Slow Cooker Recipes With 10 Minutes of Prep or Less, Compared

These 12 Savour slow cooker recipes with 10 minutes prep or less (the prep time stored on each recipe) cover dinners, dips, a side and a drink. The mulled apple cider needs the least, 5 minutes, and the pizza, queso and spinach artichoke dips are the quickest from start to serving at 130 minutes (2 hours 10 minutes) in total. We compare all 12 on prep, total time, servings, and calories and protein per serving, then list the step each one leaves for the end.

Only 4 of the 12 are main courses; the rest are 6 appetizers, a side dish and a drink. Prep time does not include thawing or precooking: the chicken dinners call for thawed thighs, the spinach dip for thawed spinach and the buffalo chicken dip for chicken that is already cooked.

Slow cooker recipes with 10 minutes prep: every recipe compared

Sorted by total time (prep plus cooking, plus resting where a recipe lists it), as stored on each recipe; ties are in alphabetical order. Calories and protein are estimates per serving.

The prep column barely moves (11 recipes at 10 minutes, 1 at 5), so the real difference is cooking time: from 130 minutes for the three quickest dips to 370 minutes for the chicken and gravy. Servings run from 6 to 16, so compare calories and protein per serving, never per pot. Quick prep is not a quick dinner: for 5 weeknight dinners of 30 minutes or less in total, see the 30-minute dinner meal plan.

Which slow cooker dinners take 10 minutes to prep?

Slow Cooker • Chicken

Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken

4 hrs 40 mins6 servings

Slow cooker honey garlic chicken is the quickest of the 4 dinners, 280 minutes in total for 6 servings. A sauce of honey, soy sauce, ketchup, rice vinegar, garlic and ginger goes over 1 kg of thawed boneless, skinless thighs, which cook until the thickest part reaches 74°C (165°F). The catch is the end: lift out the chicken, whisk in a cornstarch slurry and cook on HIGH for 10-15 minutes until the sauce is glossy.

Slow cooker BBQ pulled chicken has the fewest calories of the dinners, about 265 calories and 29 g protein per serving (estimate), for 8. Spice-rubbed thighs cook on sliced onion in barbecue sauce with cider vinegar and Worcestershire sauce; at the end you shred them with two forks, skim the fat and stir in the last 60 ml of sauce.

Slow cooker chicken and gravy has the most protein in this roundup, about 290 calories and 32 g protein per serving (estimate), and the longest total, 370 minutes. The gravy is thickened with a cornstarch slurry for 15 minutes on HIGH at the end, and browning the thighs first is an optional tip that adds 2-3 minutes per side.

Slow cooker honey glazed ham feeds the most people, 16, and cooks on LOW only until a thermometer in the thickest part reads 60°C (140°F); its 295-minute total includes 15 minutes of resting. It is the only recipe here that goes back to the stove at the end, to boil the juices into a glaze for 8-10 minutes. It needs a fully cooked spiral-cut ham of 3-3.5 kg and an oval 6-7 L slow cooker.

All 4 dinners carry Savour's high-protein tag (25 g or more protein per serving, estimate), and the three chicken dinners are also in the slow cooker chicken recipes collection.

Slow cooker dips and party food you can start in 10 minutes

Slow Cooker • American

Slow Cooker Pizza Dip

2 hrs 10 minsAbout 4 cups

Six of the 12 are appetizers, and all 6 are in Savour's Super Bowl recipes collection.

Slow cooker pizza dip ties for the shortest total, 130 minutes, for 10 (about 4 cups). A cream cheese and parmesan base goes into a small 1.5-3 litre slow cooker under pizza sauce, mozzarella and pepperoni, with a tea towel under the lid to catch condensation, until the centre reaches 74°C (165°F).

Slow cooker queso dip also takes 130 minutes, serves 12 and is listed as vegetarian and gluten-free. The prep is shredding cheddar and Monterey Jack from the block, tossing them with cornstarch and loading the pot; the catch is a good stir every 30 minutes, on LOW only.

Slow cooker spinach artichoke dip is the third 130-minute dip and the lowest in protein of the dips, about 210 calories and 7 g protein per serving (estimate). The prep assumes the 300 g of frozen spinach is already thawed, and the tips name wet spinach as the main cause of watery dip, so squeeze it hard in a towel.

Slow cooker buffalo chicken dip has the most protein of the 6 appetizers, about 275 calories and 17 g protein per serving (estimate), from 6 ingredients (plus 2 optional or for serving). Its 10-minute prep counts on 450 g of chicken that is already cooked and shredded, such as a rotisserie chicken; poaching your own adds about 15 minutes of simmering, per its FAQ.

Slow cooker refried bean dip makes about 6 cups for 12, the biggest yield any of the dips states, and has the fewest calories of the 6 appetizers, about 190 calories per serving (estimate). Its 205-minute total includes 10-15 minutes to melt the cheese topping. It is listed as vegetarian and gluten-free, but canned refried beans are traditionally made with lard, so the recipe says to read the label.

