Slow Cooker Cowboy Casserole

If you’re looking for a hearty, comforting meal, look no further. This Slow Cooker Cowboy Casserole has everything you want in a comfort food, crock pot dinner. Ground beef with potatoes, peppers, corn, tomatoes and beans and our “secret ingredient” stirred in at the end to make it unbelievably cozy.

Why We Love This Slow Cooker Cowboy Casserole

What’s not to love about an easy crock pot dinner that not only feeds a crowd but will keep them full for hours? This is the perfect recipe to make for game days, a cozy weekend meal or an easy dinner during the week when schedules are tight.

• Packed with protein: We’ve got ground beef and beans and a secret stir in of refried beans at the end to make this casserole all the more cozy and comforting. You won’t find that in any other cowboy casserole recipe and we promise it makes all the difference.
• Loads of vegetables: We’re not leaving out our fiber! So many veggies are packed into this crock pot casserole it’s too much to count.
• Hearty & filling: We haven’t even talked about how delicious this casserole recipe is, but trust us, it is. And a bowl of this is going to fill you up for hours – so if you’re a house like ours that has hungry men or teenagers…this is the dinner to make.

What You Need To Make This Hearty Cowboy Casserole

Ok, so we do admit that there a few ingredients needed to make this crock pot dinner, but I promise you it’s worth it.

• Ground beef: We use a lean ground beef so it doesn’t get too greasy in the slow cooker. Something 85% or above works great. You can also swap out ground turkey, or do a combination with some Italian sausage added in.
• Potatoes: We want the potatoes to cook through in the slow cooker, so grab those small yellow or red potatoes and slice them thin.
• Peppers: You can use any color you like, or a combination of different colors. For some heat, try adding a seeded jalapeño!
• Corn: Fresh or frozen work best, canned works too but it’s our last choice for cooking long periods of time.
• Diced tomatoes: You can also use diced tomatoes with green chilis is you like it a little spicier.
• Pinto, kidney or black beans: Whatever you’re preference is!
• Refried beans: Our secret ingredient that you won’t find in any other cowboy casserole recipes! We love to stir in about a cup of refried beans at the end to give this casserole a creamy finish.
• Cheese: We like using Colby cheese but you can also use cheddar, Monterey jack, pepper jack or a combination.
• Garlic: Of course. Please try and use fresh garlic if you can – or instead of jarred garlic try using a fresh garlic paste (found in the produce section) or frozen garlic cubes (found in the freezer section).
• Seasonings: Chili powder, oregano, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce. And of course, salt and pepper.

How To Make Slow Cooker Cowboy Casserole

Step by step instructions here, but for the complete recipe scroll down to the recipe card below.

• Brown ground beef an onions in a skillet with oil. Once cooked through, drain the grease and then transfer to a 6-8 slow cooker.

• Add the rest of the ingredients shown here (head to the recipe card for complete ingredients) along with salt and pepper, oregano, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. After cooking, stir in a cup of refried beans and add a layer of shredded cheese on top to melt.

Why Are The Potatoes Still Crunchy?

You do have to slice the potatoes fairly thin so they cook through, no thicker than about 1/4 inch. You can see the size that we cut our potatoes in the photos above. Also, ours are not super uniform, some are bigger than others and that’s ok. Just not a large dice or a really thick slice and you’ll be fine.

Also we try to tuck the potatoes under the rest of the ingredients instead of sitting on top. Don’t open the lid too much because the steam is what helps cook the potatoes through.

Do I Have To Brown The Ground Beef Before Adding?

We’re going to say yes. I know there are a lot of slow cooker recipes that say you don’t have to do this step but we think it’s necessary. Browning the beef adds a lot of flavor to the dish that you won’t get from slow cooking the beef. It also allows you to drain and remove the grease that’s left behind. We don’t want any excess grease in the final dish, so take the extra few minutes and brown the beef first.

Variations To The Recipe

This cowboy casserole is super versatile, you can add in or swap out whatever you like! Use our recipe as a base and then swap out or add in your favorite ingredients.

• Instead of ground beef: Ground turkey or a combination or beef and sausage works well, too.
• Different beans: Like we mentioned before, you can add whatever beans you like here, or leave them out if beans aren’t for you. Hint: If you’re feeding people that say they don’t like beans…leave them out and stir in the refried beans at the end – they’ll never know.
• Different vegetables: You can add in other vegetables like chopped broccoli, different peppers, peas, scallions, even a sturdy leafy green like kale. If you like mushrooms, brown them with the beef before adding to remove some of the moisture.
• Make it spicy: You can spice this casserole up as much as you like. Add hot sauce or tomatoes with green chilis (like ro*tel), add in a diced jalapeño, or add crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.

How To Serve Cowboy Casserole

Serving this hearty slow cooker dinner is as easy as dishing it up into plates or bowls. Of course a dollop of sour cream or guacamole is always welcome, or some chopped fresh parsley or cilantro.

Our boys love eating this with tortilla chips instead of a spoon…it’s like beefy nachos in a bowl. If we have the time, especially if we’re making this dish for a party, we love making our sweet cornbread or our pumpkin cornbread as a side dish, depending on what season you’re in.

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