• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About
    • Media and Advertising
  • Contact
  • Subscribe

No. 2 Pencil

Cook, Bake & Create

  • Recipe Index
    • Single Serving
    • One-Pot Meals
    • Slow Cooker
    • Cookies
    • Dessert
    • Breakfast
    • Dinner
    • Drink
  • Instant Pot
  • Slow Cooker
  • Easy Dinner Recipes

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts

October 16, 2013 by Melissa 42 Comments

 

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts - moist and flavorful chicken in the slow cooker!

 

One of my favorite ways to make chicken is in the slow cooker.  This recipe for slow cooker chicken breasts is a variation of my slow cooker chicken. I love this recipe because it is so simple and versatile, and the chicken is incredibly moist and flavorful. These chicken breasts can be served as the main course, or shredded and used for another recipe. I used these chicken breasts as filling for chicken enchiladas. I’ve also used it for tacos, burritos, salads, and sandwiches! Having good, flavorful cooked chicken on hand is always a good thing.

 

I use bone in, skin on chicken breasts in this recipe because they are economical and great in the slow cooker. The skin protects them and helps keep them from drying out. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be tricky in the slow cooker since they are so lean, but I love how convenient they are,  so I’m working on a boneless, skinless chicken slow cooker method to share.

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts - moist and flavorful chicken in the slow cooker!

 

5 from 1 vote
Print
Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts
Servings: 4
Calories: 311 kcal
Ingredients
  • 4 bone in skin on chicken breasts, about 5 pounds total
  • 2 tablespoons of all-puporse steak seasoning
  • 2 teaspoons of paprika or chili powder
Instructions
  1. Use foil balls to create a "rack" in the bottom of the slow cooker.
  2. Season chicken breasts.
  3. Lay chicken breasts on top of foil and cook on high for 3-4 hours or until temperature reaches 165 degrees.
  4. Serve chicken breasts whole with juices brushed over the top, or shred and use for another recipe.
Nutrition Facts
Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts
Amount Per Serving (4 g)
Calories 311 Calories from Fat 153
% Daily Value*
Fat 17g26%
Saturated Fat 5g31%
Cholesterol 116mg39%
Sodium 114mg5%
Potassium 398mg11%
Protein 38g76%
Vitamin A 150IU3%
Calcium 20mg2%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts - moist and flavorful chicken in the slow cooker!

 

 

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts Recipe Notes:

I discard the skin after cooking. Since the chicken has been cooking in the covered slow cooker, the skin will not be crispy. Skin that is not crispy is not worth the calories in my book:0)

I have always cooked these for four hours on high, but recently bought a new slow cooker that runs much hotter than my old slow cooker. The chicken was up to temperature after 3 1/2 hours. Cooking time will vary depending on your slow cooker.

I like the option of serving the breasts whole, so I use foil balls as a makeshift cooking rack in the slow cooker. If they simmer in the juices during cooking, they are falling apart and hard to remove.

I usually season my chicken with paprika, but since I was using this chicken for enchiladas, I used chili powder. It was delicious, and it gave the chicken a little extra kick!

 

You can see all of my Slow Cooker Recipes here!

 

I’d love for you to keep up on my new projects and recipes. You can follow me on Facebook and Twitter. You can also find me on Pinterest, that’s my favorite place to hang out and I’d love to see you there.

Follow Me on Pinterest

 


yellow-signature

5 Easy Dinner Ideas for Busy Weeknights

My five FAVORITE recipes for busy families!

  • Quick to make
  • Light on your budget
  • Easy to clean-up
  • and...most important...absolutely DELICIOUS


Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit

Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Slow Cooker

Previous Post: « Slow Cooker Meatloaf
Next Post: Chunky Monkey Smoothie »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Valerie @Glittering Muffins

    October 17, 2013 at 7:06 am

    Would it be ok to use deboned/unskinned breasts? Btw your comment fields are invisible, I just moved my cursor to see where it would change so I could write.

    Reply
  2. Amber

    October 26, 2013 at 9:34 am

    Do I need to add water or broth to this recipe? I’ve never cooked chicken in a slow cooker before.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      October 28, 2013 at 12:05 pm

      Nope, no need to add water!

      Reply
  3. Yvonne M.

