Far too often, when people think about crockpot cooking, they think about root vegetables and chunks of meat slowly simmering into a savory stew. And listen: savory stew? There’s nothing wrong with that! (In fact, there’s everything right with it, especially once the summer heat finally backs off.)
But the fact is a slow cooker can do so much more than slowly cook big hunks of food. In fact, your slow cooker can help you prepare whole meals as diverse as paella or a Cheeseburger Spaghetti, or can replace the laborious task of pre-cooking meats for tacos or casseroles, freeing you up for the rest of the meal’s prep, or just to… y’know… relax.
And for the record, no, we weren’t kidding when we said Cheeseburger Spaghetti. We actually have a recipe for it! In fact, as long as you have ordered your case of Zaycon Fresh 93/7 Lean Ground Beef and you have a crockpot at home, then we have not one, but three awesome ideas for your culinary consideration!
Let’s go ahead and start out with a recipe from our friend the foodie Darcy of DarcyandBrian.com: Crockpot Cheeseburger Spaghetti!
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of Zaycon Fresh lean ground beef
- 1 box of spaghetti noodles (approx. one pound)
- 2 jars of spaghetti sauce
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- Garlic powder to taste (or a fresh clove or two)
- Dried minced onion to taste (or fresh)
Directions:
- Brown the ground beef over medium heat; season with garlic, onion.
- Drain grease from the cooked beef.
- Pour one jar of spaghetti sauce into the crockpot, covering the bottom.
- Add the noodles, breaking them as necessary to fit.
- Add ground beef.
- Add shredded cheese.
- Pour second jar over the top of everything.
- Cook on LOW 2-4 hours. (May be done by 3)
Stir before serving! (If possible, try to stir about halfway through.)
Next let’s talk about the simplest possible way to pre-cook your 93/7 Lean Ground Beef prior to using it in a recipe (like tacos or burritos, a breakfast scramble, or in lasagna, to name a few). Good ol’ Mavis Butterfield (actually she’s pretty young, we’re just being folksy) of OneHundredDollarsaMonth.com has the 4-1-1 on crockpot cooking 93/7 Lean Ground Beef, and here it is!
Ingredients:
- 4 lbs ground beef
- Garlic salt
- Pepper
- Onions (you can use fresh or dried)
- Any other spices/seasoning your little heart desires!
Directions:
- Place four pounds of meat in crockpot.
- Completely break up meat if you plan to walk away from your crockpot and leave it. (The meat will cook exactly as you left it.)
- Sprinkle seasonings on top of meat (A lot of the seasoning cooks off, so I added more than I normally would).
Cook on low for about 5 hours or high for 2.5 hours. Done!
And last but not least, hey, why not go ahead and cook up a delicious stew in your crockpot? That’s one of the meals they cook best, after all! And considering you’ve got the ground beef, why not make it Crockpot Ground Beef Stew? Check out his recipe we found on trusty Food.com:
Ingredients:
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 6 medium potatoes, cubed
- 1 pound baby carrots, chopped
- 3 cups water
- 2 tablespoons onion soup mix
- 1 - 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Garlic powder and pepper to taste
- 1 can condensed tomato soup
- 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
Directions:
- Lightly brown beef in oiled skillet
- Combine all ingredients except beef in crockpot. Stir well.
- Add ground beef. Stir well.
- Cook on high for about 4.5 hours, then stir in tomato soup and paste
- Cook one more hour on high. Enjoy.
Share this Post