Menu Planning Central

Making Life Easier Since 2007!

  • Home
  • About
    • Lifetime Member Update
  • Menus
    • Current Family Favorites Recipes
    • Family Favorites – Free Week
    • Family Favorites Menu Plan
    • Healthy 30 Minute Meals – Free Week
  • Recipes
  • Contact
  • Login
    • Affiliates
  • Cart

Make Entertaining Easier with a Slow Cooker

Spread the love
    1    

Affiliate links are used in this post.
Make entertaining easier with a slow cooker

Do you enjoy entertaining? Use your slow cooker to help make a night of hosting friends and family in your home a lot easier. In fact, if you own multiple slow cookers or various kinds of slow cookers, then you may even be able to prepare your entire array of dishes, appetizer to dessert, with slow cookers. You will then be free to take part in the conversations going on around you rather than being set apart in the kitchen slaving over the stove.

Here are a few ideas that I’ve come up with to help you figure out how make entertaining easier with a slow cooker.

Do you own a Mini Crock Pot? This particular type of slow cooker is perfect for small gatherings where you only need to serve a few people. Prepare a delicious cheese dip, a tasty soup, or an easy appetizer. Serve alongside some crackers or a fresh loaf of sourdough bread and voila you’ve got an easy meal with little fuss.

While the Triple Crock Pot can be used in much the same way as the mini crock pot, it is also a bit more diverse since you have the ability to prepare different dishes in one slow cooker. Investing in more than one triple crock pot gives you the option to serve various kinds of side dishes, a few favorite desserts, several appetizers, or plan a ‘tasting’ party offering several different mini entrees to whet your guests’ appetite. In my mind, the triple crock pot is the perfect slow cooker option for those exciting football games enjoyed with your family each fall.

My next recommendation is not actually a slow cooker. However, the Turkey Roaster Oven is the perfect addition to a night of entertaining with slow cookers because it works in much the same way, allowing you to throw in your ingredients and then pursue other interests for a few hours while your meal cooks. According to the Amazon description, this roaster “Bakes anything your regular oven would, from muffins to yeast rolls to an entire sheet cake.” So, while you may wish to serve a turkey to your guests on certain occasions, this roaster is useful to you all year long. Prepare a large batch of rolls, lasagna, your favorite vegetable, and more.  I love it that this one piece of kitchen equipment can take the place of an extra oven!

 

The most exciting thing to me when it comes to entertaining with slow cookers is that, when armed with one (or more) of each of these recommended slow cookers, I am equipped to serve many dishes to many people with ease. Minimal attention is needed while everything cooks, and little cleanup is required when you’re gathering ends.

Do you want to make slow cooking cleanup even easier? Pop in a slow cooker liner before you add your ingredients and you’ve just eliminated cleanup!

To find the perfect slow cooker fit for you, take a look at the selection of slow cookers linked below.

Extra Large Slow Cookers

More Triple Slow Cookers

Small Crock Pots

Here are some resources to get you started with planning how to put your slow cooker to use when entertaining:

Do you have a favorite slow cooker or method for entertaining with slow cookers? Share your ideas with me!

[related_posts_by_tax]

Search this site…

Try Family Favorites Menu Plans for 7 Days - Free

Our Favorite Recipes

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Sauce

Kicked Up Cilantro-Lime Cream Sauce

Spread the love
    2    

Spread the love    2    This kicked up cilantro-lime cream sauce makes EVERYTHING taste great!  It gets a boost of flavor from our homemade fajita seasoning and is perfect on salmon, chicken, veggies or this amazing South of the Border Slow Cooker Chicken Recipe and cilantro-lime rice from our fantastic  Family Favorites Menu Plans. It boasts a wonderful […]

Affordable Thai Chicken Thighs

Instant Pot Savory Thai Chicken Thighs

Spread the love
    131    

Spread the love    131    These savory Thai chicken thighs are perfect when you are looking for a quick and delicious dinner recipe.  This affordable Thai chicken thigh recipe is made in your Instant Pot®, which means you can serve this dish on this busy weeknights. (Using chicken thighs in this recipe keeps it affordable, moist and juicy). […]

Chunky Homemade Guacamole

Spread the love
    26    

Spread the love    26     Chunky Homemade Guacamole Ingredients: 2 ripe Avocados 1 ripe fresh tomato, seeded and diced 1 large clove fresh garlic, finely minced 1 fresh lime, juiced 1 tablespoon (+ extra for garnish) fresh cilantro leaves, stems removed and finely chopped Salt and pepper, to taste Directions: Peel, core, and dice avocado. Place in […]

One-Pot Beer Cheese Soup

Spread the love
         

Spread the love          Beer cheese soup makes for a warm and satisfying meal on cold, blustery days. Unfortunately, it has a reputation for being a bit tricky to make because it can turn into a gloppy mess if you aren’t careful. However, you can achieve picture-perfect (and palate-worthy) results at home with this easy recipe. […]

Mexican Cilantro-Lime Rice

Cilantro-Lime Rice

Spread the love
         

Spread the love         Tired of boring old rice?  Don’t worry.  It’s so easy to change boring, basic rice into something extra special with the addition of just a few fresh ingredients. In this recipe, we’ve teamed up fresh lime and cilantro to create a classic flavor combination that is sure to tickle your taste buds. This […]

Green Bean Casserole

Spread the love
    21    

Spread the love    21     Green Bean Casserole is a holiday staple, but you typically see it mixed with creamed canned soups.  This recipe is from scratch, and adds a delicious crunchy topping that you’ll love!  We’ve included this terrific recipe in December’s Family Favorites Menu Plan. Crunchy Onion Bites Ingredients 1/3 White Onion (thinly sliced & […]

Grilled Summer Vegetable Medley With Herb Butter

Grilled Summer Vegetable Medley with Herb Butter

Spread the love
    24    

Spread the love    24    Grilling is a great way to enhance the natural sweetness of summer garden vegetable. For best results, cut all vegetables to a uniform thickness and angle your cuts to ensure the largest surface area possible. Ingredients: Herb Butter: 4 T. unsalted butter, room temperature 2 t. fresh thyme leaves, stems removed Pinch of […]

Delicious Instant Pot BBQ Ribs

Instant Pot® Cherry BBQ Baby Back Ribs

Spread the love
    60    

Spread the love    60    These succulent cherry BBQ baby back ribs are fall off the bone tender thanks to the Instant Pot®!  These are sure to become a new family favorite that they will be asking for again and again.  This recipe is so easy and delicious, you will be happy to add it to your menu […]

  • About
  • Contact
  • Member Login
  • Affiliates
  • Privacy & Disclosures
  • Terms

Copyright © 2026 · MenuPlanningCentral.com