Slow cooker recipes for a non-cook

Cooking Discussions
21

I don’t have a printed recipe for this, but it is one of the easiest and tastiest assembly meals I riffed from some real (Rick Bayless) recipes – one was for arroz verde, another for chicken with roasted poblanos and tomatillos :joy:

SHORTCUT CHICKEN VERDE (pictured here):

  • Chicken thighs
  • 1-2 jars of salsa verde (I use TJs) – depending on how much chicken
  • Optional – potatoes peeled & cut into big chunks
  • Optional – additional aromatics & herbs to boost the base flavor: diced or sliced onion and garlic, cilantro

Basic “recipe”: Heat some oil, add chicken, add salsa, add water, cover and cook till done.

I like to puree the salsa for a smooth sauce, but you can leave it chunky.

If using the optional aromatics, you can chop and saute them before adding the chicken, or you can add them to the salsa while pureeing. If I have some zhoug sitting around, I add a couple of spoons of that instead (for a garlic, cilantro, and chilli boost).

Eat with any carb of choice – rice, tortillas, bread, naan, quinoa, whatever.

Makes great Arroz con Pollo Verde too – wash, drain, and add rice to the pot, add salsa and water or chicken broth (2:1). Place the chicken on top, cover, and cook.

Or mix cooked rice into the stew after the chicken is cooked, cover, and let it absorb the sauce.

Or make the rice with salsa, and add shredded cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken for eg) at the end.

Re cooking times & temps: when I was experimenting with a slow cooker, I bought a simple plug-in timer based on advice from Chowhounds back then – the timer switched off for half an hour at intervals, to counter the higher temps of modern slow cookers. Nothing stopped simmering / bubbling, but it stopped it from boiling continuously. (I was home when I tried this, as I didn’t want food safety issues from temp falling below safe levels).

In the end, I decided that my pressure cooker / instant pot provided a similar / same product in much less time and with more control (for me).

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22

I was going to suggest “pizza beans” or “baked” ziti or other all-in-one pasta in the slow cooker until I saw your tomato note.

I recommended milk-braised beans earlier on the NYT thread, and that might work well in the slow cooker too (especially for dried beans — soak overnight). I like it with cannelini or gigantes.

And of course the origin recipe for that is milk-braised chicken / pork, which would also work very nicely (I’d thin the milk with a bit of water).

https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-slow-cooker-chicken-in-milk-223653

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23

This came up on my media feed today:

You could sub chicken thigh for the beef/pork ones and adjust the cooking time accordingly.

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24

This is sorta similar to the Mississippi pulled chicken, but with Italian vibes:

Italian-American Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

4-6 b/s chicken thighs, trimmed slightly

~2 Tbsp dry Italian dressing mix (like Good Seasons)

A few good shakes TJ’s pizza seasoning (sub Italian seasoning)

A splash of banana pepper brine and spoonful of peppers

A splash of Italian sweet pepper brine and spoonful of peppers

Garlic powder

Black pepper

Red pepper flake

A few Tbsp olive oil

2 bay leaves

Dried oregano

Add everything to the slow cooker and cook until just shreddable. Pour off most of the liquid, reserving for your next batch. Serve the pulled chicken on toasted brioche buns with mayo, lettuce, and hot sauce.

Similar idea: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/italian-chicken-sandwiches/

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25

Not sure if this is too heavy on tomatoes, but I make this Smitten Kitchen ziti chickpeas with sausage and kale for the whole family [keeping the kale to one side]. I use a mix of cannelini beans and chickpeas and sub our favorite jarred marinara sauce. If you use lean chicken Italian sausage, he could get away with not even pre-browning it and just squeezing chunks into the sauce once it’s heated up in the slow cooker.

ETA: this salsa verde chicken with black beans and hominy could also work well in a slow cooker.

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26

Slow cooker white chicken chili

This one requires some stovetop prep - cooking onions and spices before adding to the chicken and yogurt in the slow cooker. Chicken thighs tikka masala

Peanut chicken satay recipe title says instant pot but instructions for slow cooker are also shown.

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27

This Crockpot cashew chicken recipe was on a FB slow cooker group many years ago - no link available
Crockpot Cashew Chicken… Oh so good

Ingredients:
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh tenders or chicken breast tenders
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp canola oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup cashews
Directions:
Combine flour and pepper in large Ziploc bag. Add chicken. Shake to coat with flour mixture. Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chicken about 2 minutes on each side. Place chicken in slow cooker. Combine soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, sugar, garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes in small bowl; pour over chicken. Cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours. Add cashews and stir. Serve over rice. Makes 4-6 servings.
If you want like sauce and want to have some to pour over the chicken and the rice, double the sauce ingredients.

Commenters added or served with veggies:

  • added lots of veggies (onion, broccoli, peppers, etc).
  • added some green beans, carrot and baby spinach to slow cooker.
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28

I know no one needs another app but there’s a few for slow cooker recipes. I haven’t looked at any but I assume they listed all the ingredients and would be easier than sending links. Encouraging browsing recipes could be good.

29

Tonight I came home to the delicious aroma of beans with garlic and pancetta (nyt recipe- I will link). They’d been simmering all day in the slow cooker. Hats off to my husband! What a wonderful thing to come home to. We served the beans with rice and zucchini on the side. They were soupy- which I liked- but could use less liquid if you want them creamier.

I quickly cleaned out the slow cooker and popped in dinner for tomorrow night - the Mississippi chicken recipe. It smells absolutely incredible. Will serve with green beans and probably more rice to soak up the sauce.

Utilizing the slow cooker and smoker to premake meals and do large batches has really alleviated the stress of the beginning of the school year! Especially because my daughter already got sick and had to stay home one day.

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30

Such a great follow-up!! Yay, I’m so happy for all of you!

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31

Glad to hear it is working out and I’m looking forward to your review of the Mississippi chicken recipe!

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32

Saw an ad today that Instant Pot has brought out a 4 qt version…better for smaller households

33

They’ve had a 3qt IP with a slow cooker function for a long time. It’s great.

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34

There are a few variations to similar dishes on line, all designed for a slow cooker. Will require prep of the potatoes, celery and onions, but you can use frozen veggies for everything else. You can buy biscuits from the market/baker and have a cozy fall/winter meal.

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35

We loved the Mississippi chicken but oh boy is there a lot of butter in there. And this coming from someone who doesn’t shy away from butter. I did about 3/4 of what was listed in the recipe and I would cut even more next time. It just doesn’t seem necessary to have that much butter - I think it’d still be plenty rich with less. But overall great meal. Loved the flavor from the pepperoncini. I made 3# and froze about half for future desperate school nights. Couldn’t be easier too.

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36

Excellent! Thanks for the review!

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37

@MidwesternerTT My husband made the chicken satay today… It smells amazing- can’t wait to try it!

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38

Update on this - this was a great slow cooker recipe - I added chopped cilantro and would have added chopped peanuts or cashews if I had had them. Over rice and spinach, this was a satisfying meal. My husband said the prep took him 45 minutes, :thinking:which I’m not quite sure I understand as I got all the ingredients out for him (he just had to measure a few things and chop garlic, and then dump it all in) but hopefully he will streamline his prep as he gets used to doing this! :laughing:

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39

Delighted you enjoyed this. Did your husband cook the rice? Maybe that’s included in his prep time total.

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40

Haha, no, he did not. I made Wegmans instant long grain rice (which is ideal for weeknights) when I got home.

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