7 Slow Cooker Dump Meals: Set It and Forget It

The slow cooker is the greatest kitchen invention for anyone who wants a home-cooked dinner but does not have the time or energy to actually stand at the stove cooking it. The concept is beautifully simple: dump raw ingredients into the pot in the morning, set it to low, go to work, live your life, and come home eight hours later to a house that smells incredible and a dinner that is completely done. No babysitting. No stirring. No last-minute scrambling at 6 PM. Just open the lid and eat. These seven dump meals are the real deal — no browning, no sauteing, no pre-cooking anything. You literally dump everything in and walk away. Every recipe costs well under $2 per serving and feeds at least four to six people. If you have a slow cooker gathering dust in a cabinet somewhere, this is your sign to pull it out. ## 1. Classic Slow Cooker Pulled Pork **Cook time: 8-10 hours on low | Servings: 8 | Cost per serving: ~$1.50** A bone-in pork shoulder, a bottle of barbecue sauce, some brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, and a few spices. That is the entire ingredient list. Dump it all into the slow cooker, set it to low, and let time do the work. After eight hours the pork falls apart with a fork into tender, smoky, sweet-and-tangy shreds. Pile it on cheap hamburger buns for pulled pork sandwiches, serve it over rice, stuff it into tortillas, or eat it straight out of the pot — nobody will judge you. A single pork shoulder yields enough meat for dinner plus several days of lunches. Our full [Slow Cooker Pulled Pork](/recipes/slow-cooker-pulled-pork) recipe has the exact proportions and seasoning blend. Pork shoulder is one of the most affordable cuts of meat you can buy, typically running $1.50 to $2.50 per pound. A three-pound shoulder feeds eight people generously, making this one of the best per-serving values on the entire site. ## 2. White Chicken Chili **Cook time: 6-8 hours on low | Servings: 6 | Cost per serving: ~$1.60** Creamy, mildly spicy, and loaded with tender chicken and white beans. [White Chicken Chili](/recipes/white-chicken-chili) is comfort food at its finest, and it could not be easier to make. Dump chicken breasts or thighs (no need to thaw if frozen), canned white beans, canned green chiles, chicken broth, onion, garlic, cumin, and oregano into the slow cooker. Cook on low for six to eight hours. Shred the chicken with two forks right in the pot, stir in a splash of cream or cream cheese, and serve with shredded cheese and a squeeze of lime on top. This recipe is a hit with people who think they do not like chili. The white bean and chicken base is milder and creamier than traditional red chili, and the green chiles add flavor without overwhelming heat. It also freezes perfectly for up to three months. ## 3. Classic Beef Chili **Cook time: 6-8 hours on low | Servings: 6 | Cost per serving: ~$1.75** Sometimes you want no-frills, stick-to-your-ribs, classic American chili. Ground beef, kidney beans, canned diced tomatoes, tomato paste, onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin, and a pinch of cayenne. Dump it all in, stir once, and set it to low. By dinnertime you have a thick, rich chili that tastes like it simmered all day on the stove — because it basically did. Our [Classic Beef Chili](/recipes/classic-beef-chili) recipe is one of the most popular on the site for good reason. It is endlessly customizable — add corn, swap the kidney beans for black beans, throw in diced bell peppers, or increase the cayenne if you like heat. Top it with shredded cheddar, sour cream, diced onion, and a handful of crushed tortilla chips. Chili is also one of the best meal prep recipes in existence. A single batch gives you dinner for the family plus three or four individual portions for lunches. Freeze the extras in quart-sized bags laid flat for easy stacking in your freezer. ## 4. Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs **Cook time: 6 hours on low | Servings: 4 | Cost per serving: ~$1.65** Bone-in chicken thighs sitting in a sauce of honey, soy sauce, minced garlic, and a splash of rice vinegar. That glossy, sweet-savory glaze coats the chicken as it slow cooks until the meat is impossibly tender and falling off the bone. The sauce reduces and thickens into a sticky, caramelized coating that rivals any takeout. Dump the chicken and sauce ingredients into the pot in the morning. When you get home, serve over steamed rice with a side of steamed broccoli or green beans. If you want the sauce thicker, remove the chicken, switch the cooker to high, and stir in a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with a little cold water. Let it simmer for ten minutes and you have a sauce thick enough to coat a spoon. This is one of those meals that makes people say "you made this in a slow cooker?" The answer is yes, and it took about three minutes of actual work. ## 5. Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup **Cook time: 6-8 hours on low | Servings: 6 | Cost per serving: ~$1.40** Chicken breasts, canned black beans, canned corn, canned diced tomatoes with green chiles, chicken broth, cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder. Dump and cook. Shred the chicken at the end, stir everything together, and ladle into bowls. Top with crushed tortilla chips, a squeeze of lime, shredded cheese, and a dollop of sour cream. This soup is light enough for warm weather but hearty enough for winter, and it stretches beautifully. The canned ingredients keep the cost rock-bottom while still delivering great flavor and nutrition. Black beans add fiber and protein, and the tomatoes provide a solid hit of vitamin C and lycopene. If you like more heat, add a diced jalapeno to the pot before cooking or stir in a spoonful of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce at the end. ## 6. Mississippi Pot Roast **Cook time: 8 hours on low | Servings: 6 | Cost per serving: ~$1.90** This viral recipe took the internet by storm for a reason — it is absurdly easy and absurdly good. A chuck roast, a packet of ranch seasoning mix, a packet of au jus gravy mix, a stick of butter, and a few pepperoncini peppers from a jar. That is it. Dump it all in, cook on low for eight hours, and shred the beef with forks. The result is melt-in-your-mouth tender beef with a rich, tangy, buttery sauce that is unlike anything else. Serve it over mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice. Pile it onto hoagie rolls for sandwiches. However you serve it, people will go back for seconds. Chuck roast can be found for $4 to $6 per pound depending on the store, and a two-and-a-half-pound roast feeds six people easily. Watch for sales and stock up — this cut freezes raw without any loss in quality. ## 7. Slow Cooker Sausage and Potato Stew **Cook time: 7-8 hours on low | Servings: 6 | Cost per serving: ~$1.55** Sliced smoked sausage, cubed potatoes, diced carrots, sliced celery, diced onion, chicken broth, a bay leaf, and a sprinkle of thyme and garlic powder. This is an old-fashioned, deeply comforting stew that requires zero culinary skill to pull off. Everything goes in raw and comes out tender and flavorful after a day of low and slow cooking. Smoked sausage is fully cooked, so it just needs to heat through and release its smoky flavor into the broth. The potatoes break down slightly around the edges, naturally thickening the stew. A loaf of crusty bread for dipping is all you need on the side. This stew is also a great way to use up odds and ends from the vegetable drawer. Throw in some green beans, corn, or diced turnips — it all works. ## Slow Cooker Tips for Perfect Dump Meals **Do not lift the lid.** Every time you open the slow cooker, you release heat and add 15 to 20 minutes to the cooking time. Trust the process. The only time you should open the lid is when the cooking time is nearly done and you need to shred meat or add a finishing ingredient. **Fill the pot correctly.** For best results, fill the slow cooker between half and two-thirds full. Too little food and things cook too fast and dry out. Too full and the heat cannot circulate properly, leading to uneven cooking or undercooked food in the center. **Use the right cut of meat.** Slow cookers turn cheap, tough, fatty cuts into melt-in-your-mouth meals. Pork shoulder, chuck roast, chicken thighs, and bone-in cuts all thrive with low and slow cooking. Lean cuts like chicken breast can dry out — if you use breast meat, add extra liquid and check it on the earlier end of the time range. **Layer strategically.** Put root vegetables (potatoes, carrots) on the bottom of the pot, closest to the heat source. They take the longest to cook. Place meat on top of the vegetables, then pour liquid and sauces over everything. **Prep the night before.** The real pro move is assembling the dump meal in the slow cooker insert the night before and storing it in the refrigerator. In the morning, just set the insert in the base, turn it on, and walk out the door. Three minutes of morning effort, tops. **Invest in slow cooker liners.** For about $0.50 each, disposable slow cooker liners eliminate cleanup entirely. Cook your meal, lift out the liner, and toss it. Your slow cooker insert stays perfectly clean. It is not required, but it turns an already-easy process into a no-cleanup miracle. ## Why Slow Cooker Dump Meals Are a Budget Game-Changer Slow cooker dump meals are not just easy — they are a genuine financial strategy. Here is why. First, they use the cheapest cuts of meat, which are tough and chewy when cooked quickly but become buttery and tender after eight hours of low heat. You get premium-tasting results from bargain-bin prices. Second, they produce large batches automatically. Most recipes yield six to eight servings, giving you leftovers for lunches or frozen meals later in the week. That means fewer impulse lunch purchases and fewer evenings where exhaustion leads to expensive takeout orders. Third, the slow cooker itself uses very little electricity — roughly the same as a light bulb running all day. It is far cheaper to operate than your oven, and it does not heat up the kitchen in summer the way an oven does. If you cook just two slow cooker dump meals per week, you can easily cut your grocery and takeout spending by $30 to $50 per month. That is real money saved with almost no extra effort. Pick a recipe from this list, dump it in tomorrow morning, and taste the difference for yourself.