I’m taking dinner to the next level of easy with this Slow Cooker Meatloaf Stuffed Peppers and Mashed Potatoes. It’s a complete meal the whole family will love with super easy prep and clean up.
I’ve been on this kick lately where I am determined to make complete meals in either one pot, one casserole or in the slow cooker, and by golly, it’s making my life so much easier!
If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen that we’re moving (again), and when I asked for some tips from you guys on how to keep my life less stressful for the whole transition you guys pointed right back to my site and said easy dinners help keep you less stressed with everything else that’s going on in your life.
Wow. Talk about humbling. And I totally agree. Knowing what’s for dinner is a great way to check one item off my mental checklist.
Let’s talk about these Slow Cooker Meatloaf Stuffed Peppers and Mashed Potatoes! I married the idea of my Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes with my Slow Cooker Stuffed Peppers and BAM! A new and delicious dinner idea was born.
You guys are going to LOVE this, I know it.
Slow Cooker Meatloaf Stuffed Peppers Cooking Tips:
- I know you’re going to ask this, so I’ll just go ahead and answer now – No, you should NOT make this in your Instant Pot. The peppers are too delicate to withstand the amount of time the potatoes and meat need to cook under pressure.
- I made 4 peppers with 1 pound of ground beef, but could easily fit a fifth pepper in my slow cooker by adding an additional 1/4 pound beef to the recipe.
- The ground beef will release fat when cooked that is trapped inside each bell pepper. After cooking, simply use some tongs and drain the fat before topping with ketchup.
- Feel free to top each pepper with cheese when done cooking for an added level of deliciousness.
One of my favorite parts about this recipe is that the potatoes act like a barrier for the peppers and also create a delicious side dish at the same time!
Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes Tips:
- I used peeled russet potatoes for this recipe, but I’m sure other types of potatoes would work well.
- Try to cut all your potatoes as close to the same size for a more even consistency when cooking.
- No need to drain the cooking liquid once they’re done cooking. Simply mash, then eyeball and add more sour cream and butter to taste as you go.
- There will most likely be some browned potatoes on the bottom, don’t worry, these still mash beautifully.
Once the peppers are cooked, pull them out of the crock pot, drain any fat inside each pepper and then place in an oven safe dish. Spread a little ketchup on top of each meatloaf stuffed pepper and pop under the broiler for just a few minutes.
That last step is optional, but I highly recommend it!
The peppers are the perfect capsule for the deliciously tender meatloaf! My kids and I could not get enough of them!
A complete meal in one pot… doesn’t get much better than that!
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Slow Cooker Meatloaf Stuffed Peppers Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 bell peppers
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1/2 cup onion
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp garlic powder, dried parsley, salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
For the Mashed Potatoes
- 2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1 inch cubes
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 to 3 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Cut off the tops of the bell peppers and remove any seeds inside, discard tops and seeds.
- In a medium bowl combine the ground beef, diced onion, breadcrumbs, ketchup, egg, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, dried parsley, salt and black pepper. Mix until combined then divide mixture between bell peppers. Set aside.
- Line the bottom of your slow cooker with the cubed potatoes (make sure it's an even layer), then add the 1/2 cup water and sprinkle with the 1/2 tsp garlic powder and onion powder. Place the stuffed peppers on top of the potatoes and cover with the lid. Cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 6 to 7 hours.
- The potatoes will be done when they are fork tender. Use tongs to remove the peppers and carefully tip over to allow any fat to drain out and discard. If desired, place the stuffed peppers in a small baking dish and top with ketchup and pop under your broiler for about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile mash the potatoes (no need to drain the cooking liquid). Add the sour cream and butter and continue to mash until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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Gina
My crock pot is 8 qts. Would it be to large for this recipe.
Shawn
Nope! You should be great!
Jake
Wow, truly remarkable idea! I love the idea of a one pot meal, and am a huge fan of meatloaf and stuffed peppers, so I’ll definitely be trying this soon!
Chelsea Fentress
So I made this recipe a couple times, once exactly as written and and twice with a few tweaks. It was okay, but a little bland in my opinion. The second time I made it, I doubled the spices and tripled the salt and it was much better. I also made it a 3rd time using crushed, ranch flavored croutons in place of bread crumbs and doubles salt only and OMG delicious twist. Thanks for the recipe, it’s been fun/easy to tweak and my 3 year old thinks it’s cool to eat stuffed things so it works out good next time I may try a dry ranch packet in place of spices. I’ll let you know how it goes
Anna
I cannot wait to try this out! 🙂 I will cook it tonight for my hubby and I 🙂
Shawn
Hope you two enjoyed it Anna!
Rhonda
I prepared this recipe for dinner tonight. Smells were wafting about 2 hours in–oh my! I used red and yellow potatoes because they are what I had on hand–I also diced them smaller than 1 inch. There are little extra brown bits around the outer edge of my pot that are delightful. I stirred them well before mashing, and made brown gravy for the meal. This is a winner meal, and one that I will use over and over! Thank you Shawn!
Shawn
Hi Rhonda, That’s awesome! I’m so happy to hear you are enjoying the recipe.
HP
Love the recipe over all. This is now the only meatloaf recipe we use in the house. Our one beef is with the potatoes. I did the 1” cubes the first go round and did 1/4” this time. Still have to boil them on the stove after 7 hours on low in the slow cooker. I use all of the remaining liquid then add water to cover them before boiling them. They’re extra tasty with the liquid from the crock pot vs just water.
Linda Leone
This is genius! I can’t wait to try this! I like the idea of stuffed peppers, but never liked the beef rice combo. This is perfect answer! I enjoy so many of your recipes, thanks so much! I especially like your tips and comments.
Mandy
What size slow cooker do you use for this?
Shawn
My slow cooker is an 8 quart size, but you could probably get away with using a smaller one too.
Micheal Ronel
Great idea to cook beef with mashed potatoes. Love this recipe, will try it soon.
Shawn
Hope you enjoy it Micheal!
Carol Vansalisbury
This s sounds delish, can t wait to try.
Sheila
This sounds delicious and easy. Can you substitute ground turkey? Do the times need to be adjusted?
Shawn
Yes, you can use ground turkey in place of the beef. No time changes!
Martha in KS
As a young bride (pre-microwave days) I made stuffed peppers & put them in the crockpot and set baking potatoes on top. The potatoes & peppers were both cooked when I got home from work.
Bettye
You said you could not do this with the instant pot – but the instant pot has a slow cooker function button. Can’t that be used? I hope so because I got rid of my slow cooker when I bought the Instant pot.
Thank you, this looks delicious.
Shawn
Yes, you can still use the slow cooker function of the instant pot. Just not the pressure cooking function.
Bettye
Thanks!
Pam
Any chance cauliflower can be used in place of the potatoes to make this a little healthier?
Shawn
I’m sure that would work! I haven’t tried it, so if you do, let us know!
Mary Duncan
Why didn’t I think of cooking the peppers in a slow cooker. Thanks for the idea, Ruth!
Shawn
Hope you enjoy them!