Finding things the kids will eat can sometimes be problematic. That’s why I decided to pull together this list of 25 kid-friendly slow cooker dishes. They’re flavorful, easy-to-make meals that even the pickiest kids will enjoy. Whether your baby is a mac and cheese fanatic, a soup lover, or a fan of pot roast, this list has you covered. And you can do more with the slow cooker now than you ever could before. You can make beef tacos, baked ziti, and even enchiladas. Now, let’s get to it and check out these kid-friendly slow cooker recipes.
1. Trisha Yearwood Crockpot Mac and Cheese
Trisha Yearwood may be a famous country music singer, but the woman’s true calling is cooking, and if you don’t believe me, try her Crockpot mac and cheese. It takes only 10 minutes to prepare, and all you’ll need is macaroni, evaporated milk, whole milk, butter, cheddar cheese, salt, pepper, paprika, and cooking spray. It’s the creamiest, cheesiest, most delicious macaroni and cheese you’ll ever taste, especially if you add a few chives to it once it’s ready.
2. Crockpot Chicken and Rice
Speaking of creamy and cheesy, this Crockpot chicken and rice is an equally yummy dream come true. The rice is fluffy and flavorful, and the chicken is tender and succulent. It’s wonderfully herb-flavored and garlicky, not to mention unbelievably filling. Plus, it only takes 10 minutes of prep before you dump it in the Crockpot, and you can’t beat that.
3. Crockpot Pizza Casserole
If your kids are pizza addicts, they might prefer this Crockpot pizza casserole. It has plenty of cheese, garlic, and pizza sauce, and thanks to the Italian sausage, pepperoni, and ground beef, it’s also incredibly filling. You can make the whole thing with fewer than ten ingredients, and the prep time is a mere 5 minutes!
4. Crockpot Beef Tacos
Okay, so you won’t actually make beef tacos in your slow cooker, but you will make the meat for them, and that’s the important part. The thing I love most about this recipe is the homemade taco seasoning, which is far superior to any packet of seasoning you’d buy in the store. It takes a few minutes (about 15) to pull together, but it’s well worth the effort.
5. Slow Cooker Ragu for Kids
To this day, I still remember coming home from school to smell Ragu (the homemade sauce, not the jar you buy at the store) cooking in the kitchen. Those were some of my all-time favorite dinners as a child. This recipe brings all of that joy and glee back to life for me. The beef is juicy and well-seasoned, and the herbs, carrots, celery, garlic, and tomatoes make the sauce full-bodied and flavorful. It doesn’t even matter what kind of noodles you use, your kids are sure to love this tasty meal.
6. Crockpot Ham and Swiss Sliders
Cooking these sliders in the Crockpot imbues them with so much flavor, gives the ham the perfect texture, and makes the cheese gooey, melty, and insanely yummy. The best part, though, is the topping. Made from butter, Dijon mustard, poppy seeds, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper, it turns regular ham and cheese into something so much better.
7. Crockpot Chicken and Gravy
Five ingredients; 5 minutes of prep, 5 hours to cook: Everything about this chicken and gravy recipe is easy to remember. All you’ll need is chicken breast, cream of chicken soup, chicken gravy mix, water (or chicken broth), and steamed rice to serve. It’s delicious and the kids will gobble it up.
8. Slow Cooker Bacon Cheeseburger Soup
There’s nothing more tasty and comforting in the cooler months of the year than soup, and this bacon cheeseburger soup is a particular favorite among the kiddos. It’s packed with plenty of dense, hearty ingredients, such as russet potatoes, onions, carrots, ground beef, bacon, green onions, pepper jack cheese, and more. It’s thick, chunky, herby, and has just a hint of spice. I’m not sure who will love it more, you, or your kids.
9. Slow Cooker Macaroni and Beef
You can always make macaroni and beef out of a Hamburger Helper meal kit, but why do that when you can make healthy, enjoyable macaroni and beef with only 10 minutes of prep? The macaroni gets soft and tomatoey, and the ground beef, herbs, and veggies give the whole dish the most fantastic flavor.
10. Paula Deen’s Crockpot Potato Soup
This six-ingredient potato soup is thick, creamy, and super appetizing. Whether you serve it plain or top it with green onions, cheese, and bacon, everyone in your family is sure to love it. After all, it’s 100% Paula Deen-approved.
11. Slow Cooker Tater Tot Casserole
Cheesy, beefy, and stuffed full of tater tots: This easy-to-make casserole is every child’s dream meal, especially if they enjoy Mexican food. In addition to all the other ingredients, you’ll also add black beans, corn, salsa, green chiles, taco seasoning, enchilada sauce, and cilantro. It gives it a very Mexican vibe.
12. Crockpot Kid-Friendly Turkey Chili
I love soups in the fall and winter, but nothing comes close to a hot, chunky bowl of chili. And whether you make it spicy or mild, your kids are sure to love this turkey chili. This recipe is for a bean-free version, but if you’re like me and think chili just isn’t chili without the beans, you can always add a can of kidney beans. It has an impressive variety of veggies, and it’s chock full of protein and flavor.
