Slow Cooker Turkey Meatloaf (with Stovetop stuffing)
54 Comments Mar 07, 2023
Updated Mar 19, 2025
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This Slow Cooker Turkey Meatloaf is made with ground turkey, Stovetop stuffing, celery, carrot, and a few seasonings you’ll most likely already have on hand. This comforting meal is flavorful, delicious, and sure to be a huge hit for the whole family.
If you happen to have leftover turkey, consider using it to make these Slow Cooker Turkey Meatballs.
Table of Contents
Why this crock pot turkey meatloaf recipe works
Most traditional meatloaf recipes call for tons of ingredients, but not this time. Instead of using crackers, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and lots of seasonings like onion powder and garlic powder, this recipe brings together the bare minimum for the most flavor.
The prep time is moderate and the cooking time isn’t too long, which means you can make slow cooker turkey meatloaf early in the day and have it ready by dinnertime. Oh, and you can skip the special pans because this delicious meatloaf is cooked in the slow cooker.
Recipe Ingredients
- Ground Turkey: Turkey is one of the healthier meats and still provides a good taste and texture like ground beef.
- Stovetop Stuffing: Be sure to grab the turkey kind to keep the flavors the same. This works much like using regular breadcrumbs or crushed crackers.
- Vegetables: You will only need one celery rib, one large carrot, and a large onion all of which will be diced and kneaded into the ground turkey.
- Eggs: Most traditional meatloaf recipes use eggs to help with binding everything together.
- Milk: Add a bit of moisture to the meat mixture.
- Seasonings: Salt, black pepper, and rubbed sage give this meatloaf the perfect flavor.
- Butter: Melted butter will be used to saute the vegetables until just soft.
Step-by-Step Directions
Step One – Melt the butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat. Once melted, saute the carrots, onion, and celery until soft.
Step Two – Add the turkey, stuffing mix, eggs, salt, pepper, rubbed sage, and milk into a large bowl along with the cooked and cooled onions, carrots, and celery.
Step Three – Mix everything together with clean hands.
Step Four – Shape the meatloaf mixture into loaf form in the slow cooker.
Step Five – Cover and cook meatloaf on LOW for 5 hours without opening the lid during the cooking time.
Step Six – While still in the crockpot, cut the meatloaf into slices for easy serving. Enjoy!
How to serve
- Serve this slow cooker meatloaf alongside a few tasty side items such as mashed potatoes and gravy, steamed green beans, mac and cheese, steamed broccoli, and/or roasted veggies. Don’t forget the dinner rolls!
- If you want to add a sauce topping, consider bbq sauce, tomato sauce, chili sauce, or ketchup.
- You can also serve meatloaf sandwiches on white bread, a hoagie bun, or Italian bread.
Recipe FAQs and Variations
If you want to stick with a meatloaf recipe similar to when using ground beef, you can add diced bell pepper.
In addition to kosher salt, black pepper and age, you can add onion powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, and/or an all-purpose seasoning.
Sure! You can use beef, ground chicken, ground pork, or a combination of them.
Put any remaining meatloaf in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
No. That isn’t necessary since there are enough juices from the turkey.
Yes! You can premake the meatloaf, cover it in plastic wrap, and keep in the fridge overnight.
Here are my other favorite Slow Cooker Meatloaf Recipes:
- Slow Cooker Meatloaf
- Slow Cooker Italian Meatloaf
- Slow Cooker Bacon Barbecue Meatloaf
- Slow Cooker Meatloaf and Baked Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Lipton Onion Meatloaf
- Slow Cooker Taco Stuffed Peppers
- Slow Cooker Hobo Dinner (with meatloaf)
Slow Cooker Turkey Meatloaf
Ingredients
- ½ cup diced carrots
- ½ cup diced onion
- ½ cup diced celery
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 2 lbs. ground turkey,, I use 7% fat
- 6 oz. box turkey Stove-Top® Stuffing
- 2 eggs
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- ½ tsp. rubbed sage, not ground, this is still from a jar
- 3 Tbsp. milk
Instructions
- In a medium sized skillet set over medium high heat. Add the butter, when the butter is melted sauté the carrots, onion, and celery until soft. This will take about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool while you get the other ingredients ready.
- In a large bowl add the turkey, stuffing mix, eggs, salt, pepper, rubbed sage and milk. Add in the cooked and cooled onions, carrots and celery. Mix together with clean hands.
