Perfect for the whole family
These are easy slow cooker mince recipes that are cheap to make and that the whole family with love.
Using your slow cooker is a fantastic way to make the most of affordable meals for your family. When it comes to beef mince, the slow cooker is your friend. The gentle, even heat helps to break down the fibres in the meat, resulting in a beautifully soft and succulent texture. You can use beef mince to make a classic bolognese, chilli con carne, or even meatballs – the possibilities are endless.
One of the great things about slow cooker is that it is incredibly versatile. You can easily adapt the flavourings to suit your personal taste preferences or what you have in the cupboard. A dash of red wine, a sprinkle of herbs, or a spoonful of tomato puree can all help to elevate the dish.
So, if you’re looking for a fuss-free, flavourful way to use up that pack of beef mince, be sure to reach for your slow cooker. With minimal prep and maximum taste, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without this kitchen essential.
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Can I put mince in a slow cooker raw?
Yes, you can cook the mince raw in the slow cooker. It doesn’t need to be pre-cooked. Put the raw mince in the slow cooker, set the heat and leave it to cook.
What to make with mince beef in the slow cooker?
There are so many amazing meals that you can make using mince beef. Here are our family favourites below:
1. Slow cooker spaghetti bolognese
Spaghetti Bolognese is a huge hit in my house, mainly because the kids think they aren’t eating any veg and because I actually stick as much vegetables in as I can! It’s so easy to hide, compared to many of the other recipes I cook, which gets picked to pieces!
This slow cooker bolognese is really easy to make.
Low-calorie cooking spray 5p
1 onion, grated 10p
2 carrots, grated 8p
1 garlic clove, grated 5p
500g 5% lean beef mince £2.59
400g can chopped tomatoes 39p
2 tsp dried oregano 2p
1 beef stock cube 5p
350g dried spaghetti 30p
Total: £3.63 (that’s 91p a head for four people)
Start by putting your slow cooker on a low heat.
Add all the ingreidents to the slow cooker. You can use frozen vegetables if you prefer.
Put the lid on the slow cooker and cook for 6 hours on low and serve with spaghetti.
2. Slow cooker chilli con carne
This Chilli Con Carne Recipe isn’t spicy at all and is perfect for any home cook even if you are a beginner.
You can add almost everything to chilli con carne. It really does depend on how spicy you like it. You could add chilli powder, sour cream or mushrooms.
Read how to make our Slow cooker chilli Con Carne here.
500g minced meat £1.99
4 onions 32p
3 garlic gloves 7p
300ml chopped tinned tomatoes 28p
400g tinned kidney beans 30p
3 tbsp tomato puree 15p
Half a lime 12p
220ml stock 3p
4 tbsp low cal spray 20p
1 tsp salt 2p
Half tsp sugar 5p
180g Rice 24p
Total: £3.77
Start by finely chopping the garlic and onion. Drain the kidney beans in a sieve and then rinse with cold water.
Blend them with the chopped tinned tomatoes. Heat the low cal spray in a wok. Add the onions and fry them. Then add the garlic.
Stir in the mincemeat and cook it for ten minutes or in till it’s brown. Add the tinned tomatoes, 1 tsp of salt, small tsp of sugar. Add any other spices you like here. You can add ground black pepper or ground cumin.
Stir in 3 tbsp of tomato puree and the juice of the lime. Add the kidney beans and leave them to cook till soft. This will properly take about 5 minutes. Add in the 220ml of stock. Keep the lid on for about 15 to 20 minutes or until everything is cooked through. This is the point you want to start cooking the rice or any of your side dishes.
3. Slow cooker spaghetti meatballs
This meatball recipe includes making homemade meatballs and the sauce yourself. Please don’t be put off! It’s really simple to do and tastes so much better then the shop brought version.
Read how to make our Spaghetti Meatballs here.
This recipe takes about 15 minutes to prep and about 45 minutes to cook. Once it’s all in you can leave it though so don’t think you have to keep watching it.
500g minced meat £1.99
2 onion 16p
3 glove garlic 7p
1 egg 10p
1 tsp salt 2p
2 tsp low cal spray 10p
1 tin passata 32p
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar 3p
Half tablespoon sugar 5p
Half tablespoon salt 3p
210g Spaghetti 8p
Total: £2.95 = 73p a head
Add the minced meat, 1 chopped onion, crushed garlic, egg and salt.
If you like your meatballs spicy then you could also add chopped chilli flakes or Spicentice do a great spice pack that livens the dish up. Remember to use our code LASAVE20 for 20% off every purchase*.
Mix the ingredients together with your hands and make them into ball shapes. They should be quite small. We made about 16 small balls.