13. Mississippi Pot Roast
All you’ll need to make this tender, fall-apart-in-your-mouth Mississippi pot roast is chuck roast, pepperoncini, pepperoncini juice, au jus gravy mix, buttermilk ranch dressing, salt, and pepper. The pepperoncinis give the roast an incredible, complex taste and make it even juicier than a traditional roast. And don’t worry, it won’t make it spicy.
14. Crockpot Baked Ziti
If you love baked ziti but hate standing around waiting for it to bake in the oven, try making it in your slow cooker instead next time. The ingredients are primarily the same – penne pasta, tomato sauce, pasta sauce, ricotta cheese, eggs, basil, parmesan, and mozzarella. The difference is that it takes only 20 minutes to whip up. Then, you can leave it alone to do its thing for the next 2 or 3 hours. It’s super convenient and just as scrumptious.
15. Slow Cooker Enchilada Casserole
Whether you enjoy this enchilada casserole the night you make it or two or three days later, it’s still just as tasty. I am a gigantic fan of foods that taste great a day or two later. And for that reason, I make this enchilada casserole probably much more often than I should. Thanks to the onions, peppers, garlic, and more, it just has so much flavor, and you can never go wrong with that.
16. Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes
If you aren’t making your Sloppy Joe meat in the slow cooker, you’re doing it all wrong. There’s no easier or more convenient way to make it. Simmering it helps lock in all that flavor, and it makes the sandwiches absolutely melt-in-your-mouth decadent.
17. Coca-Cola Pulled Pork
Of course, if you’re not a fan of the Sloppy Joe sauce, you could always make these Coca-Cola pulled pork sandwiches instead. They’re rich, smoky, and packed with flavor, and you can make them with only eight ingredients – most of which are spices (cayenne, black pepper, minced onion, garlic, etc.).
18. Slow Cooker Chicken Parmesan Sliders
Sliders and chicken parmesan may not seem like they go together, but after just one bite, you’ll see that they do. They’re easy to make; all you’ll need are chicken breasts, marinara, garlic, Italian seasoning, parmesan cheese, wheat buns, and mozzarella or provolone, as you prefer.
19. Crockpot Cheesy Potatoes
These potatoes are soft, fluffy, and supremely cheesy. You’ll make them with only eight ingredients (plus salt and pepper to taste) with only 5 minutes of prep time. Aside from the cheese, most of the flavor comes from the onions, garlic powder, and onion powder. They’re very earthy and garlicky, and kids will love them.
20. Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings
You can’t have any list of Crockpot or slow cooker recipes without adding chicken and dumplings to it. And these chicken and dumplings are some of the best. In fact, they’re more like a combination of chicken and dumplings and chicken pot pie (without the pastry), thanks to the addition of peas, carrots, and cream of celery soup. You’ll make the dumplings out of refrigerated biscuits, and they’re so soft and incredible. They’ll almost fall apart on your tongue.
21. Crockpot Stuffed Shells
You’ll make these jumbo shells extra tasty by stuffing them with spinach and three types of cheese and covering them in pasta sauce and plenty of herbs and seasonings. They take about 4 hours to cook, but the process is simple and requires very little work from you. Plus, they’ll make your entire house smell spectacular.
22. Crockpot Spaghetti Casserole
Kids love spaghetti, and that’s almost a universal truth. The only thing better than spaghetti is spaghetti casserole, which also includes lots of gooey cheese. The herbs give it the traditional, rich Italian flavor, and the ground chuck makes it hearty enough to keep you full for hours. Of course, another great thing about this recipe is that you can easily make it vegetarian-friendly simply by leaving out the meat.
23. Slow Cooker Lasagna
Here’s another excellent Italian dish made much easier by tossing it in the slow cooker. It’s also very customizable. The recipe calls for Italian sausage or ground beef, pasta sauce, no-boil lasagna noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses, baby spinach, and fresh basil. However, you can adjust that recipe any way you like and still make it in the slow cooker. If you want to take out the meat and use lots of garden veggies for vegetarian lasagna, you can. If you want to make more of a cavatini-like meal with pepperoni and ham, you can do that, as well. Either way, your kids are sure to love it.
24. Slow Cooker Honey Chicken
This tender, delectable chicken has a distinctly Asian flair. Thanks to the honey, soy sauce, onions, and garlic, it’s both slightly sweet and savory. It tastes best when served over rice, but you can eat it by itself, on a bun, with steamed veggies, or any other way you like.
25. Slow Cooker Crack Chicken
If you’ve never had crack chicken, let me tell you right now that it’s 100% addictive. They don’t call it “crack chicken” for no reason, after all. Until you’ve tried it, it’s almost impossible to believe that something with only six simple ingredients could taste so good. Still, there’s just something about this zesty, cheesy dish that’s exceptional. You’ll be glad it’s so easy to make because once you’ve tried it the first time, you’ll want to make it again and again. Click on a star to rate it!
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