Slow cooker Mediterranean chicken is quick and easy to prep and bursting with bright, healthy flavors. This meal is loaded with tomatoes, artichokes and olives and goes great with rice or couscous.
(Note: This post has been updated with new photos and a new video. Minor changes and additions have been made to the text. The post was originally published in June 2015.)
Hello again friends!
I've got a great recipe for you today, originally made for me by my mother-in-law when we were visiting them in Florida. We always have so much we want to do and see while we're there that a hands-off, low-key meal is a must.
And that's exactly why I love crock pot meals -- they are super hands off.
My slow cooker apricot chicken and slow cooker balsamic chicken are regular go-tos all year long. And I make my slow cooker Mexican shredded chicken all the time to use for rice bowls, tacos, nachos and more.
And when it's chilly out, this cozy slow cooker chicken stew always warms me right up.
I especially love slow cooker recipes like today's that are super hands off.
Just add all of your ingredients, turn it on and get on with your day! Dinner is waiting for you later, which is a glorious thing.
And this slow cooker Mediterranean chicken is a complex medley of flavors. No boring, bland crock pot cooking here!
But despite having some heavy-hitting ingredients — tomatoes, olives, curry powder — everyone places nice together and it all melds into a delicious mix.
It must be all that time spent together cooking away. Gotta love a long simmer that develops ALL the flavor and yet is so hands-off!
You will catch a whiff of olives in the air while this is cooking. Not overpowering, just enough of a hint to whisk you away to a field of olive trees in Italy.
It’s divine. Go with it.
Notes on slow cooker Mediterranean chicken:
- I use canned whole tomatoes for this recipe. I drain them and then just use a knife to cut them up in the can a bit so they aren't so huge. They break down further while cooking. You could sub diced tomatoes as well, just be sure to drain them well.
- Once it's cooked, you can either slice or shred your chicken for this recipe. Then you'll mix it back in with the other ingredients so it can soak up some of those lovely juices.
- I recommend that you use a slotted spoon to serve it from the crock pot so you can more carefully control how much of the liquid you get. You don’t want it too dry, but you also don’t want soup.
Finally, a sprinkling of fresh parsley (or cilantro) helps add some freshness and brightness to the finished dish.
You could use a squeeze of lemon in a pinch if you prefer. Just helps wake up the flavors after they have been slow cooking for so long.
As is, this is low-carb and gluten free. You can keep it that way by serving it with cauliflower rice or spaghetti squash.
We also love serving this Mediterranean chicken over steamed brown rice, and you could also use couscous, quinoa or even polenta.
Or serve it with a hunk of crusty bread.
You'll just want something to help soak up some of that sauce. 😍
Beyond the fresh herbs, you can also sprinkle the finished dish with some crumbled feta cheese. Pine nuts or slivered almonds would add a fun crunch if you have those on hand.
(Pssst... this also pairs great with a nice glass of your favorite red or white wine. 🍷🙌)
Whatever you do, take this journey to the Mediterranean for your next weeknight dinner. It’s as easy as it gets and you can't beat the flavor!
Enjoy! 😊
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. Check out my other slow cooker chicken recipes for more easy dinner ideas!
Slow cooker Mediterranean chicken
Slow cooker Mediterranean chicken is quick and easy to prep and bursting with bright, healthy flavors.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 heaping tablespoon curry powder
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 (28 oz.) can whole tomatoes, mostly drained and chopped a bit (see notes)
- 2 (14-oz.) cans quartered artichoke hearts, drained
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- ½ cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- ¼ cup fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in the insert of the slow cooker.
- Combine the curry powder, basil, thyme, salt and pepper and stir well. Season the chicken with half of the seasoning mixture.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker (except for the fresh parsley) and sprinkle in the remaining seasoning mixture.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours (or on high for 3-4 hours).
- Once finished, remove the chicken breasts and either chop them or use two forks to shred the chicken. Stir the chicken back into the slow cooker mixture to help soak up the juices and flavors for 5-10 minutes. Then you can serve or let it hang out on warm for up to 30 minutes.
- Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve over couscous, brown rice, quinoa or whole wheat pasta.
Notes
I use canned whole tomatoes for this recipe. I drain them and then just use a knife to cut them up in the can a bit so they aren’t so huge. They break down further while cooking. You could sub diced tomatoes as well, just be sure to drain them well.
I recommend that you use a slotted spoon to serve it from the crock pot so you can more carefully control how much of the liquid you get. You don’t want it too dry, but you also don’t want soup.