Slow cooker sweet and sour meatballs are the one recipe here that starts from frozen: 1 kg of meatballs labelled fully cooked (the recipe says never to add raw meatballs from frozen), heated until the centre reaches 74°C (165°F). At about 370 calories per serving (estimate) they have the most calories of the appetizers, and the finish adds a cornstarch slurry, pineapple and peppers for 20-30 minutes on HIGH.

A slow cooker side and drink with 10 minutes of prep or less

Slow Cooker • American

Slow Cooker Mulled Apple Cider

2 hrs 35 mins8 mugs (250 ml each)

Slow cooker mulled apple cider has the shortest prep, 5 minutes, and shares the shortest ingredient list (6, plus 2 optional or for serving) with the buffalo chicken dip. Cider, orange slices and whole spices go straight into the pot and must not boil. It is the only recipe here listed as vegan and holds on WARM for up to 4 hours. In many countries outside North America, the tips note, cider is alcoholic, so use cloudy apple juice.

Slow cooker mac and cheese is the side dish: dry pasta, butter, evaporated and whole milk and two cheeses, with no boiling and no roux. At about 470 calories per serving (estimate) it has the most calories here, and like the queso it is not a walk-away recipe: LOW only, stirring every 30 minutes, then 10 minutes with the lid off.

What is left to do when the slow cooker finishes?

Each recipe's steps, in the order of the comparison above:

Six recipes come closest to dump and go, with nothing to do between loading the pot and the last step: the pizza dip, the cider and all 4 dinners (the ham asks only for a thermometer check from 4 hours). Keep the lid on between those steps: Iowa State University Extension notes that each time the lid is raised, cooking slows by about 30 minutes. The queso and the mac and cheese need a stir every 30 minutes for the whole cook.

Eight recipes give a shorter HIGH option (slow cooker low vs high cooking times compares the settings across more Savour recipes). The queso and mac and cheese recipes say HIGH can make the cheese grainy or split, and the ham's FAQ says the thin spiral slices dry out on HIGH before the middle is warm.

Which one should you make?

• Least prep: mulled apple cider, 5 minutes (155 minutes in total).
• Quickest from start to serving: the pizza, queso or spinach artichoke dip, 130 minutes in total.
• Quickest dinner: honey garlic chicken, 280 minutes in total (2-3 hours on HIGH, per its steps).
• Most protein: chicken and gravy, about 32 g protein per serving (estimate); the honey garlic chicken and the ham follow at about 31 g.
• Fewest calories at dinner: BBQ pulled chicken, about 265 calories per serving (estimate).
• Biggest crowd: honey glazed ham, which serves 16.
• Vegetarian or gluten-free: go by the diets column, and check the labels on packaged ingredients such as canned beans, sauces, the ham and the mustard. For strict vegetarians, the queso, spinach and bean dip recipes suggest cheese made without animal rennet.

Which ones freeze or keep for 4 days?

Each recipe's own fridge and freezer note:

Eight of the 12 keep 4 days or more in the fridge, and 7 give a freezer time; the honey garlic chicken and the chicken and gravy are also in Savour's freezer meals collection. The pizza and queso dips say not to freeze because the cheese turns grainy when thawed. Some freezer notes flag a change: the meatballs' peppers soften, the mac and cheese sauce may be a little looser and the bean dip is slightly grainier.

Three recipes can be started well ahead, according to their FAQs: the pizza dip's cream cheese base up to 2 days ahead (allow an extra 15-20 minutes because it starts cold), the spinach artichoke dip mixed up to 24 hours ahead, and the cider made up to 5 days ahead.

The 5 dips, the meatballs and the pulled chicken all say not to reheat leftovers in the slow cooker. Iowa State University Extension's slow cooker guidance gives the same advice (reheat on the stove or in the microwave, then use the slow cooker only to keep food warm) and says to thaw meat or poultry before it goes in.

Every slow cooker recipe with 10 minutes of prep

This list updates itself, so it can include recipes published after this roundup. For every slow cooker recipe, see the slow cooker recipes category.

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  Slow Cooker • American

  Slow Cooker Pizza Dip

  2 hrs 10 minsAbout 4 cups
• 

  Slow Cooker • Mexican

  Slow Cooker Queso Dip

  2 hrs 10 minsAbout 4 1/2 cups
• 

  Slow Cooker • American

  Slow Cooker Spinach Artichoke Dip

  2 hrs 10 mins10 servings
• 

  Slow Cooker • Chicken

  Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Dip

  2 hrs 20 mins10 servings
• 

  Slow Cooker • American

  Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

  2 hrs 25 mins10 servings
• 

  Slow Cooker • American

  Slow Cooker Mulled Apple Cider

  2 hrs 35 mins8 mugs (250 ml each)

See every slow cooker recipe