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How to Slow Cook Your Way Through the Potluck

By Tablespoon Kitchens
Created April 4, 2018
3-Ingredient Sweet and Sour Meatballs
It’s no secret that we count on our slow cookers for weeknight-dinner success and for surviving the lengthy winter season. But the mighty appliance is also our best-kept party trick to crushing parties and potlucks, no matter if we’re hosting, attending or crashing.

Let’s be real, entertaining can often feel like all work and no play. Whether you’re in charge of hosting or bringing, coming up with a foolproof recipe that will wow the crowd is a challenge in itself. Not to mention that same wow-worthy recipe needs to hold up throughout the duration of a potluck or party. And don’t even get us started on the never-ending struggle to nail down the timing of each dish when you’re making more than one.

Are you stressed yet? Put down the car keys and resist the temptation to make a mad dash to the grocery store for chips and salsa. Keep calm and read on for how the slow cooker is going to help you crush this year’s potluck season from apps to dessert.

Tips and Tricks for Party Prep

Before we give you the slow-cooker recipes that are going to save your sanity, here are a few tricks we’ve picked up along the way:

  • It’s helpful to have more than one slow cooker; a larger one can be used for main dishes or big-batch recipes, and smaller ones work well for dips.
  • Use a slow-cooker liner for quick and easy clean up. 
  • If the food is being served outdoors, bring an extension cord to keep food warm.
  • If you’re hosting, consider using one table for warm food so you can plug more than one appliance or warming vessel into a multi-outlet surge strip with an extension cord.
  • If you’re a bringer, transport your dish right in the slow cooker. Purchasing an insulated carrier or travel bag is a real life-saver. But in a pinch, you can use rubberbands to secure the lid, wrap your slow cooker in a towel and put it in a box to transport.

No-Stress Recipes That Always Deliver

There are more ways to shine during potluck season. And by ways, we mean these recipes.