It can be delicious as is but is also great for tacos, chili, sandwiches, and other uses later in the week. It only serves four, so you might want to make a double batch if you have a crowd at home.
Crock Pot Puttanesca with Roasted Broccolini
This easy crock pot recipe gives you that rich, cooked-for-hours pasta sauce without being stuck at the stove. Homemade tomato sauce usually needs to be stirred regularly, but the slow cooker eliminates the need for the work. Roasting the broccolini requires the most time (10 to 15 minutes), so you can make the pasta on meal prep day, store it in the fridge, and save cooking the broccolini until you're ready.
Slow Cooker Curried Chicken With Ginger and Yogurt
Get curry started in a hurry! Whisk everything together, then let the crock pot simmer on low so the spices have time to meld. The recipe serves six, and you can freeze the leftovers if needed. Curries freeze very well, either in batch form or individual portions. Reheat it on the stovetop and add a little water as needed to loosen up the sauce.
Crock Pot Chocolate Pudding Cake
This easy-to-whip-up crock pot cake is another dessert you can bake while you meal prep. Just whisk the ingredients together, put them in the slow cooker, and wait for the perfect chocolate cake you can enjoy throughout the week. The recipe makes eight servings, but it's so delicious you may not have any leftovers. Pair with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, and eat while it's still warm!
Chicken Mushroom Pot Pie
You have to bake the puff pastry (or biscuit, if you prefer) topper separately, but using the slow cooker makes the creamy pot pie filling a cinch. If you want to freeze the filling, divide it into portions or put it all in one big freezer bag. You can thaw the filling in a saucepan on the stovetop or in the oven while you bake the pastry. The recipe makes four servings, so it's perfect for a family dinner or leftovers later in the week.
Crock Pot Chicken Congee
This Chinese comfort food staple features a soft chicken, coconut milk, and rice base. It can be kicked up with whatever you have on hand—scallions, peanuts, coconut, cilantro—and a touch of chili crunch or other spicy sauce. The recipe makes six servings, so if you have some left over, you can freeze it in individual portions for up to three months.
Slow Cooker Black Bean Posole
This traditional Mexican soup is a "dump and serve" easy crock pot recipe. The hardest part is chopping the onion, garlic, and chiles, but the best part of this recipe is you can put together the ingredients on meal prep day and store them in the fridge.
On the day you're ready for it, put the soup in the crock pot and enjoy. You can freeze leftovers in individual portions or a big batch for up to three months.
Slow Cooker Shepherd's Pie
This very British comfort food classic features a touch of stout to add to the hearty flavor profile. While Shepherd's pie is usually labor-intensive and complicated, this recipe makes preparing it a cinch. You can easily do the 10 minutes of prep to chop the vegetables and beef and whip up the mashed potatoes on a meal prep day.
When you're ready, toss the ingredients in the crock pot and let it simmer while you go about your day. Warm the mashed potatoes on the stove before topping the stew, adding small amounts of cream to loosen them up if needed.
Crock Pot Chicken Taco Soup
In this versatile soup, you can substitute pinto beans for black beans, and toppings are optional. The chicken breasts soak in the slow cooker all day, so shredding after they come out is super easy. You can make this tasty eight-serving crock pot meal in advance, store it in the fridge, and warm it up on the stove. Soup freezes well, so you could put half in the fridge for the week and half in the freezer for later.
Slow Cooker Spinach and Ricotta Lasagna
This lasagna is so easy to put together! Layer jarred sauce, uncooked noodles, and plenty of cheese and spinach in your slow cooker, and push play. This vegetarian crock pot meal is ready just three hours later, making it an excellent choice for meal prep because it will have plenty of time to cool. Store it in the fridge, then pop it in the oven (covered with foil) at 350°F for 30 minutes to reheat.
Coffee-Braised Brisket With Potatoes and Carrots
Coffee and beef are a match made in heaven! Brisket becomes super tender when cooked in the crock pot. If you want to do some steps in advance, chop the potatoes, carrots, and onion and whisk together the sauce so it will all be ready to be tossed in the slow cooker later in the week.
Pork Ditalini Stew
Tomatoes, spinach, and tiny noodles give this pork-based soup a lighter touch. (Can't find Ditalini? Any tiny pasta will do!) The low and slow roasting process tenderizes the pork, so it'll taste like you spent all day cooking. You don't even have to cook the pasta separately—toss it in 10 minutes before serving.
Want to freeze it? No problem! Freeze in individual portions or one big batch, then defrost overnight and reheat on the stovetop.
Crock Pot Cinnamon Pecan Monkey Bread
Slow cookers are underrated for baking. They make monkey bread an easy, hands-off brunch dish that bakes while you prep the rest of the meal. The pecans are optional, but butter, brown sugar, and canned biscuits make this slow cooker pastry a breeze. You can expect about six to eight servings from this recipe—depending on how hungry everyone is.
Crock Pot Coca Cola Carnitas
Coca-Cola gives carnitas a sweet yet smoky flavor. Cook it early and enjoy tacos, nachos, or epic pulled pork sandwiches during the week. The only time-intensive part of the process comes with breaking down the pork with a spoon towards the end of cooking, but it's worth the effort. Store the carnitas in the fridge and reheat on the stovetop when ready to eat.
Slow Cooker Asian Short Ribs
A sweet-savory combo of brown sugar, rice vinegar, and soy sauce serves as the marinade for this easy crockpot dinner party-worthy recipe. With seven and a half hours of cooking, it's easy to toss this together in the morning, set it, and forget it until dinnertime.
Need to meal prep it? Cut the carrots, cabbage, scallion, and garlic in advance to save time. Serve these ribs with just the veggies or pair the dish with rice for a well-rounded meal.
Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
Turn to the crock pot for this beloved Indian dish, and it will be waiting when you get home from a busy day. The low, slow cooking process guarantees that the chicken will be packed with flavor. Chopping the veggies and herbs at the end only takes 10 minutes, which is the most time-intensive aspect of this meal. Adding cream before serving makes the dish silky, while the cucumber, cilantro, and lemon juice relish bring brightness and crunch.
Slow-Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast Rice Bowls
Fred Hardy
This Sunday dinner-worthy feast requires just 25 minutes of prep time and will feed a crowd (or provide leftovers for the rest of the week). Eight hours of simmering ensure that the roast is pull-apart tender. Since the rice is cooked separately, you can make the pork roast on meal prep day and store it in the fridge.
Make some rice and reheat the pork on the stovetop or microwave when ready. When reheating, adding a splash of water will guarantee that your pork is still nice and juicy.
Crock Pot Cuban Sandwiches
Orange zest adds a fresh note to slow-cooked pork, and the slow cooker works its roasting magic. Cook and shred the pork on meal prep day. When you're ready to eat, assemble the sandwiches and heat them under the broiler for a minute or two to let the cheese get perfectly gooey. Pickles and mustard top everything off with a tangy punch.
Slow Cooker Black Bean and Spinach Enchiladas
Transform taco night into a vegetarian feast with these hearty enchiladas. Mixing the filling in advance saves time and means you can just spread it over the salsa in the slow cooker when you're ready to eat. These cheesy rolls might taste complex, but they are a snap to throw together.
Slow-Cooker Pineapple Upside Down Cake
It's time for this vintage dessert to make a comeback! The slow cooker keeps the cake moist with its caramel pineapple top. Sprinkling the brown sugar and arranging the pineapples on the bottom of the cake pan is the only time-consuming aspect of this recipe, which is so worth it for eight delicious slices of cake.
Store this great make-ahead dish in the fridge for up to four days, or freeze it for up to three months. If freezing, store in one layer of plastic wrap and one layer of foil, then thaw at room temperature or in the fridge.
Chicken Adobo With Bok Choy
This classic Filipino dish features a soy-vinegar braising liquid and a ton of great flavor packed into a straightforward crock pot recipe. Don't feel like chicken? You can substitute fish or pork and still have a fantastic, flavorful feast that can be put together in just 10 minutes. If you have leftovers, store them in individual containers or all together, then reheat them in the microwave later.
