10 Unusual Foods You'd Never Think To Toss In Your Slow Cooker (But Should)

Whether you call it a slow cooker, crock pot, multi-cooker, or something else, these small appliances are just what you need to make meal times a breeze. I mean, just set it and forget, am I right? Even so, if you are new to using a slow cooker or simply want to branch out from the ordinary, it's easy to overlook its true potential. Everyone knows you can slow-roast meat and cook unlimited soups and stews like beef chili in a slow cooker, but what unexpected foods can the appliance also make light work of? As it turns out, lots — they are far from a one-trick pony.

After considering my many years of leaning into the convenience of a slow cooker, scouring Reddit threads, and sifting through recipes online, I came up with a list of 10 foods you'd never think to toss in the device, but should. So, if you're ready to put your slow cooker to the test and expand its repertoire, I've got you covered. Thanks to the undeniable convenience that comes along with the appliance, you won't have to push your culinary limits to pull any of the recipes off, either. Score!

Barring the weekends, mornings can be a blur for many of us. Just trying to get out the door is a chore in and of itself, so it's not uncommon for breakfast to take a back seat. Whatever is quickest becomes the weekday mantra without a second thought. However, your slow cooker can put an end to all that by helping you whip up a batch of French toast in advance. Before you get too excited, you should know that it won't lead to the same crispy results you get in a pan, but velvety French toast is packed with all the same flavors, and it's a textural delight by any standards.

Making slow cooker French toast takes about four hours on a low setting. You'll also need a few minutes for prep. With this in mind, having a batch ready for you in the morning will take some foresight. If you just so happen to be up in the middle of the night, you could always turn on your slow cooker then, but for most of us, the best plan of action is to meal prep. If you do, you can toss your pre-made French toast in the air fryer or microwave in the morning for a few minutes and voila — breakfast in a flash! This may not be the one-stop solution many of you were hoping for, but finding time to prep food is much easier at night.

When I consulted the Reddit hive mind about unique slow cooker recipes, lasagna was the first thing to jump out. People couldn't stop singing its praises, and can you blame them? Lasagna is one of life's cheesy, gooey little pleasures, and if you can have one ready and waiting for you when you get home from work, why wouldn't you? Regardless, making lasagna in your slow cooker is a breeze, and it allows you to add lots of layers. In fact, a commenter on Reddit said, "I call it Mile High Lasagna because I use a round pot and like 8 layers." As a Denver girlie, consider me sold.

You don't have to stick to a traditional lasagna recipe when opting to use your slow cooker, either. One commenter recommended using the appliance to make a chicken artichoke lasagna. Additional commenters also noted that thinly sliced zucchini or even cabbage can be used in place of noodles if you want. I don't know about you, but nothing can truly replace noodles in any meaningful way, but if you're looking for a healthier, less carb-dense option, I can see the appeal. Regardless of the filling you choose, I recommend adding extra sauce to prevent your lasagna from drying out.

For all of you who may be a bit disappointed with the multi-step process required to enjoy slow cooker French toast in the morning, that's not where the breakfast train stops with the handy appliance. Your slow cooker is a pro at making steel-cut oats as well. Unlike French toast, it'll take eight hours to complete the task (French toast takes four) — and if that doesn't sound like a good amount of sleep, I don't know what does.

Making slow cooker steel-cut oats couldn't be simpler. FYI: Your slow cooker can also prepare rolled oats, but steel-cut oats take a bit longer, making them perfect for getting a good night's sleep. Regardless, you'll start by greasing the bottom of your slow cooker pot. Then, add the oats, top it off with liquid (typically milk, cream, and water), add seasonings, and fire it up. You can also add a number of toppings to the mix while your slow cooker works its magic. Apple cinnamon slow cooker steel-cut oats is a classic pick, but feel free to experiment with other fruits and flavors as well. Maple syrup, anyone? Oh yeah, make sure to save anything crunchy, like nuts, to use as a garnish. You don't want these types of additions to lose all of their bite inside your steamy slow cooker.

Chai tea is somewhat of an acquired taste, but for those in the know, there's almost nothing better. In general, you can make chai tea like any other tea — on the stove in a matter of minutes — but one of its main appeals is the delectable aroma that inevitably wafts off of it. So, why not prolong the tea brewing process with your slow cooker and let the delicious smell fill your home at the same time? Think of it like a dual-action potpourri, if you will. Another bonus to slowly brewing chai tea this way is that it enables you to infuse it with extra spices, like star anise or nutmeg, to name a few. Sounds like a win-win to me.

Chai recipes rely a lot on the perfect balance of flavors, so make sure to follow your favorite one to a T (pun intended). However, your typical recipe includes spices such as cinnamon, ginger, cardamom pods, cloves, and peppercorns. To make a batch of slow cooker chai, start by tying the spices up in a square of cheesecloth and tossing the ball into your slow cooker with some water, of course (it is tea, after all). Then, set the appliance to low and let it simmer for approximately eight hours. About five minutes before enjoying it, add some black tea bags, and that's it.

One of my favorite dishes to put in a slow cooker is enchiladas. With enough sauce smothered over the top, they come out moist, rich, and oh so delicious. That goes for red, green, or white enchiladas, too. Think of it like Hispanic lasagna with tortillas instead of noodles — a dish we now know your slow cooker can tackle as well — and it makes perfect sense. If you want, you can even layer the ingredients like you would a lasagna. The flavors and textures will be there; it'll just have a different configuration. You can stuff them with just about anything you want as well, chicken, pork, mushrooms, green chiles, and cheese, whatever. Just make sure to add some extra sauce as well to prevent drying out.

