Share 7 Hearty Healthy Crockpot Recipes with 6 ingredients or less

There is something wonderfully old-fashioned about putting a few simple ingredients into the crockpot in the morning and knowing that supper is quietly taking care of itself.

When you’re busy with a garden, animals, housework, preserving food, or simply trying to make a home run a little more smoothly, complicated recipes aren’t always what you need.

Sometimes you just need six ingredients, a crockpot, and a little time.

These recipes are built around simple, nourishing foods and ingredients that are easy to keep on hand. Several can also be adapted to use what you’ve grown in your garden or what you have preserved in your pantry.

And, of course, don’t be afraid of herbs. A handful of fresh herbs from the garden or a spoonful of dried herbs can turn the simplest crockpot meal into something that tastes like you spent all afternoon cooking.

1. Slow-Cooker Herbed Chicken & Root Vegetables

This is the kind of meal I love for a busy homestead day. Chicken, potatoes, carrots, and a few herbs go into the crockpot, and by dinnertime you have a hearty meal without much fuss.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds chicken thighs or breasts
• 4 medium potatoes, cut into chunks
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon dried herbs such as thyme, rosemary, or a combination

Directions

Place the potatoes, carrots, and onion in the bottom of the crockpot.

Lay the chicken on top and pour in the broth. Sprinkle with the herbs.

Cover and cook on low for 6–7 hours or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

Homestead Tip

This is a perfect recipe for using up the last of the potatoes and carrots from your root cellar. Fresh rosemary or thyme from the garden is especially good here.

2. Simple Crockpot Garden Vegetable Soup

This is one of those recipes that doesn’t have to be exact. Use whatever vegetables you have available.

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped tomatoes
• 2 cups chopped zucchini
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 can white beans, drained
• 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

Directions

Add everything to your crockpot and stir.

Cover and cook on low for 6–7 hours or high for 3–4 hours, until the vegetables are tender.

Taste before serving and add salt, pepper, or your favorite dried herbs if desired.

Homestead Tip

This is a wonderful “clean out the garden” recipe. In summer, add fresh zucchini, green beans, tomatoes, or whatever else is producing faster than your family can eat it.

You can also use home-canned tomatoes and beans if you have them.

3. Honey Garlic Chicken

Sweet, savory, and incredibly simple, this chicken is good served over rice or alongside roasted vegetables.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds chicken thighs or breasts
• ¼ cup honey
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, sliced
• ½ cup chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme

Directions

Place the onion in the bottom of the crockpot.

Add the chicken. Mix the honey, garlic, broth, and thyme together and pour over the chicken.

Cover and cook on low for 5–6 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Homestead Tip

If you keep honey from your own hives, this is a particularly satisfying recipe to have in your homestead rotation.

4. Crockpot Beef, Cabbage & Potato Stew

Cabbage is one of those humble vegetables that can feed a family well without costing much. It also stores beautifully, making it a wonderful homesteading staple.

Ingredients

• 1½ pounds beef stew meat
• ½ head cabbage, chopped
• 4 potatoes, cubed
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cups beef broth

Directions

Place all ingredients into the crockpot.

Cover and cook on low for 7–8 hours, or until the beef and vegetables are tender.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Homestead Tip

If you grow cabbage, this is a great way to use smaller heads that may not be pretty enough for the dinner table but are perfectly good for cooking.

5. Herbed White Bean & Tomato Stew

This meatless meal is inexpensive, filling, and especially good on a chilly evening.

Ingredients

• 2 cans white beans, drained
• 2 cups diced tomatoes
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon Italian herbs

Directions

Add everything to your crockpot and stir.

Cover and cook on low for 5–6 hours.

For a thicker stew, mash some of the beans against the side of the crockpot before serving.

Homestead Tip

Add a handful of chopped kale or other sturdy greens during the last 30–45 minutes of cooking if you have them growing in your garden.

6. Six-Ingredient Salsa Chicken

This may be the easiest recipe in the entire collection.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds chicken breasts or thighs
• 2 cups salsa
• 1 can black beans, drained
• 1 cup corn
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin

Directions

Place the chicken in the crockpot.

Add the salsa, black beans, corn, onion, and cumin.

Cover and cook on low for 5–6 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Shred the chicken with two forks and stir everything together before serving.

Homestead Tip

Serve this over rice, in tortillas, over baked potatoes, or simply in a bowl with whatever fresh vegetables you have available.

If you make your own salsa from garden tomatoes, peppers, and onions, even better.

7. Apple Cinnamon Crockpot Oatmeal

Not every crockpot recipe has to be supper.

This slow-cooker oatmeal makes a wonderful breakfast when you have a busy morning ahead.

Ingredients

• 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 3 cups milk
• 2 apples, peeled and chopped
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
• 1 cup water

Directions

Add all ingredients to the crockpot and stir.

Cover and cook on low for 6–8 hours.

Stir well before serving.

Homestead Tip

This is an excellent recipe for using apples you’ve stored from the fall harvest. Add chopped walnuts or pecans when serving if you have them available.

A Few Herbs Worth Growing for Crockpot Cooking

If you’re growing an herb garden—or thinking about starting one—these are some of the herbs I reach for most often when cooking simple meals:

Thyme — wonderful with chicken, beef, potatoes, beans, and vegetables.

Rosemary — especially good with chicken, potatoes, and root vegetables.

Sage — excellent with chicken, pork, beans, and hearty autumn dishes.

Oregano — useful in soups, beans, tomatoes, and Mexican-inspired dishes.

Parsley — a simple way to brighten soups and stews at the end of cooking.

One of the beautiful things about growing your own herbs is that a small garden can provide an incredible amount of flavor. Even if you don’t have a huge garden, a few pots of herbs near the kitchen can make a difference.

Keep It Simple

Homesteading doesn’t mean everything has to be made from scratch every single day.

Some days you might be baking bread, preserving tomatoes, tending the garden, or putting up food for winter.

Other days, you may simply need to put six ingredients in a crockpot and call it good.

That’s still homemade.

That’s still feeding your family.

And that’s still taking care of your home.

So save these recipes for one of those busy days when you want a nourishing meal waiting for you at the end of it.

I’ll be sharing more simple recipes, herbal living ideas, garden-to-table meals, and practical homesteading tips here.

Until next time, keep growing, cooking, and making a little more of what you need at home.