11 Easy Slow Cooker Recipes for the Big Game

These slow cooker recipes will score touchdowns on game day!

By
Sara Bir
Sara Bir
Sara Bir
Sara is a chef, culinary educator, and author of three cookbooks, The Pocket Pawpaw Cookbook, Tasting Ohio and The Fruit Forager's Companion. The latter won a 2019 IACP Cookbook Award.
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Updated November 09, 2024
Sara Bir
A bowl of beef and bean chili that's garnished with fried tortilla strips and sitting next to a slow cooker

Simply Recipes / Nick Evans

Game day means grazing, and grazing in the wintertime is especially fun when you're digging into something hot and oozy or bold and hearty. Or both!

These 11 slow cooker recipes are all total touchdowns, a dirty dozen that runs from apps to mains. Not only are they Super Bowl-ready, but they're perfect to take along to any casual gathering. Clear out space for an outlet and plug into some good eating that just might become the main event.

  • Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Wings

    Honey buffalo chicken wings cooked in a crock pot and served with blue cheese dressing
    Irvin Lin

    Sweet and sticky hot wings in the slow cooker? What a game changer.

  • Queso Dip

    Get ready for game day with a bowl of ceamy queso dip topped with pico de gallo and surrounded by tortilla chips
    Marta Rivera

    To make this stovetop dip in the slow cooker, transfer the seasoned milk mixture to your slow cooker set to high. Whisk in the cheese. Once the cheese is melted, add the can of RO*TEL and reduce the heat to warm. You can hold it warm for up to four hours.

  • Slow Cooker Cider Pulled Pork

    Crockpot Pulled Pork
    Summer Miller

    This slightly sweet and tangy recipe is the pride and joy of our former recipe editor, Summer Miller. If she didn't make it for her gatherings, there would be an uprising!

  • Crockpot Bratwurst and Beer Cheese Dip

    Slow Cooker Brats and Beer Cheese Dip
    Marta Rivera

    The combination of melty cheese and browned crumbles of bratwurst is irresistible. You just might need to serve it with spoons instead of chips!

    Continue to 5 of 11 below

  • Slow Cooker Mexican Pulled Pork

    Mexican pulled pork for slow cooker pork tacos
    Elise Bauer

    This easy recipe is a simplification of carnitas, but the flavors end up complex. Use it to stuff tacos, buns, or top loaded nachos.

  • Cheesy Crockpot Sausage Balls

    Cheese-stuffed sausage balls on a plate
    Nick Evans

    How do you make saucy sausage balls even better? Stuff them with cheese.

  • Slow Cooker Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

    Meatballs in a slow cooker filled with tomato sauce with a spoon lifting a meatball out of the sauce.
    Alison Bickel

    These Italian-style meatballs are equally at home as appetizers, on a hoagie roll, or topping pasta. If you don't have time to make meatballs from scratch, you can use frozen ones.

  • Shredded Chicken Chili in the Slow Cooker

    Overhead view of a slow cooker with chicken chili

    Simply Recipes /

    Dump your ingredients in, then hours later shred the chicken right in the slow cooker using two forks. Add frozen corn and canned beans in the last half hour of cooking.

    Continue to 9 of 11 below

  • Slow Cooker Feta and Spinach Dip

    Mediterranean spinach feta dip in the slow cooker
    Nick Evans

    Shake up the typical game day fare with this creamy dip. Serve with pita chips or veggie sticks.

  • Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken for Tacos

    Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken in a slow cooker, being pulled apart with two forks

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    Make a batch of this for loading up nachos or tacos. Freeze the leftovers for a quick and easy weeknight meal.

  • Beef Brisket in the Slow Cooker

    Easy Beef Brisket

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    This longtime reader favorite easy beef baked brisket has a slow cooker option. Skip the added water—the brisket will release plenty of its liquid—and use just the soy sauce and barbecue sauce. Add the brisket to the slow cooker and pour the soy-BBQ mix on top. Cover and cook for up to eight hours on low. We don't recommend cooking brisket on high in the slow cooker.

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