Tamales fare well in a slow cooker as well. A commenter on Reddit also recommends making more of a tamale pie, with a cornbread mix on top. This eliminates the need to roll each tamale, saving you lots of time. However, they also said it "was dangerously good .. like.. I haven't made it since then because it entirely defeats the purpose of me making 'healthier' food at home to eat in reasonable quantities... I just ate way too much per sitting," so consider yourself warned.

Pancakes aren't the most difficult thing to make on the stove, but they sure require a lot of attention. If you don't flip them at the exact right moment, all kinds of issues can ensue. There's always the first, lesser-than pancake that often gets tossed in the trash as well. You can say goodbye to all of that if you make pancakes in your slow cooker, though. Well, what you get from using this method is actually one giant pancake that's easily sliced like a cake, but it's a pancake nonetheless. Talk about fluffy, too (I wasn't kidding when I said it would come out like a cake).

Making pancakes in your slow cooker couldn't be easier. Instead of pouring enough batter into the pot to make one pancake at a time, you go full force and add it all at once. Just make sure to line the pot with parchment paper or lots of butter first, and you should be good to go. As noted, this leads to one uber-fluffy pancake ready to serve a group, but that's part of its charm. After all, we are always trying to jazz up flapjacks with fruit, chocolate, and more, so why not play around with the configuration as well? It may be out of the ordinary, but it's worth it in the long run.

Flapjacks are kind of like the dessert of breakfast dishes, but what if you want to go all-in on dessert with a cake? Can your slow cooker help with that, too? You bet it can! Similar to how it helps you achieve the fluffiest pancakes (or should I say pancake), your slow cooker has what it takes to ensure your cake batter rises as well. Hooray!

Your slow cooker won't really limit you when it comes to cake recipes, either. It can help you create pineapple upside-down cake, chocolate lava cake, bread pudding, apple cake, shortcake, and so much more. Of course, extracting them won't be quite as simple, and you might wind up with more of a dump-style cake (all crumbly, but still delicious). Still, the flavors and textures will be on point, and if you line the pot with parchment paper, who knows, you might just be able to pull your cake out in all its perfectly shaped glory. Something tells me it might take a few tries to get it right, but just think of how rewarding it will be when you do. Challenge accepted.

Pure and simple, mashed potatoes are comfort food heaven. They are buttery, creamy, and smooth, and that's before you even add any extra flavors, like garlic or bacon. No matter how you choose to savor your mashed potatoes, though, your slow cooker can help you achieve a drool-worthy batch of them. Just in time for the holidays, right? The appliance may make the process take a bit longer (about four hours to get the potatoes fork-tender), but you won't have to watch over the dish the whole time, and it'll definitely free up some much-needed space on the stove.

There's one hitch to making slow cooker mashed potatoes: If you don't use the right ingredients, there's potential for the potatoes to develop an off-putting grey hue. Don't worry, though. There's a simple fix: Opt for heavy whipping cream instead of milk and dilute it with water or broth using a 7:1 ratio. If you do that, your slow cooker mashed potatoes will come out of the pot just as beautiful and delicious as anything you make on the stove. Plus, thanks to the extra cooking time, any flavors you choose to add will have time to fully seep into the potatoes, leading to more potent drool-worthy taste throughout.

Just when you thought pizza couldn't get any better, you find out your slow cooker can help you make one hassle-free — mind blown. At least that's how I felt when I first learned this. Whether you agree or not, your slow cooker can, in fact, help you unlock the secrets of deep dish-style pizza with ease. Will it be just as crispy as one that comes out of the oven? No. It probably will not be round and perfect as if you had baked it the traditional way, either, but who cares? It's deep dish pizza for cryin' out loud — it's supposed to be somewhat messy and soft.

Generally speaking, your slow cooker will take about two hours, on a low setting, to make a deep dish-style pizza (I say "style" because I don't want any Chicagoans to get up in arms). There aren't any changes when it comes to building it, though. Just make sure to grease the slow cooker pot thoroughly before pressing your pizza dough into the base, or line it with parchment paper, and the rest (aka slathering it with sauce and adding cheese and other toppings you might want) is as expected. You could also go for an even simpler approach and use puff pastry as your pizza crust. Either way, don't go too hard on the toppings, or your base will quickly turn to mush, and nobody wants a soggy crust.

We've already discussed how slow cookers can assist you in creating cakes for dessert, but what if you want to take an even easier route to tackle your next sweet treat? I mean, cakes require a lot of measuring and precision, so I get it. That's okay, though. Lucky for us, our slow cookers can also help us whip up tasty chocolate candies.

Simply toss some chocolate chips inside the pot, along with any other flavors or ingredients you might like — maybe nuts or even Rice Krispies — and let the slow cooker do the work. When your creation is melted enough to stir together, all that's left to do is scoop out chunks and leave them to dry and resolidify on parchment paper. Best of all, you only need about an hour to get the job done. Also, no judgment if you find yourself dipping things into the chocolatey, gooey mix while you wait.

Speaking of dipping, your slow cooker is also the key to dessert-style chocolate fondue. There's no need to buy a specific fondue set — that trend is too outdated for a special appliance to take up valuable space in my kitchen cabinets, anyway. Fortunately, though, if you still want an occasional taste of chocolate fondue, your slow cooker can pick up the slack.