How to Make Ground Beef in the Crockpot
1 Comment Sep 20, 2023
Updated Jul 30, 2025
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Can you cook ground beef in crock pot? Absolutely, and this Slow Cooker Ground Beef recipe will make cooking it a breeze! With just a few ingredients and a few hours of cooking time, you can make a bulk batch of beef.
If you love meal prepping and lazy cooking, then you will love making ground beef in the crockpot. The slow cooker makes the meat ultra tender, and also makes plenty of it for later in the week or freezing for later. My recipe has the perfect flavoring that is neutral and recipe ready.
Key Ingredients
Ground Beef: This recipe calls for 2 pounds of ground beef. I suggest using beef that falls between 7–20% fat so you don’t have much grease to drain from the cooked meat.
Seasonings: Garlic powder and onion powder are classic flavors to spruce up plain ground beef, the flavors go well in any recipe you’ll want to use the meat in.
Onion: A small white onion is diced and added for both texture and to make the beef a bit heartier.
How to Make Ground Beef in the Crockpot
- Add the ground beef and onion to the slow cooker.
- Let it cook low and slow, breaking up the meat partway through.
- Once fully cooked, drain off any excess liquid and it’s ready to use.
Ways to use Ground Beef
You can use up this meat in so many ways during the week, here is how I use it:
- Add taco seasoning and make tacos, burritos, nachos and more.
- Sloppy joes are an easy dinner—use a can of Manwich or make your own sauce.
- The ground meat is great for topping a green salad with ranch dressing.
- Crockpot ground beef is great for making chili, rotel dip, and stuffed peppers.
- Make Italian dishes like slow cooker spaghetti sauce, crockpot lasagna, and ravioli lasagna in a pinch.
Is it safe to cook raw meat in the slow cooker?
Yes, you can cook raw meat in the slow cooker. That’s exactly what it’s designed for! Just keep the lid on while it cooks and always check that the meat is fully cooked before serving.
Can I put frozen ground beef in the slow cooker?
No, it’s not safe to put frozen meat in the slow cooker. It may stay too long in the temperature danger zone, which can allow harmful bacteria to grow. Always thaw meat completely before cooking.
How to Store Ground Beef
Let the ground beef cool for about 30 minutes. Spoon into small portions using quart-size Ziplock bags. Or add to Tupperware. Place in the fridge for up to three days or freeze for up to three months.
How to Make Ground Beef in the Crockpot
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. ground beef, (7-20 % fat)
- 1 ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. onion powder
- 1 small white onion, diced
Instructions
- Crumble the beef slightly with your fingers and add to the slow cooker.
- Sprinkle over the salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.
- Add the diced white onion. Stir.
- Cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 3 hours. Stirring occasionally, when stirring break up the meat with the spatula.
- Serve and enjoy.
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
I love the idea of doing this! Could I also add one pound of breakfast sausage to the mix? Would the cooking time change?