- Shape the meat mixture into loaf form in the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 5 hours without opening the lid during the cooking time.
- Serve and enjoy!
How to Video
Sarah’s Notes
- Ground beef can be used instead of turkey.
- You can make the meatloaf the night before and cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge
- Put any remaining meatloaf in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
Has anyone ever frozen this first? Could you? Would you thaw then place in slow cooker or cook frozen frozen with a couple hours tacked onto cooking time?
I would thaw first. 🙂
Hi! This recipe looks amazing, I found it on Pinterest. I’m quite eager to try it, however I won’t be able to work within the 5hr cooking timeframe unless I wait till my day off…. which I’d rather not wait haha. If I were to cook it in the oven, at what temperature and how long would you say?
350 degrees for about an hour covered in foil, I usually take the foil off towards the end.
Thank you so much!
I wanted to make this however, I do not have a Crockpot that is the recommended size. I appreciate your posting an alternate cooking method. I have two questions.
1. Are you placing the finished product in a regular loaf pan to cook?
2. Can the recipe be altered for a 4qt Crockpot?
Thanks.
You can cook in a 4 quart, I do not put in a loaf pan, try to put the meat in the crockpot without touching the side edges, can make it a round loaf.
Hi Sarah, my question is do you use the seasoning that comes with the stove top stuffing? I would love to try this. It looks and sounds amazing.
The stove top stuffing has the seasoning mixed in, so yes 🙂
oh ok, Sorry its been so long since I used Stove top, I was thinking separate packets like hamburger helper
I remember that!
Can you sub the turkey for ground beef and. Chicken stuffing?
I don’t see why not! Let me know how it turns out.
Sarah – if I don’t have Turkey stuffing but instead have Stove Top Cornbread Stuffing, do you think that would work?
Yes that would work fine! Might be even better!
Thanks for the guidance Sarah! I’ll let you know how it turns out! Your recipes are a BIG hit for me – they’re so easy – and so yummy! I make dinner for my elderly parents and take it to them every week – the slow cooker option is so fantastic, and they’re loving your recipes too!
That’s really great to hear Steve! I’m glad your parents enjoy the recipes too!
I love this. I modified it based on the time I had to prep and the ingredients I had on hand. It was AMAZING. I omitted the celery and carrots but did use a little celery salt. I added a half can of cream of mushroom soup in with the mix and I sautéed the onion along with minced garlic with a tiny bit of butter. Cooked it all up and in the last 15 minutes of cooking added the rest of the can of soup (the loaf was a little dry for me along the bottom) to the sides of the loaf and added a half can of brown gravy to the top and cooked that for an additional 15 minutes. Best meatloaf ever
Hi Lisa – I just signed up for your weekly emails!!
This Stove Top Turkey Meatloaf recipe sounds really good and I want to try it but I have a couple questions first. 1) Do you need to put any liquid in the crock pot?. I didn’t see any mentioned but I just wondered. 2) My crock pot is only a 4 QT., will it still fit and cook well?
Thanks,
Lori
Hi Lisa, I think a 4-quart should do fine, just keep the lid on the entire time. No liquid needed! It will stay moist if the lid is left on.
I wonder if you could substitute Bells or poultry season for the sage.
I was thinking of making this into meatballs and cooking in the gravy in the crockpot.
Hi Lisa, you can substitute whatever you would like. It just needs a little something extra! Meatballs is gravy sound so good!
can you make meatloaf without using eggs? I want to can some and am concerned about canning eggs.
I made this without eggs and it turned out great. I increased the milk from 2 tablespoons to about 1/3 cup to make up for the moisture.
This looks and sounds amazing however unfortunately for me i have celiacs disease. My local grocery store does sell a gluten free stove top stuffinf mix that im going to try as a substitute for the regular. Hopefully it turns out ok but you never know foe sure when substituting something gluten free for something that wasnt. If it turns out ok ill keep you posted. Im on your weekly mailing list so i get your recipes all the time and most of them i can try without changibg anything and if i do its just something simple like gluten free soy sauce instead of regular and id like to thank you for that. Now a days its all fillers and junk but you keep it simple and real the way it should be so thank you for sending out healthy options that arent all fillers and junk
Hi Dana! I think it should be fine with the gluten free stove top! It’s great that there is that option for gluten free people