    October 27, 2013 at 10:27 am

    Take the skin and put it in the oven at 350. Check every 5 minutes. It will crisp up and we call that “Chicken Chips”

    Reply
  4. Lindsey

    January 3, 2014 at 7:10 am

    Totally going to try this! Any updates on your attempts with boneless skinless? I’m iced in today so figure I might give it a go and just keep an eye on it. Love your blog!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      January 28, 2014 at 9:36 am

      Thank you, Lindsey! I need to work on the boneless, skinless recipe. Thanks for the reminder! xo

      Reply
  5. JEN

    January 17, 2014 at 4:21 am

    INSTEAD OF THE FOIL BALLS, COULD YOU PUT SOME BAKED POTATOES IN THE BOTTOM?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      January 28, 2014 at 9:30 am

      I haven’t tried potatoes, but let us know if you do. Thanks!

      Reply
  6. JEN

    January 29, 2014 at 12:59 pm

    I did and it worked great!

    Reply
    • Sue

      February 14, 2014 at 9:33 am

      Now I’m going to try it with the potatoes. How about cooking it for a longer slower time since I work during the day?

      Reply
      • Sue

        February 14, 2014 at 9:35 am

        Jen…did you use baking potatoes. Did you wrap in foil or just leave them. I love baked chicken and potatoes cooked together but have always found that chicken in the crock pot was too fluidy…

        Reply
  7. Jeanine

    February 18, 2014 at 11:35 am

    So no water and just wrap chicken in foil? Sounds a wee but dry to me but will do!!!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      February 21, 2014 at 8:24 am

      Hi Jeanine!

      Just to clarify, you don’t wrap the chicken in the foil. Just use the foil balls as a “rack” to cook the chicken. The chicken has a lot of moisture in it, so no need to add liquid. Hope that helps:0)

      Reply
  8. Deb

    February 19, 2014 at 2:16 pm

    What Kind of Steak Seasoning did you use?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      March 23, 2014 at 4:10 pm

      Hi Deb,

      I generally use McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning.

      Reply
  9. Courtney

    May 25, 2014 at 6:52 am

    Can I put drumsticks in with my chicken breasts?

    Reply
  10. Toyia Tucker

    May 25, 2014 at 11:23 am

    Thanks for the recipe. I’ll try this next week!!! Baked potatoes sounds like a good add!! 🙂

    Reply
  11. Ami

    August 19, 2014 at 2:16 pm

    In your 4th picture above, it looks as though the chicken has been seared but your instructions do not have that step. I’ve cooked chicken in my crockpot for years but I’ve never had it come out looking like it’s been seared. Please explain?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      September 7, 2014 at 12:12 pm

      Hi Ami,

      It hasn’t been seared. The spices darken in the slow cooker. Thanks for the question!

      Reply
  12. Melissa

    August 30, 2014 at 3:28 pm

    Mmmm! This sounds great!

    Reply
  13. Nell

    September 26, 2014 at 6:04 pm

    I think I would put some potatoes in those foil balls to bake while my chicken was getting done. One more element of the meal to have already finished.

    Reply
  14. erin

    September 28, 2014 at 6:52 am

    If you take the skin off is the remaining chicken seasoned?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      September 29, 2014 at 8:43 am

      Yes!

      Reply
  15. sher

    November 13, 2014 at 8:21 pm

    You can put the chicken in the broiler for a few minutes if you want crispy skin

    Reply
    • Melissa

      November 14, 2014 at 9:00 am

      That should work just fine!

      Reply
  16. donna

    November 19, 2014 at 10:52 am

    I put baking potatoes in the crock pot wrapped in foil, I cook them for an hour on high and then I place my chicken beside the potatoes and cook on low for 5 hours!

    Reply
  17. Kathy

    November 23, 2014 at 7:21 am

    This sounds great but I agree with a previous comment, could you cook these on the low setting and if so, how long?

    Reply
  18. Leda Gregg

    January 27, 2015 at 4:06 am

    Could you wrap potatoes in the foil or would that be too long to cook them?

    Reply
  19. Amanda

    March 26, 2015 at 3:03 pm

    I’m going to make these the next coming week. I’m going to put potatoes in the foil! I’m so excited to see how it turns out.

