Using a slow cooker makes weeknight meals much more convenient. These slow cooker chicken recipes are also healthy, so they're perfect for feeding your family.
Balsamic Chicken With Bell Peppers
Serve this tasty chicken with brown rice and a salad or a side of steamed vegetables. The recipe makes 10 servings, so you can pack up the leftovers for tomorrow's lunch.
Ingredients
1 onion, sliced
1 orange bell pepper, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons oregano
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Sliced mushrooms, approximately 1/4 cup (optional)
Instructions
Place onions and bell peppers (orange and red) in the bottom of the slow cooker. Add sliced mushrooms to the slow cooker if including.
Layer the chicken breasts over the top of the peppers.
In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, garlic, oregano, and pepper. Pour over chicken in slow cooker.
Set slow cooker on low and cook for eight hours.
Just before serving, stir in chopped, fresh basil.
Nutrition Information
This recipe is low in sodium. It's also high in protein and vitamin C, as well as low-carb and paleo diet friendly.
Serving size: 129 grams (about 1 cup)
Calories: 174
Fat: 10 grams
Protein: 41 grams
Carbs: 2 grams
Nutrition information for this recipe and the following recipes were calculated using Self's Nutrition Data tool.
Chicken With Mushrooms and Tarragon
Serve this recipe over cooked and drained egg noodles. This recipe serves eight people.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Chicken With Mushrooms and Tarragon
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved
Sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
1/2 cup dry white wine
8 ounces frozen pearl onions
8 ounces button mushrooms, halved
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons dried tarragon
Instructions
While you can just put all ingredients in the slow cooker and cook it on low for eight hours, this dish will have better flavor if you brown the chicken and vegetables on the stovetop first.
Heat two tablespoons of oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until it shimmers.
Add the chopped onion, carrot, and celery and cook until it softens and begins to brown, about five minutes.
Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Remove the vegetables from the oil with a slotted spoon and place in the slow cooker.
Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the sauté pan and swirl it to coat the pan.
Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper.
Place the chicken in the hot oil and cook without moving it until it begins to brown, about four minutes. Turn the chicken and brown on the other side, another four minutes.
Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker with the vegetables.
Add the white wine to the hot pan. Use the side of a spoon to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring the wine to a simmer.
Transfer the wine to the slow cooker. Add the pearl onions, mushrooms, chicken broth, and dried tarragon to the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
Set the slow cooker on low and allow it to cook until chicken is done, about eight hours.
Nutrition Information
Without egg noodles, this recipe is low in carbohydrates and good for low-carb diets. It's also low in fat and calories.
Serving size: 118 grams (About one cup)
Calories: 223 (1/2 chicken breast plus about 1/2 cup vegetables/sauce)
Fat: 11 grams
Carbohydrates: 6.4 grams
Protein: 22 grams
Chicken Ratatouille
This delicious mixture of chicken and fresh vegetables goes wonderfully over pasta or polenta. The recipe serves eight.
Ingredients
16 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into one-inch pieces
3 medium-sized yellow squash, sliced
3 zucchini, sliced
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 bulb fennel, sliced
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 can (8 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Instructions
Place all ingredients except fresh basil in a slow cooker. Stir to combine well.
Cover and cook in a slow cooker on low for eight to nine hours, until chicken is cooked and flavors meld.
Stir in chopped fresh basil just before serving.
Nutrition Information
This recipe is high in fiber and low in calories and fat.
Serving size: 348 grams (about 2 1/2 cups)
Calories: 172
Fat: 5 grams
Protein: 20 grams
Carbohydrates: 14 grams
Easy, Healthy Meals
All of the recipes above come together quickly and offer your family healthy food. Cooking chicken in the slow cooker provides you with the perfect way to have healthy meals on the table every night of the week.
