Believe it or not, there are quite a few excellent crockpot recipes that use three ingredients or less. There are two tricks to these recipes; use the best quality ingredients and use ingredients that are 'enhanced products', like tomatoes with chilies and garlic, frozen marinated meats, or frozen vegetable combinations.

Keep the ingredients for these recipes on hand in your pantry and freezer and you will not have to resort to delivered pizza or fast food drive-through meals. You can add more ingredients to these recipes if you'd like. Add your favorite veggies, add another type of cheese, or add more seasonings. One of the nicest things about crockpot recipes is that they are very tolerant—you can play around with them and they will still turn out.

Appetizers

These easy appetizers cook while you relax in the hammock or prepare the rest of the meal:

Main Dishes

These recipes make the most fabulous sauces. You can thicken the sauces if you wish by combining a spoonful of cornstarch with a little water, then stir this mixture into the crockpot 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Think about serving these recipes with couscous, hot cooked rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes to get every last bit of sauce:

Side Dishes

For a super easy dinner, cook crockpot caramelized onions, then grill steak or chicken to serve with them: