Chelsea's Messy Apron

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{Slow Cooker} Sweet Potato Casserole

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A delicious sweet potato casserole with pecans all made in the slow cooker. One way to save some oven space for Thanksgiving is to use the crockpot!

Save your oven space! The BEST crockpot sweet potato casserole
It’s time for some Thanksgiving recipes!! The husband, well, he’s pretty excited that he’s basically getting Thanksgiving for a lot of the month of October/November. He has requested that I “recipe experiment” with making several hams before the actual holiday. Basically, I need to buy ham and prepare it more because he loves it. Got it!

Anyways, in kicking off these Thanksgiving recipes I’ve got for you all, I had to start with a personal favorite. SWEET POTATOES! I love sweet potatoes. I eat them year round, but Thanksgiving gives me even more of an excuse to eat them, well, pretty much every day. And in all honesty, out of all the delicious Thanksgiving recipes available, sweet potato casseroles have always been my favorite. I know, I’m crazy.

So here’s the good news though. You know how there is likely a bazillion and one things to cook in your ovens on Thanksgiving? Well this recipe is going to save you some of that limited oven space! It is all made in the slow cooker. That’s right! Mixed in the slow cooker and then cooked in the slow cooker. And if you are like me — eaten right out of the slow cooker. Since it wasn’t a formal dinner or anything (yet), it was totally acceptable.

PLUS, this sweet potato casserole can also be made the night before and then popped into your slow cooker the day of.  (Win!)

Save oven space -- use the slow cooker to make this sweet potato casseroleEasy Crockpot Sweet Potato CasseroleThe best crockpot sweet potato casserole

So let’s talk about the ingredients, first off, sweet potatoes – they are canned. So I tried this recipe with both fresh and canned sweet potatoes, and honestly, the canned were better in my opinion. Plus, the ease with the canned, it’s a pretty big difference! But if you want to use fresh sweet potatoes, totally acceptable and tastes fantastic; you’ll just have a few extra steps. You’ll need to peel, chop, and boil the sweet potatoes until they are soft enough to mash. Then you are right up to speed with the rest of the instructions 🙂

As far as the other ingredients in the casserole, there is some butter, sugar (both brown and white), some eggs, milk, vanilla, and orange juice. Don’t forget the orange juice – it gives the casserole a little bit of “zing” and such a great flavor! You could also add a little bit of cinnamon here, but that’s totally up to you.Easy (Make the Night Before) Crockpot Sweet Potato Casserole

Next, the “topping.” It’s basically just brown sugar, flour, pecan chips, butter, and a little vanilla. Delicious. I loved this topping cooked in the slow cooker, but if you want it a little crispier, you can pop this casserole in the oven to crisp the top. You literally just blend all of the ingredients together (I did this IN the crockpot) and then smooth them with a spatula. Mix together that topping and spread it on top. And that’s it!!

This casserole may taste like you slaved away all day in the kitchen, but it can be our secret that it only took about 10 minutes prep 🙂
The BEST sweet potato casserole

VIDEO TUTORIAL:

4.87 from 22 votes
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{Slow Cooker} Sweet Potato Casserole
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
3 hrs
Total Time
3 hrs 10 mins
 
Servings: 10
Author: Chelsea
Ingredients
  • 2 (29 ounces each) canned sweet potatoes
  • 1/4 cup butter softened
  • 2 tablespoons white sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 and 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon orange juice
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup milk I used whole
Topping
  • 3/4 cup pecan chips
  • 2/3 cup brown sugar lightly packed
  • 1/4 cup white flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup butter melted
Instructions
  1. Either line your slow cooker with a disposable liner or spray generously with nonstick spray. I use a 6 quart slow cooker for this recipe.
  2. Drain the sweet potatoes. Add the sweet potatoes, butter, white sugar, pinch of salt, brown sugar, and orange juice in the slow cooker.
  3. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Pour in the lightly beaten eggs, vanilla extract, and milk into the slow cooker.
  4. Beat until completely smooth. (Alternatively, you can beat all of these ingredients in a different bowl).
  5. Smooth the mixture with a spatula.
  6. In a small bowl, stir together all of the topping ingredients. Spread the topping mixture evenly on top of the sweet potatoes.
  7. Cover the crockpot and cook on high for 2 and 1/2 to 4 hours depending on how hot your slow cooker cooks.
Recipe Notes

Recipe highly adapted from Allrecipes

 

 

Save oven space!! The BEST slow cooker sweet potato casserole - can be made the night before!
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Comments

    • 4 stars
      You don’t have to kill yourself peeling and chopping and boiling. Wash and remove all the little stringy things from your sweet potatoes. Wrap in foil. Bake in oven 450 degrees for about 90 minutes depending on how big your sweet potatoes are. Less time for smaller ones. Let cool. I bake mine the night before and let them cool overnight in the foil on the counter. In the morning simply peel the jackets right off. MUCH easier than trying to peel and chop and then boil those tough taters! Plus they smell wonderful when baking.

      Reply

      • 5 stars
        Thank you so much for your great, easy way of getting the sweet potatoes ready for recipes, what a wonderful time-saver! Well, if not so much a “time-saver”, definitely a “hard work saver”! Sweet potatoes aren’t always that FUN to prepare, not even close to as much fun as they are to EAT!! I LOVE your idea and will definitely give it a try!! My only question is this; you mention leaving the baked sweet potatoes on the counter overnight, I wouldn’t expect this to be safe, don’t they need to be refrigerated after you have baked them? Maybe that’s a silly question, but I’ve always assumed that they would need to be refrigerated after baking…
        Thank you in advance for any advice you have to offer!
        Thanks Tammie!

        Reply

  3. I’m totally there with ‘ya on slow-cooking on Thanksgiving! Saves so much oven space which that turkey definitely needs! 😉 This casserole looks absolutely perfect—sweet potatoes with TONS of streusel is an absolute must around here. 😀

    Reply

  5. Do you think I could double this? I need to cook for a big group and this would be a perfect solution. Although the single recipe might be enough for me in a few sittings! Thank you for the simple, fabulous idea!!

    Reply

    • Hi Michele!! I haven’t tried doubling the recipe, so I’m not sure (sorry!!). I’m just worried the edges might start to get too crispy and maybe even burned, while the middle isn’t cooked through. Let me know if you end up trying it and how it works! Sorry to not be of more help.

      Reply

      • When using the casserole mix that’s already made in the can how long do I cook the entire thing for? We found a great casserole mix already made in a can! Just wondering if it’s still 3 hour cook time when not making from scratch?!?!

        Reply

        • Hey Aleta, I haven’t tried any sorts of casserole mixes for this recipe (only the recipe written), so I couldn’t say how it would work; sorry and good luck!

          Reply

      • Hi, I’m wondering if the topping can be done nut-free?? I’m making this for a 1st grade feast and there are nut allergies.

        Reply

        • Hi Melissa! I haven’t tried this without a nut topping, but you could leave off the topping entirely if needed and just cook the potatoes. Another option would be to transfer the cooked sweet potatoes from the crockpot to a casserole dish and broil miniature marshmallows in the oven.

          Reply

    • Hi Chelsea,
      I have doubled this recipe quite a few times in my big 7 qt. cookers. It takes a little longer to cook and you have to be careful that it doesn’t overcook, but it can be done.

      Reply

  8. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I’m making this for Thanksgiving since I work the first half of the day and don’t have much time to prepare for dinner. I’m excited to try this! 🙂

    Reply

  11. Thank you for posting this! It looks amazing and I have already shared it with my momma and we have added it to our Thanksgiving menu! MMM…can’t wait to try it!

    Reply

  13. I definitely have never tried sweet potato casserole in the slow cooker. Such a genius idea! The topping sounds just as good too. I can see how hard it would be to resist eating this straight from the slow cooker! 🙂

    Reply

  16. This looks so yummy! I only used my slow cooker once so far but I’ll have to get it out again. Pineda! And haha, I bet your husband is happy to be eating Thanksgiving food for almost a month – mine is already giddy for all the Christmas cookies 😀

    Reply

  17. This looks absolutely delicious! Can you tell me what size slow cooker you used? I have a six quart. Thanks.

    Reply

  21. 5 stars
    I love sweet potato casserole, but I always end up boiling potatoes and then using the oven. Love that you made these in the crockpot! I will definitely have to try this recipe out for Thanksgiving, the topping just makes this dish perfect. Pinning!

