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Kelli Foster
Kelli FosterSenior Contributing Food Editor
Kelli is a Senior Contributing Food Editor for Kitchn. She's a graduate of the French Culinary Institute and author of the cookbooks, Plant-Based Buddha Bowls, The Probiotic Kitchen, Buddha Bowls, and Everyday Freekeh Meals. She lives in New Jersey.
updated Dec 1, 2023
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In This Article
- Great Potluck Slow Cooker Mains
- Different Slow Cooker Potluck Chilis
- Delicious Slow Cooker Potluck Sides
- Fun Slow Cooker Potluck Appetizers and Desserts
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Important news: Your slow cooker is good for a lot more than helping your meal prep sessions and making drop dinners on busy weeknights. It’s also your number-one ally for pulling together something seriously delicious (and easy!) for your next potluck.
Not just that, but the slow cooker makes transportation a breeze, and those thick walls keep your food warm until it’s served (especially if you can plug it in at the food table). From appetizers and big-batch mains to sides and desserts, here are 27 slow cooker recipes perfect for a potluck.
9 Great Potluck Slow Cooker Mains
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Slow Cooker Chicken Parm Meatballs
Slow cooker chicken meatballs loaded with Parmesan cheese cooked right in marinara sauce.
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Slow Cooker Maple-Mustard Pulled Pork
Transform everyday pulled pork with your slow cooker and the sweet and tangy flavors of maple syrup and mustard.
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3-Ingredient Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork
This three-ingredient slow cooker root beer pulled pork will totally convince you to give this Southern combination a try.
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Slow-Cooker Chana Masala
Use your slow cooker to make this spiced tomato and chickpea stew.
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Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Spicy, savory, and tender pork shoulder.
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Slow Cooker Salsa Pulled Chicken
Our best recipe for shortcut salsa chicken in the slow cooker.
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A savory bread pudding meets French onion soup you can make in the slow cooker.
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Slow Cooker Hawaiian Brisket Sandwiches
Pillowy-soft Hawaiian rolls piled high with slices of tender beef brisket and sweet pineapple, all topped with a crunchy, refreshing cabbage slaw.
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Honey-Glazed Ham in the Slow Cooker
Learn how and why you should put your holiday honey-glazed ham in the slow cooker this year.
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6 Different Slow Cooker Potluck Chilis
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Invest your prep time in chili powder from scratch and you'll have the best bowls of simple, tasty chili waiting in the slow cooker when you get home.
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Slow Cooker Black Bean Chili
One bite into this ultra-hearty slow cooker chili and you just might question if it's really vegan after all.
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Slow Cooker Chili Mac and Cheese
Chili meets mac in cheese in this hearty and satisfying mashup
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Slow Cooker Vegan Chili
This hearty vegan chili starts with a classic tomato base and chili powder, but the addition of green lentils and sweet potato make it slightly sweet and super filling.
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Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
You only need six ingredients for this super-easy turkey chili, and the slow cooker practically does the work for you.
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Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili
This hearty six-ingredient vegetarian chili doesn't skimp on flavor, thanks to smoky ancho chili powder and two types of beans. Plus, the slow cooker does all the work for you.
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5 Delicious Slow Cooker Potluck Sides
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Slow Cooker Cheesy Garlic Brussels Sprouts
Tender sprouts in a cheesy garlic sauce with no hands-on cooking required.
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Mac and Cheese in the Slow Cooker
This slow cooker mac and cheese is so easy! With dry pasta, milk, and cheese, you'll be enjoying warm macaroni and cheese in just a few hours.
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Slow Cooker Charro Beans
Pinto beans, bacon, and sausage combine to make Charro beans (also known as "cowboy beans), a popular dish in Texas.
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Slow Cooker Buttery Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Smooth, creamy, buttery garlic mashed potatoes in the slow cooker.
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Collard Greens in the Slow Cooker
Collard greens need a gentle, slow, luxurious braise in fragrant liquid (rather like a spa treatment), which makes a slow cooker the perfect vessel and method. With a little work up front and a thoughtful finish, a large slow cooker can yield many servings of velvety greens and brilliant potlikker — plenty for immediate feasting and plenty to freeze for later.
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7 Fun Slow Cooker Potluck Appetizers and Desserts
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Slow Cooker Spinach-Artichoke Dip
Bring steakhouse-style spinach-artichoke dip to your next party with this easy slow cooker recipe.
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Slow-Cooker Chex Party Mix
Snack mix, or party mix, is a staple of celebration at our house: kids’ birthday parties, our Christmas Eve Risk marathon, and that particular big game that happens once a year. Big batches of this salty, savory snack are required to fill party bowls and kids’ cups, but that means I need my oven or microwave running for several hours to get all my snack mix dry, so I rely on a slow cooker to get a big batch of snack mix ready for celebrations.
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Slow Cooker Queso Dip
We're making this creamy dip in the slow cooker and utilizing a few choice ingredients to ensure it tastes like the neon nacho cheese sauce of your youth.
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Slow-Cooker Caponata
Caponata is a Sicilian eggplant relish made with celery, onion, and tomatoes cooked into a sweet and sour sauce and served with bread as an appetizer. Some versions have olives or capers, others call for raisins or zucchini, and some even use hot peppers or anchovies. The results of this nuanced cooking process are delicious, if not exhausting.
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Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Slow cooker sweet and sour meatballs are cooked and served straight from the the slow cooker, and are a potluck favorite.
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Slow-Cooker Apple Crisp
With the help of the slow cooker, you can have delicious, fuss-free apple crisp.
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Slow Cooker Chocolate Lava Cake
Jean-Georges Vongerichten popularized the molten chocolate lava cake in the 1990s, although like most food origin stories, its lineage reaches back in time. Vongerichten’s cake was a slightly underbaked almost flourless cake, while in other iterations, a pool of luscious melted ganache sits beneath the surface of a rich chocolate cake. No longer reserved for trendy upscale restaurants, molten lava cake still remains one of the most decadent and luscious of chocolate desserts.
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