Crock Pot Creamy Chicken With Biscuits
Level up your chicken game with this hearty family feast. This super-easy crock pot meal can be even easier by substituting refrigerated biscuit dough rather than making your own. Using frozen carrots and peas shaves off even more time.
If you want to make the sauce and chicken early, refrigerate the mixture until you're ready to use it (but don't freeze it). Reheat either on the stovetop or in the microwave. The 20-minute biscuit baking time makes up the most hands-on time in this recipe.
Slow Cooker Chicken Mole Chili
While the ingredients in mole may seem strange at first glance, they marry together to make a perfect sauce. The best part is that you can customize the mole depending on your mood.
The recipe yields six servings, so you may even have some left for lunch later in the week. Refrigerate or freeze any leftover chili. Let the frozen chili thaw overnight, then heat on the stovetop or microwave for a delicious on-demand meal!
Slow-Cooker Beef and Noodle Curry
Fred Hardy
Curry lovers, look no further than this rich but easy-to-make dinnertime staple. Jarred red curry paste, coconut milk, basil, and lime build a perfect melange of flavor.
Short on time? Chop the vegetables and cube the beef on meal prep day and stow in the fridge until you're ready for them. Curries will also keep in the freezer for up to three months if you want to save it for a later date.
Slow-Cooker Sweet and Spicy Asian Pork Shoulder
Starring Chinese five-spice powder (cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise, and Szechuan peppercorns), this recipe is packed with sweet flavor and a spicy kick. It takes eight hours in the slow cooker and yields four servings, making it the ideal recipe to put on before work and eat when you get home.
To save time, chop the bok choy and scallions beforehand, then keep them in the fridge until you're ready to use them. Serve over white or brown rice for a classic, complete meal.
Crock Pot Ragù With Spaghetti Squash
CAITLIN BENSEL
Bring all the flavors of Italy home with this Bolognese-inspired sauce. While the prep time is only 15 minutes, the gentle, slow cooking process infuses this dish with a deep, complex flavor.
To save even more time, brown the beef on your meal prep day and store it in the fridge until you're ready to assemble the sauce. Bonus: the spaghetti squash makes it gluten-free, too!
Slow-Cooker Classic Beef Stew
No crock pot meal list would be complete without a classic beef stew! This flavorful dish includes several ingredients you might have on hand (flour, tomato paste, olive oil) and will warm up any cold evening. Browning the meat and chopping the veggies before assembling the stew does take about 35 minutes, but it can be done in advance on prep day.
Here's the best part: the recipe makes between eight and ten servings, so you may be able to get two or more meals out of it. Pack any leftovers into airtight containers, freeze, and enjoy within three months.
Slow Cooker Brisket With Melty Onions and Chimichurri
Victor Protasio
For a holiday treat on a regular weeknight, this brisket is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. The jus forms naturally in the slow cooker, making a decadent sauce that pairs perfectly with any sides you serve.
This recipe makes eight servings, and you can repurpose the leftovers into a sandwich (save some jus on the side) or shred the meat for tacos later in the week.
Slow-Cooker Squash Lasagna
Tomato sauce takes a backseat in this vegetarian dish that will become an autumn staple. In this crock pot meal favorite that needs just 15 minutes of prep, you layer winter squash, bright spinach, and creamy cheeses. You can freeze this like any regular lasagna, then pop it in the oven when you're ready for it.
Crock Pot Pork With Peppers and Olives
Ropa vieja is a classic Cuban dish that originated in Spain. In this version, pork is swapped in for beef alongside bell peppers, black beans, and rice. This crock pot meal makes eight servings, which means plenty of leftovers.
Ropa vieja freezes well and will keep in the freezer for up to three months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in the oven with a few tablespoons of broth or the original just to prevent it from drying out.
Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage
A traditional Irish meal usually cooked on St. Patrick's Day, this low-fuss slow cooker version can be enjoyed anytime you're craving comfort food. It cooks for seven to eight hours on low heat but can be made on high heat in four to five hours if you're in a pinch. Paired with Irish soda bread, you'll be convinced you've been transported to a traditional Irish pub. Got leftovers? A cold corned beef sandwich is always a hit!
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