    Reply

  22. I love that this is for your crockpot! I always always have wayyyy too much in my oven on Thanksgiving so this is an awesome solution to clear out some room!

    haha oh husbands. Mine has made similar requests. Which cracks me up since I started recipe testing in October for Thanksgiving! It’s not like he’s missing out 🙂

    Reply

  24. Whoa! Never thought to make sweet potato casserole in the slow cooker! MUST do this for Thanksgiving this year. or just because because sweet potato casserole is one of the best things in the world. Great recipe, Chelsea!

    Reply

  26. Love that there is one less thing to cook in the oven 🙂 Making sweet potato casserole in the slow cooker is such a great idea! It looks so incredible!

    Reply

  27. Mmm sweet potato casserole is one of the things we all look forward to on Thanksgiving. Although some of us fall birthdays request it on our birthday because we’d like it more than once – like the hams! I love that he wants you to experiment … he knows what this food blogging thing is all about 🙂 That topping looks incredible. You had me at pecan chips!

    Reply

  28. 5 stars
    I am not a big “Thanksgiving food” fan, I don’t really care for turkey or ham or the green beans but I do FILL my plate with potatoes of every variety! 🙂 This looks wonderful! Love the topping!

    Reply

  29. 5 stars
    Chelsea, what a delicious recipe! I also eat sweet potato all year along and my husband is a ham lover too 😉
    I love that this recipe is all made in the slow cooker, because as you said it is always very hard to fit everything in the oven on Thanksgiving. Pinned!!

    Reply

  30. I have a bunch of slow cooker recipes to roll out for Thanksgiving because dude there is never enough room in the oven! I love the idea of moving this casserole out of the oven and into the slow cooker. 😀 Looks to die for, Chelsea!

    Reply

  39. 5 stars
    This may be a crazy question, but did you use the canned sweet potatoes in syrup? Or is there an option without syrup? I’ve never been able to find plain canned sweet potatoes.

    Reply

    • Hmm I have no idea what the syrup is; I used real canned sweet potatoes. I find them next to the canned vegetables like corn and peas. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  40. 4 stars
    This looks perfect. We are having a pot-luck pre-Thanksgiving lunch at work so I wanted to use my slow cooker to keep my dish warm. I love sweet potato casserole, so this is the perfect solution…Thank you for the great idea!

    Reply

  41. This looks delicious! I plan on making it for Thanksgiving. I do have one question though, did you drain the syrup from the cans of sweet potatoes or just pour it all in and mix everything together?

    Reply

  43. 5 stars
    S0 because I am a little obsessed with making recipes a little cleaner I did this with your sweet potato casserole for our families Thanksgiving last Sunday and it was still a hit! I subbed raw honey for all the white sugar and used almond milk instead of cow milk (mostly because we had run out of cow milk) and whole wheat flour for the white flour. I didn’t make any other changes as I really wanted to try this recipe out without wrecking it! It was GREAT! I also doubled everything for a large group and it went just fine in the crockpot. THANK YOU!!!

    Reply

    • So great to hear you enjoyed this!! Love the healthier substitutions! 🙂 Thanks for the comment!

      Reply

  44. A family member has requested this for fourth of july. But she wants marshmallows. I’ve never made this. Should I top it with ur topping then marshmallow or will the the too sweet?

    Reply

    • I haven’t tried adding a marshmallow topping to this, but I imagine it would be quite sweet with both toppings! I’m also not certain the marshmallows will cook well in a slow cooker…

      Reply

    • You can finish it off with the miniature marshmallows afterwards. My Granny always made sweet potato casserole for Thanksgiving (not in a crockpot) and she had this type of topping and the melted miniature marshmallows on top. You will just have to transfer the sweet potato casserole with the above topping to a casserole dish and finish off in the oven (I’ve also read on another site people used a broiler) to melt the marshmallows.

      I’ve never used a crockpot for sweet potato casserole before, but I’ve decided to make all my sides in crockpots this Thanksgiving. I will also add the miniature marshmallows because that’s just how we always did it in SE Alabama and I want it keep it as traditional as possible since I’m now in WA State.

      Reply

  47. Looks perfect for my Thanksgiving meal! However, I have fresh sweet potatoes from my in laws garden. How many should I use?

    Reply

  48. This looks amazing and I am planning on making it for Thanksgiving this year. In the past my family has always had marshmallows with our sweet potatoes. I wonder if anyone has made this exact recipe and then added mini marshmallows after?

    Reply

    • Hey Christina! I haven’t, so I hope others could comment if they have, BUT I do think if you made the sweet potato base without the pecans in the crockpot you could put mini marshmallows on top and then broil it in the crockpot in the oven for a couple of minutes (watching closely). As long as your crockpot pieces removes and is oven safe that should give the same results 🙂

      Reply

  49. Thank you. Made for a pot luck at work and everyone raves about it.

    I did change up a couple of the ingredients. Used organic sugar, almond milk and coconut flour.

    But was so pretty, cooked well and it didn’t last long!

    Reply

  50. 5 stars
    I made this for my command Thanksgiving and it was a huge it! I made one batch and put it in the crockpot and then did a second batch on top of it. When it was almost done I put marshmallows on top and cooked until they were melted. I didn’t have any left to take home! 😀

    Reply

  51. This is exactly what I was looking for! I was wondering though if anyone made this ahead of time and reheated in the oven, if so what temp/ time did ya use? If not, any ideas on reheating lol or should I just use it as an excuse to get a second crock pot 😉 Many thanks!

    Reply

    • Haha take the excuse to get another crockpot for sure 😉 I actually haven’t reheated it so I can’t say for sure, but I’m pretty certain if you made it without the pecan topping you could then store the sweet potato part and then cook it in the oven with pecan topping (which you could also prepare ahead of time and store in the fridge). If you did that I’d think 325 for 25-30 minutes should do the trick (keeping an eye on it of course!) Hope that helps 🙂

      Reply

  52. 5 stars
    Hi,
    I’ve fixed sweet potato casserole for years, never tried it in the slow cooker but why not! I was wondering however, my old recipe calls for canned milk, what would you think of using canned milk instead of whole?
    Our family all loves this so much. Enjoy your recipes!!! and your hints!!!
    Elsie

    Reply

    • Hey Elsie! Haha, I agree why not? 🙂 🙂 Thank you so much for your sweet comment! I actually have never tried using canned milk (and don’t really use it often at all), so I’m not sure. If you use the same amounts as the whole I don’t see why it wouldn’t work, but I’m not sure how it will affect the flavor. If you’re used to having canned milk then it probably will be great. Sorry to not be of more help!

      Reply

  53. 5 stars
    Hi Chelsea, this looks delicious!!

    quick question, how do you serve it on thanksgiving dinner? in the actual crockpot?

    if so, can i make it in the glass baking dish instead? any idea what the baking time would be in the oven?

    thanks!!

    Reply

    • Thank you so much Eve!! Yes, I actually do serve it up in the crockpot 🙂 If you want though, you could cook just the sweet potato part in the crockpot and then transfer it to a baking dish instead and finish it in the oven with the pecan topping afterwards 🙂 I’m not really sure temp/time in the oven since I haven’t tried this, but I think 375 degrees (uncovered) for 10-15 minutes or until the pecan topping looks delicious and is cooked through. That is a guess though since I’ve never tried it! Sorry to not be of more help!

      Reply

  56. I use fresh sweet potatoes and bake them in the crockpot the day before. Easy ’nuff and there’s no need to slice or boil. Just let the cooked potatoes cool before removing the peel and mashing.

    This recipe is a huge hit with family and friends! Thanks!

    Reply

  60. 5 stars
    This looks and sounds fantastic! I plan to make this for our Thanksgiving dinner this year. I may make one shortly just to “try” it out. My question: Is it difficult to remove it from the crock without making it look messy? I love the idea of not using space in the oven.

    I haven’t made it yet, of course, but am going to give it five stars as I like all the ingredients!

    Reply

    • Thank you so much Norma! 🙂 I hope you love it! I actually just serve it from the crockpot, so I’m not sure how well it transfers over. I doubt it would be a very clean looking transfer though. You could always transfer and then add a few more nuts for appearance purposes.

      Reply

    • 5 stars
      It’s so easy to make in the oven. I make it every year in a 9×13 casserole dish. You could also use a large glass pie plate or a pretty baking dish of similar size. Bakes in the oven at 350 for 35-45 minutes or until the top is slightly brown. If you don’t really need to use the crockpot to save oven space, the oven method is simple and results in a crunchy top, which is good contrast to the soft sweet potato souffle.

      I think mine usually bakes at least 40 minutes, so you could probably bake it ahead of time for 35 minutes, then put it in the oven for 10 minutes before serving.

      I also recommend punching up the orange flavor by adding some orange zest and/or a touch of grand marnier, triple sec, or other orange liquer.

      Reply

  61. Hi Chelsea. So excited to try this recipe this thanksgiving and am feeling pretty confident to try it without a trial run. One question, do you use salted or unsalted butter? I never know what to use when the recipe doesn’t specifically state. I just always worry about things being over salted. Thanks, and keep the recipes coming!

    Reply

  62. This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it next week! I have the same CrockPot as you and in trying to plan just wondering what your cook time is? How do you know when it’s done? Lastly, I couldn’t find plain canned sweet potatoes anywhere so I purchased the Bruce one’s in syrup, would you rinse or just drain? Thank you so much for all your helpful responses.

    Reply

    • Thanks Jessica! Mine is always done right around 3 hours 🙂 It will be puffy and the topping a bit caramelized when it’s done (like the first picture in my post). I’m not familiar with the sweet potatoes in syrup — if they are sweet I would recommend either rinsing or reducing the added sugar so it’s not too sweet. Hope you love this casserole!

      Reply

  63. This recipe looks tasty and easy and will free up space in my oven for other Thanksgiving dishes. However, just thought you should know that when I try to print it
    from my iPhone all I get is the website address at the bottom of the page. Other websites print fine. I even bought a new toner cartridges. Might be something on your end.

    Reply

    • I hope you love it! Thanks so much for the heads up Lisa, I will let my web developer know and hopefully we’ll get it fixed ASAP!

      Reply

  64. 5 stars
    This is probably a silly question, but I don’t cook often. Do I use low or high setting? Thank you and have a Happy Thanksgiving.

    Reply

  65. Hi! I have made this in the past and love it. We have a small group this year so want go make it in the oven. How long should I coook it & at what temp? Has anyone tried it in the oven instead of the slow cooker?

    Reply

    • Hi Jan! I’m happy you’ve enjoyed this recipe in the past! I’ve never tried it in the oven, so hopefully someone else can speak up to your comment! I would recommend 325 degrees F for 25-30 minutes (keeping an eye on it of course!) Hope that helps ?

      Reply

  67. 5 stars
    made this for my work thanksgiving potluck and everyone was asking for the recipe!
    Can anyone tell me how long they cooked I️t for when they doubled the recipe??

    Reply

  68. I am going to try this for thanksgiving! I️ am obsessed with sweet potatoes! ♥️ I️ like fresh sweet potatoes though. How many fresh sweet potatoes would be equivalent to the canned sweet potatoes in the recipe?

    Reply

  69. Can you please post a picture of the canned sweet potatoes you use. All of the ones I see seems to be in syrup. Or.. how many fresh sweet potatoes will be the right substitute for the canned ones?

    Reply

  70. I make sweet potato casserole every year in the oven using my grandmothers recipe, which is nearly identical to this one. I have never used orange juice before, so I will try that! We always put marshmallows on top of the pecan topping and everyone loves it. I want to use your recipe for the crockpot because it will make things easier. I was just going to leave off marshmallows, but was reading through the comments when it hit me. You could add the marshmallows and brown them with a blow torch! Yumm! Thanks can’t wait to make this!

    Reply

  71. 4 stars
    I made this and it was good, but I did not think it was sweet enough. Next time I will add a little more sugar to the recipe.

    Reply

  72. This is clever, but why is the topping liquidy when done? I make a sweet potatoe casserole for thanksgiving and christmas and the best part is the crispy pecan and brown sugar topping…it’s bubbles up and crystalizes like a streudl topping. The recipe is super easy and is make-ahead.

    Reply

  76. We made this recipe for thanksgiving and it did not work for us at all. The sweet potato mixture (we used canned, drained potatoes) was extremely wet. We didn’t add anything to the recipe. It was just very liquidy. So much so that there was liquid at the edges of the pot before the topping was added. To illustrate how wet and soft the potatos were, when I added the topping, it kind of sunk into the middle and was hard to spread across the top. There was no structural integrity to the potatoes to support the topping. The potatoes were also rather grainy, instead of smooth like in the pictures. Granted, that might be due to the quality of the potatoes (sugary Sam, if anyone’s curious). Finally, the topping was very dry, not surupy like in the photos. Again, we literally followed every step in the recipe with no alterations or additions. It just didn’t look anything like we expected. It tastes like sweet potatoes though.

    Reply

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