Slow Cooker Chicken & Apples
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Tangy mustard and onions combine with sweet apple and raisins in this Slow Cooker Chicken and Apples recipe. You can prep most of the meal in advance, so everything comes together quickly and easily.
Fall is the time of year when I want to eat all things apple. Savory dishes containing apples can be hard to come by, but this crock pot chicken recipe hits the sweet and savory combination just right.
Slow cooking is great for busy weeknights, helping you create a homemade but easy dinner. But I tend to think of slow cooker meals as a weekday-only option. As if we don’t need to eat dinner on the weekends!
The great thing about this chicken and apples recipe is it cooks during the afternoon. So you can prep and set it up at lunch time, then go have all kinds of fun on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, and dinner will be waiting for you at the end of the day.
Ingredients
- Apples – Use a slightly sweet apple that holds up to cooking. I love gala apples in this recipe.
- Onion – Yellow onion or white onions work best. Red onions taste fine, but the color is a bit strange in the final dish.
- Raisins – You can leave them out if you don’t like raisins, but either purple or white raisins add a natural sweetness and chewy texture to this dish.
- Low sodium chicken broth – Stick with with low sodium broth so you can control how much salt is in your dish. You can swap this out with vegetable broth if you prefer.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs – Feel free to use whatever cut of boneless, skinless chicken you have on hand. I like using chicken breasts because they shred really nicely when cooked.
- Yellow mustard – Sharp yellow mustard with its vinegar tang is needed here to cut the richness of the dish. Dijon and stone ground mustards just don’t work as well.
- Brown sugar – A perfect pairing with the mustard to bring the sweetness and a depth of flavor.
- Garlic powder, Onion powder – My two favorite pantry spices for bringing delicious flavor to recipes.
- Black pepper and Salt – There are suggested amounts giving in the recipe, but feel free to adjust to taste.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Apples
Chop or slice apples and onion. Place apple slices and onions in your slow cooker. Add raisins and chicken broth. Set chicken pieces on top of apple mixture.
Separately, in a small bowl, combine mustard, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper and salt.
Spread the mustard mixture over chicken.
Cover and cook on high in the slow cooker for 2 ½ – 3 hours or 5-6 hours on low. Using two forks, shred chicken into large chunks. Stir the chicken mixture gently to combine.
Serve the shredded chicken mixture with cooked rice or over buttered egg noodles.
Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Do not substitute apple juice or apple cider instead of the fresh apples. Using anything other than the actual fruit will cause there to be extra liquid and the chicken mixture will be very soupy.
- Use your favorite chicken pieces in this recipe. Boneless skinless chicken breasts are my choice, but skinless chicken thighs or chicken legs would be good as well. Just make sure you have about 1 1/2 pounds of chicken going into the slow cooker.
- Do not leave the skin on the chicken. Chicken skin doesn’t get crispy in the slow cooker, so not only will the skin just be mushy if you leave it on, but it’ll add a lot of excess fat to the cooking liquid that we don’t need or want.
- Serve this delicious dinner over cooked egg noodles, with cooked rice, or just with a side of crusty bread.
Can I make this recipe in advance?
Chop the onion and make the sauce ahead of time. You can also cook the rice or noodles in advance. The day you’re going to make this dish, just peel and chop the apples before adding everything in the slow cooker.
How to Freeze Slow Cooker Chicken and Apples
Yes! Cool the finished chicken dish and place it in zip-top bags. Lay the bag flat to freeze. Store for up to 2 months in the freezer. When ready to eat it, thaw overnight in the refrigerator or thaw it quickly by submerging the bag in a sink of cold water for 30 minutes. Reheat in a pot on the stove over medium heat until the chicken mixture is heated through
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Slow Cooker Chicken & Apples
Ingredients
- 2 medium apples, peeled and cored
- 1 small yellow onion
- ¼ cup raisins
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 1 ½ lbs chicken breasts, (or thighs) boneless and skinless
- ½ cup yellow mustard
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. black pepper
- ½ tsp. salt
Instructions
- Spray slow cooker with cooking spray.
- Chop apples and onion. Place in slow cooker.2 medium apples, 1 small yellow onion
- Add raisins and chicken broth.¼ cup raisins, ¾ cup chicken broth
- Set chicken on top of apple mixture.1 ½ lbs chicken breasts
- In a separate bowl, combine mustard, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper and salt.½ cup yellow mustard, ½ cup brown sugar, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp. onion powder, 1 tsp. black pepper, ½ tsp. salt
- Spread mixture over chicken.
- Cover and cook on high in slow cooker for 2 ½ – 3 hours or 5-6 hours on low.
- Using two forks, shred chicken into large chunks. Stir to combine.
- Serve over cooked rice or egg noodles.
This sounds great! Any idea on how I can make it in my Instant Pot?
I don’t use an instapot, so I’m not sure what the cooking time would change to. Many do have a slow cooker option on them you could try.