Leave them in a fridge while you prep the rest of the dish.
Preheat your oven to 200C. Put your meatballs on a baking tray on some greaseproof paper. Spray the meatballs and bake for around 30 minutes or in till they are cooked through.
For the sauce, put the pan on a low heat. Cooked the second onion and add the garlic. Cook for a minute.
Stir in the passata with the salt and sugar. Then add the balsamic vinegar with about 150ml of water. Put the lid on and cook in till bubbling. Then turn off the heat.
Once the meatballs are cooked through add them to the sauce. Put the lid back on and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes.
At this point put the spaghetti on a boil and follow the pack instructions. Serve them all piping hot.
4. Easy mince tacos
Beef mince tacos make a great weekend fakeaway meal that is perfect for the whole family and really cheap to make. Minced beef tacos are really easy to make and can be as spicy or not as you like.
Read how to make our mince tacos here.
100g mince 75p
175g baby corn 95p
190g frozen red onions 42p
100g red pepper 45p
110g kiwi fruit 60p
115g tomatoes 50p
5g garlic clove 2p
85g red cabbage 20p
Start by heating the oven at 200 degrees fan. Put the baby corn, red onion, and pepper into a roasting tin and add salt and oil over the top.
Add the kiwi and tomatoes on the side of the roasting tin, as these will need to be taken out before the other roasted vegetables. Put all this into the oven for 20 minutes.
If you are making your own tortillas, mix 60ml of water into the flour and make a dough. Knead until the dough is smooth and cut it into four. Roll out each piece onto a floured surface. Once ready, shape into a 16cm round tortilla. Once ready, cover with a tea towel as this will stop them from drying out.
After 20 minutes, take the tomato and kiwi out of the tin and put the rest of the vegetables back into the oven for a further 10 minutes.
Heat a wok and add your mince with a pinch of salt and any spices you are using and leave it to simmer lightly. It should all be brown when it is fully cooked.
While the vegetables are cooking, skin the kiwi and get as much of the inside of it out as you can into the bowl. It may still be hot though so be careful. Add the cooked tomatoes, garlic, some coriander, the bouillon, and paprika. Use a hand whisk or blender to make the salsa smooth.
Heat a wok or a large pan and cook the tortillas one at a time for a minute or two on each side. You won’t need any oil at all as the temperature of the pan will be hot. They will only need about a minute or two until you see them puff up.
5. Slow cooker beef lasagna
100g frozen onions
400g tin carrots
2 garlic cloves, grated
400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 wholewheat lasagne sheets
For the sauce:
400ml whole milk
50g wholemeal flour
25g grated cheddar cheese
Heat the slow cooker on low and start to fry off the mince, onion and garlic. Once the mince is starting to brown, add the tin of chopped tomatoes and puree. Cover and shimmer for 10 minutes or until it starts to bubble. You want most of the sauce to have thicken before you transfer it to the slow cooker.
When the sauce has reduced, transfer half to the slow cooker. Add 2 lasgna sheets side by side if they can fit.
Try not overlap the lasagna sheets as they tend not to cook this way. Feel free to break them up to cover the mince.
Add the rest of the mince on top and 2 more lasgana sheets.
Set your slow cooker to low and cover. Now it is time to make the sauce.
Add the milk to a sauceplan and slowly add the flour and cheese into the milk. Keep mixing as it will go lumpy quickly! You are looking for a smooth texture with the sauce.
Once the cheese sauce is smooth, pour on top of the lasgna and replace the lid. Cook for 3 hours or until the pasta feels soft.
You may need to remove the lid for the last 10 minutes to get rid of any extra water at the bottom of the slow cooker.
6. Beef stew slow cooker recipe
This budget stew does need to be cooked on low to make sure its soft to eat but is tender after a day of cooking. This dish can be bulked out with potatoes, and the cooking liquor is optional.
1 tbsp oil 5p,
100g bacon 56p,
400g mince beef £1.50,
Frozen onion 22p,
400g tin carrots 18p,
400g tin potatoes 46p,
2 stock cubes 12p,
Leek 52p,
Total: £3.61 that’s 90p a head.
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7. Slow cooker mince
This is a simple recipe that I used to eat as a kid. It’s pretty much meat, two vegetables and potatoes but it tastes lovely in the slow cooker.
We throw all the frozen vegetables and mince in together and let it cook.
500g minced beef
200g frozen mixed vegetables (we like carrots, peas and green beans)
200ml beef stock
400ml beef gravy
100g frozen onion
Start by putting your slow cooker on a low heat.
Add your mince, which you can break apart if you wish, the frozen vegetables and the stock and gravy.
Cook on low for 6 hours.
We serve ours with some tin mini potatoes.
Laura x
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