    Reply
  20. Mary Faith

    April 2, 2015 at 9:21 pm

    I’m going to try it on low for 6ish hours. Might stick the potatoes in the foil as suggested too… I’ll let y’all know what happens. 🙂

    Reply
  21. Renaie

    April 3, 2015 at 9:28 am

    When I saw the pictures I thoughr the foil balls were baked potatoes. What if you foil wrap baking potatoes and use as the “rack”. Then you would have an entire meal in the crockpot. Just a thought.

    Reply
  22. Mary Faith

    April 4, 2015 at 8:45 pm

    So, I did this with four large bone-in chicken breasts and four large Russett potatoes. Potatoes wrapped in foil on the bottom with chicken sitting on top. I cooked it on low for 6.5 hours. Try to keep the chicken from touching the sides of the crock, it may dry out a bit where it touches the side. It turned out great!

    Reply
  23. Angel

    April 25, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    could I use chicken thighs or a few leg quarters?

    Reply
  24. Josh W

    May 10, 2015 at 5:15 pm

    Excellent recipe! I had some trepidation about the whole no-broth/stock, but the chicken turned out great! I used four large russet potatoes for the base: lightly brushed with olive oil, dusted with salt and pepper, then individually wrapped in foil. Placed two bone-in breasts and four bone-in thighs on top. Everything was then dusted with McCormick Spicy Montreal Steak seasoning and a half dozen fresh sprigs of thyme. Everything was done cooking in about 3.5 hours on high. I made this for my girlfriend’s mom and sister for Mother’s Day and they couldn’t get enough of the chicken.

    Reply
  25. Relda

    May 22, 2015 at 1:03 pm

    I love this recipe. I hate to have foil touch my food. I used smaller red potatoes scrubbed really good and then put the chicken on top of them.

    Reply
    • Raechal McCue

      August 16, 2015 at 3:23 pm

      My question is for Relda, why don’t you like foil to touch your food? Is it bad for you, or does it make the food taste tin-nee… Personal preference or medically unsafe? I am learning to cook healthier and clean, not sure what that means just yet… But I would like to know. Thank you in advance!
      Blessings,
      Raechal

      Reply
  26. Nonnina

    October 27, 2015 at 3:28 pm

    Just made it this morning, with individually wrapping 4 sweet potatoes in the foil. Placed 3 boneless skinless chichen breasts on top that were brushed with canola oil and seasoned with cracked black pepper, sea salt and paprika. Cooked on low for 10 hours. The potatoes were awesome, cooked perfectly, but the chicken was a bit dry, but I’m guessing it’s because there was no bone in the chicken or skin to keep it moist. I will make it again, but will use bone-in, chicken thighs, they have much more flavor. Once I added some of my favorite honey balsamic dressing to the chicken, it was fine.

    Reply
  27. Sarah

    January 13, 2016 at 3:42 pm

    Hi there everybody! I’m a college student and I’ve just purchased a little (2-quart, specifically) crockpot. would I be able to halve this recipe successfully? I’ve seen mixed comments on various recipe websites about whether or not recipes will stay true to form in a small slow cooker.

    Reply
  28. Mary Anne Wilson

    April 7, 2016 at 10:59 am

    Love your recipes. Always looking for good slow cooker recipes due to my family’s work schedules.

    Reply
  29. Jill

    October 3, 2016 at 9:56 am

    Made this with two bone in chicken breasts last night. Perfect. I saved the juices that pool under the foil, for future gravy making.

    Reply
  30. Dave

    November 30, 2017 at 10:29 am

    Can i use butter on bottom instead of foil or potatoes, so chicken don’t stick

    Reply
  31. Melanie Shanks

    October 8, 2019 at 10:17 pm

    5 stars
    I made this tonight. I did use smoked paprika i cooked it for 4 hrs. Everyone loved it. It was also very moist.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Welcome to No. 2 Pencil where you will find original recipes, fresh craft ideas, and easy home decor ideas.

Read More

5 Easy Dinner Ideas for Busy Weeknights

My MOST POPULAR dinner recipes for busy nights.

Get them free . . . just sign-up below!

Archives

© Copyright 2018 Number 2 Pencil · All Rights Reserved · Privacy Policy · Log in