Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken (+Video)
If you love tender, flavorful chicken in a creamy garlic sauce, you’ll absolutely love this Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken. Just like the original, but made in the slow cooker!
A SIMPLE SLOW COOKER RECIPE
After I posted the Marry Me Chicken recipe a few months ago, I immediately got a ton of messages asking how it can be made in the crock pot. Not every recipe translates well into a slow cooker meal and I had to really play around with it and test it to get it just right. I wanted it to taste just as good as the original without being overcooked or dry and tough. I am really pleased with the results and I think you will be too! I know it seems like a lot of ingredients, but I need you to trust me with this one, it will taste like a million bucks! This slow cooker recipe will leave your house smelling amazing with the delicious aromas of garlic, butter, and tender chicken!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ’S)
Ideally, I’d stick to the low setting. The whole point of a slow cooker is to cook on low. Using the high setting may scorch the cream sauce and ruin it. If you need to cook this faster, I would suggest going with the stovetop version of Marry Me Chicken.
I used rotini when serving this. But you can use any pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, or anything that will soak up the flavorful sauce nicely because you definitely want to take advantage of that gorgeous sauce! You could also serve with a nice side salad.
I’ve only tested this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I imagine you could use other boneless chicken, but may need to alter the cook time. In addition, this could work with pork chops as well (again, you’d have to play with the time as I have not tested it.)
I prefer to, I feel like it locks in the flavor and gives it a beautiful color. I guess, you could skip it, but you’d need to add 4 Tablespoons of melted butter (slightly cooled) to the sauce so you have plenty of sauce for pouring later.
Just leave them out. I will tell you that these are a big part of what makes this recipe special and I don’t think you get the same level of flavor. However, don’t put something in a recipe if you just don’t like it. It will still be good!
No, I do not recommend it with this recipe.
Leftover Marry Me Chicken should be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Or keep it for up to 3 months in the freezer. Please note: any time you reheat a cream sauce, it could separate so do your best to reheat slowly.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- boneless, skinless chicken breasts – as I stated above, you could certainly make this with other cuts of chicken, I just have not tested it and can’t tell you how to adjust the time.
- salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder – these seasonings are going to add an additional layer of flavor to the chicken.
- butter – I prefer salted butter here. I don’t think it makes it too salty. But you want real butter and not margarine (which is just oil).
- chicken broth – if you really want to reduce the sodium, you could use a low sodium chicken broth.
- cornstarch – this will help thicken the broth. I would not substitute with flour as it can get lumpy in the gravy.
- heavy cream – it has to be heavy cream, not milk.
- garlic – I prefer fresh garlic in this recipe over the jarred stuff but use what you prefer.
- red pepper flakes – I am super sensitive to spice and I don’t find this spicy at all. But you can certainly leave it out if you prefer.
- sun-dried tomatoes – these are the star of this dish. They add such a decadent and unique flavor. You can leave them out if you absolutely must but it is not recommended.
- freshly grated parmesan cheese – you could also use a finely grated mozzarella cheese.
- fresh basil leaves – this is optional. I would not substitute with dry. Fresh basil just goes very nicely with the sundered tomatoes.
HOW TO MAKE CROCK POT MARRY ME CHICKEN
Season the chicken on both sides with the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and melt the butter. Sear the chicken breasts until golden brown, take the pan off the heat, and set aside.
Whisk together the chicken broth and cornstarch in a bowl until there are no lumps. Add the chicken broth mixture to the bottom of an 8-quart slow cooker. Whisk in the heavy cream, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and paprika. Place the seared chicken breasts into the slow cooker and pour the olive oil and butter from the pan on top. Top each piece of chicken with the chopped-up sundried tomatoes. Place on low for 6-7 hours.
Take the chicken breasts out and whisk in the parmesan cheese to the sauce. Add the chicken back into the slow cooker, cover with sauce and add the basil, serve immediately.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
- Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan
- Crock Pot Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta
- Crock Pot Chicken and Gravy
- Crock Pot Chicken & Rice
- Crock Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
- Crock Pot Mississippi Pork Chops
- Crock Pot Chicken Alfredo For Two
- Crock Pot Lasagna
- Butter Swim Biscuits
- Chicken Étouffée
Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken (+Video)
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons butter
For the sauce:
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ⅓ cup chopped sundried tomatoes drained
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 10 fresh basil leaves chopped
Instructions
- Season the chicken on both sides with the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and melt the butter.
- Sear the chicken breasts until golden brown, take the pan off the heat, and set aside.
- Whisk together the chicken broth and cornstarch in a bowl until there are no lumps.
- Add the chicken broth mixture to the bottom of an 8-quart slow cooker.
- Whisk in the heavy cream, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and paprika.
- Place the seared chicken breasts into the slow cooker and pour the olive oil and butter from the pan on top.
- Top each piece of chicken with the chopped-up sundried tomatoes. Place on low for 6-7 hours.
- Take the chicken breasts out and whisk in the parmesan cheese to the sauce. Add the chicken back into the slow cooker, cover with sauce and add the basil, serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- I would not recommend cooking this on high, I think there would be a good chance of the sauce scorching at a higher heat. If you are in a time crunch, consider making the stovetop version of Marry Me Chicken.
- It is great served over pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, or anything that can soak up that amazing sauce.
- You can skip the sear part but I think that adds flavor to the finished dish. If you do skip it, then I would add 4 Tablespoons of melted butter to the sauce. The sauce needs the butter/olive oil we pour over the chicken after searing.
- Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days, freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
This is one of the BEST meals I have ever made! This sauce is out of this world good and the chicken comes out so tender. I just wanted you to know that everyone we had over for dinner asked for the recipe. They couldn’t believe I made it in a crock pot LOL
Loved it!! Delicious! I plan to double the sauce next time as 6 hours in my slow cooker reduced it to about a cup.