When you’ve had a busy day, the last thing you want to do is spend hours slaving over dinner. Enter the crockpot! 

Here are a few healthy, minimal-ingredient recipes to get you through the week: 

Three-Ingredient Balsamic Chicken

This balsamic chicken is a low-calorie dish and accommodates just about every popular diet. If you aren’t worried about carb intake, slap some chicken between a couple of buns. It’s also great in a burrito or chicken tacos.  

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 (16 ounces) jar chunky salsa
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

1. Add chicken breasts to the crockpot and pour the salsa and balsamic vinegar on top. 
2. Cover and cook on low for six hours or on high for four hours. 
3. Shred chicken with a fork and stir in mixture. 

Kalua Pig 

Enjoy this Hawaiian luau classic without even leaving your house. This four-ingredient slow cooker kalua pig recipe from is gluten-free, keto-, paleo-, and Whole30-friendly. 

Ingredients:

• 3 bacon slices
• 5 pounds pork shoulder roast (bone-in or bone-out)
• Alaea Red Hawaiian coarse sea salt or Alaea red Hawaiian fine sea salt
• 5 peeled garlic cloves (optional)

Instructions:

1. Line crockpot with three slices of bacon. If desired, remove the skin from the roast with a knife.
2. To estimate the amount of salt needed, check the pork roast packaging for weight. You will need ¾ teaspoon of coarse salt or 1/3 teaspoon of fine salt for every 1 pound of meat.
3. Cut slits into the meat and tuck in the garlic cloves. Salt the pork all over then place the roast skin side up on top of the bacon in the crockpot.
4. Cover with the lid and cook on low for 9-12 hours. Older crockpots may require up to 16 hours of cook time. Don’t add any liquid to the pot.
5. When finished cooking, remove the pork and shred. Season with additional salt if needed.

Pot Roast 

Pot roast is a staple for crockpot owners. This five-ingredient recipe is a yummy low-calorie option and requires virtually zero preparation. 

The recipe calls for beef chuck, but you can substitute this with top sirloin steak or bottom round roast if you want a healthier cut of meat. 

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless beef chuck roasts (2 ½ pounds each)
• 1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
• 1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix
• 1 envelope brown gravy mix
• ½ cup of water
• Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Instructions:

1. Place the chuck roasts in the crockpot.
2. In a small bowl, combine the salad dressings, gravy mix, and water. Pour over meat.
3. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours.
4. If desired, sprinkle with parsley and thicken cooking juices with cornstarch.

Lemon Chicken

This low-calorie meal is perfect for a weeknight dinner.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 tablespoon of lemon pepper seasoning
• Juice from half of lemon

Instructions:

1. Place chicken into the crockpot and turn to high.
2. Pour soup into a medium-sized bowl and add the lemon pepper and lemon juice. Add half of the soup can into the mix and stir.
3. Pour mixture over chicken and cook on high for three hours or low for six hours. 

Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork

This sweet and tangy pulled pork recipe is perfect for summer cookouts. Toss pork butt and some sauce into your crockpot, and voila! The perfect pulled pork.

Ingredients:

• 3-4 pounds of pork butt
• Pork rub or your favorite seasonings
• Stubb’s Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce

Instructions:

1. Trim off any thick caps of fat.
2. Season pork with your rub and place in crockpot.
3. Cook on low for 10-12 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.
4. Once cooked, transfer pork to a platter and shred with a fork.
5. Discard any excess liquid from the crockpot and return pork.
6. Pour 1 ½ cup of Stubb’s Dr. Pepper sauce over pork and toss to coat. 

Chocolate Kahlua Cake

You don’t need to feel guilty after eating dessert when this chocolate Kahlua cake!

Ingredients:

• 1 box (18.25 ounce) Devil’s Food Cake Mix
• 1 cup fat-free sour cream
• 1 cup 1% low-fat milk
• 2 large eggs
• 2 egg whites
• ¾ cup Kahlua liqueur 

Instructions:

1. Coat the inside of the slow cooker dish with canola cooking spray.
2. Combine cake mix, sour cream, milk, eggs, egg whites, and Kahlua in a large mixing bowl. The mixture should be smooth.
3. Pour cake batter into the crockpot and cover. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.  

Final Thoughts from USHEALTH Group

Crockpots provide an easy, convenient, and cheap way to make a healthy meal. Consider consulting with a nutritionist or dietician if you want more easy and healthy crockpot recipes to add to your meal routine. 

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