Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-14I have a love hate relationship with my slow cooker. The idea seems brilliant and I keep trying and trying to find recipes that would not only cook a meal, but actually taste good. I mean, I get the whole “throw stuff in a pot, walk away and you have dinner”, but what usually ends up happening is a bland, watery and mushy pot of food. Ugh! How disappointing. I had to try this one a few times, and I finally came up with a plan to make this taste great and still have some texture left after the cooking was done.

There’s no pre-cooking involved, the taste reminds me of either Chicken Burrito Bowls or Stuffed Peppers and it’s even healthy. So, the secret in this Chicken and Peppers slow cooker meal is to cook it in stages. I add only part of the bell peppers in the beginning, which gives the tomato sauce and the chicken the flavor of peppers, but still keeps most of the bell peppers nice and crisp, since they are sort of steaming during the second part of the cooking process. When I tried adding all the peppers at the very beginning, they ended up way too mushy and fell apart. If you’re interested in a tomato pepper sauce, that’s fine, but I wanted to have some crispness left.

Adding sour cream, cheese and fresh herbs at the end really makes this dish taste not so “crock potty”. I finally came up with a slow cooker recipe that tastes fresh and flavorful. If you have some great slow cooker recipes, please share. I’m a desperate woman and will be forever grateful.

Ingredients:

1 – 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken, either chicken breast or thighs

2 bell peppers, (red, yellow or orange), cut into thick julienne slices

1 green bell peppers, cut into thick julienne slices

1-2 onions, sliced

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with the juice

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 Tablespoon dry herbs (such as thyme, oregano, etc.)

salt, ground black pepper, to taste

To serve:

sour cream

grated cheese

fresh chopped parsley, cilantro or green onions

Instructions:

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-1-15Season the chicken on both sides with salt and ground black pepper and place it on the bottom of the slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-2Layer the onions on top of the chicken.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-3Place only 1/4 of the bell peppers on top of the onions, setting the remaining bell peppers aside until later.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-4Finish with the diced tomatoes (with the juice) and garlic on top. If you want this dish to be saucier, use one more can of diced tomatoes, but drain the second can first.

Season with salt, ground black pepper and dry herbs. Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-5Mix the tomatoes, garlic, dry herbs, salt and ground black pepper together.

Cook on high for 1 1/2 hours. Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-6Add the remaining bell peppers (season them with salt first).

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-8Continue cooking on high for another hour, or until the chicken is 165 degrees Fahrenheit if you’re using chicken breast, and 175 degrees Fahrenheit if you’re using thighs.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-9Take out the chicken, shred it with a fork, or cut it up with a knife and set aside, covered.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-10Continue cooking on high for another 30 minutes, without the cover.

If you want to cook this on low, it will take 4-6 hours. I would recommend using chicken thighs if you aren’t around to check the temperature and take it out as soon as it’s ready, because chicken breast dries out very quickly, while chicken thighs will stay juicy.

Return the chicken to the slow cooker, mix to combine.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-11Serve with cilantro, sour cream, grated cheese. Rice or couscous are great with this meal.Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers-13Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave, or, my favorite method – in a skillet.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Peppers
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 - 1½ lbs boneless skinless chicken, either chicken breast or thighs
  • 2 bell peppers, (red, yellow or orange), cut into thick julienne slices
  • 1 green bell peppers, cut into thick julienne slices
  • 1-2 onions, sliced
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with the juice
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • ½ Tablespoon dry herbs (such as thyme, oregano, etc.)
  • salt, ground black pepper, to taste
  • To serve:
  • sour cream
  • grated cheese
  • fresh chopped parsley, cilantro or green onions
Instructions
  1. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and ground black pepper and place it on the bottom of the slow cooker.
  2. Layer the onions on top of the chicken.
  3. Place only ¼ of the bell peppers on top of the onions, setting the remaining bell peppers aside until later.
  4. Finish with the diced tomatoes (with the juice) and garlic on top. If you want this dish to be saucier, use one more can of diced tomatoes, but drain the second can first.
  5. Season with salt, ground black pepper and dry herbs. Mix the tomatoes, garlic, dry herbs, salt and ground black pepper together.
  6. Cook on high for 1½ hours. Add the remaining bell peppers (season them with salt first).
  7. Continue cooking on high for another hour, or until the chicken is 165 degrees Fahrenheit if you're using chicken breast, and 175 degrees Fahrenheit if you're using thighs.
  8. Take out the chicken, shred it with a fork, or cut it up with a knife and set aside, covered.
  9. Continue cooking on high for another 30 minutes, without the cover.
  10. If you want to cook this on low, it will take 4-6 hours. I would recommend using chicken thighs if you aren't around to check the temperature and take it out as soon as it's ready, because chicken breast dries out very quickly, while chicken thighs will stay juicy.
  11. Return the chicken to the slow cooker, mix to combine.
  12. Serve with cilantro, sour cream, grated cheese. Rice or couscous are great with this meal.

20 Comments

  • Lana

    I completely agree with you on the flavorless mush that is crockpot cooking. This is my recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup. It all goes in at once and is always good. It also freezes well for another day. It is a cold weather staple here.

    1 lb frozen chicken breasts, 1 qt chicken broth, 1 can black beans, 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes, 2 c frozen corn, 1 T minced garlic, 1 lg chopped onion, 1 c salsa, 4 oz can green chilis, 1 1/2 t cumin, 1 t salt. Cook on low for 8 hours, shred chicken and stir back in. Serve with crushed tortilla chips.

      • Lana

        Kind of an update but last night we put this soup over a bowl of rice for the first time and it was so good and a completely different meal than just eating it as soup.

        • olgak7

          You can use some cornstarch to thicken it, if you’d like, Elizabeth. Make a slurry by dissolving 1-2 teaspoons of cornstarch in a Tablespoons of cold water and then add it to the slow cooker during the last 20-30 minutes of cooking.
          In my experience, most slow cooker recipes are usually more watery than if you cook it on the stovetop because it’s cooked on low heat and none of the liquid gets a chance to reduce. Plus, in this recipe, all the vegetables exude more liquid as they cook.
          What I usually do with this particular meal is to use a slotted spoon to serve the meal over rice and then add just as much of the thin broth as I want over top.

  • Tanya

    I really love my slow cooker! Being a full-time working mom of a big family, it saves me almost every night! I usually try not to cook full meals in it though — those are a bit more risky and may turn out like canned mush. I do cook roasts and meat side dishes in it a lot. Also soups. Our family fave is lasagna soup! Turns out so well.

  • Katy | Her Cup of Joy

    This looks so juicy and perfect for dinner, I work full time everyday and this would be so helpful going home on those lazy nights and enjoying a ready-made dinner!

  • Nelya

    Haha I agree about slow cookers! My mom got me a rice cooker/steamer/slow cooker before I got married, and I usually just use it for rice. The first slow cooker recipe I made turned out horrible, some Asian drum sticks. Next I made pot roast from Natasha’s kitchen, which didn’t disappoint. I’ll try this soon! I feel like I can trust “Russian” websites to not have weird stuff like that first thing I made lol

    • Nelya

      And as a side note, the picture in your post gave me an idea to sew my own place mats someday! So I can choose from a lot of fabrics. Haha and I’m glad I scrolled through all the comments, I’ll also try making the tortilla soup one of your readers wrote about.

        • Nelya

          OH YEAH. Crafty is an understatement. Lol especially with having a kid of my own, and my friends having kids. My husband’s so amazing, even though I usually find good deals I must’ve spent hundreds of dollars on all my crafts! And I’m lucky enough to be able to be a stay at home mom. Thank God for that! Ooh by the way, today I made this broccoli cheddar soup in the slow cooker and it turned out good. (Two lbs of cheese!!) http://www.familyfreshmeals.com/2013/10/crockpot-broccoli-cheddar-soup.html
          I turned it on and went to hang out with some friends. It was ready not long after I came home 🙂

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