If you are a real olive lover, add an extra ¼ cup of chopped olives to the crock pot. Or, reserve them as a garnish to really get their full flavor.
This freezes great, so you can pack up the extras, once cooled, and store them away for a rainy day.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 305Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 554mgCarbohydrates: 6gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 49g
Nata
This sounds and looks amazing! I love kalamata olives and artichoke hearts!!
Kathryn
Thanks! It is SO tasty! So many different bold flavors melding together 🙂
Katie Crenshaw
Kathryn, this looks fabulous! I am so busy and always in need of a great recipe that I can throw in the crock pot, leave, and come back home to a delicious cooked meal. I am so excited to try this for my family!
Kathryn
Thanks Katie! I love an easy crock pot meal, too! Makes dinner a breeze 🙂 I hope you try it and love it! XO
Thalia @ butter and brioche
This mediterranean chicken looks seriously SO flavoursome and delicious. Perfect excuse for me to pull out and use my crock pot!
Kathryn
Thanks Thalia! So many good flavors here. Definitely worth hauling out the crock pot and letting it do all the work for you. Hope you try it and let me know how you like it!
Lucy @ Bake Play Smile
Yum! I'm always looking for new slow cooker recipes - and this one has so many of my favourite ingredients in it!! Thanks for linking up with our Fabulous Foodie Fridays party xx
Kathryn
Thanks for hosting, Lucy! I love these ingredients all together - especially when you just toss everything in the slow cooker and let it do its thing. Makes dinner a cinch. Happy Friday! XO
Leanne
Hi! Any reason you feel I couldn't freeze it uncooked for later use? I usually prep and freeze on the weekends when I have a little time. Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
Kathryn
Sure, you certainly could get it all prepped and bagged up and keep it in the freezer for when you're ready to make this. Though honestly, this recipe just takes 5 minutes to throw all of the ingredients in the slow cooker, so you might be making more work for yourself by bagging it up and freezing it. Either way, I hope you enjoy it!!
LIZ G.
Making this right now! Added fresh lemon slices on top of the ingredients and I will toss in fresh baby spinach about 15 minutes before it's finished cooking. I'm going to serve this over brown rice tonight for Valentine's Day to my husband! 🙂
Kathryn
Hi Liz! I think the lemon and spinach sound like great additions - hope you both enjoyed it and had a lovely Valentine's Day!
Frugal Hausfrau
I think I have to have this in my life! I love these flavors, although the Curry Powder surprises me...
Kathryn
Thanks! The curry powder really brings a lot of flavor and helps tie everything together!
Jody
I made this tonight, served it over orzo, and it was an absolute hit! I wouldn't change a thing from the original recipe.
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear that Jody! Thanks so much for sharing!
Melissa b
This dish is very weird...adding curry to a "Mediterranean" dish is the first odd thing...it's strange...not horrible, but doubt I'll make it again
Kathryn
I'm sorry to hear you didn't like it. I've gotten a lot of good feedback on this recipe and while I initially wasn't sure about the curry spice (which is actually used a lot in different types of Mediterranean cooking), I thought it worked great! Hope you'll find another recipe hear that's more your style. 😊
Megan @ MegUnprocessed
Those seasonings sound good!
Kathryn
They give it such big flavor!
Veronica
Can I use something else in place of white wine vinegar?
Kathryn
Hi Veronica! I think you'd be fine to substitute with regular vinegar or an apple cider vinegar. They're a little more acidic but after cooking so long, it shouldn't make a huge difference in the final dish. (And if you don't have any vinegar, just go without - I'm not a fussy cook and I bet it'd still be great.)
Vivian
Great recipe! I have made several versions of this - but this is the first with the curry powder. Wonderful flavors!
Thanks!
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Vivian! It's a favorite recipe in our family!
Ryan
I am doing this method in a cast iron pot via Braising. I hope it works out. Looks great!
Kathryn
I hope you enjoy it! And would love to hear if it turns out that way - let us know!
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Hannah Wolfe
Excited to make this, thanks for posting! 🙂
It reminds me of pasta puttanesca, but with chicken. I am going to take it for lunch and stuff it into pita pockets.
Kathryn
Thanks Hannah! And I love the idea of stuffing this in pita pockets! That's totally what I'm going to do with the leftovers I have tucked in the freezer right now 😊
Erin
Hello Kathryn, this dish looks wonderful
Was wondering if I made a serving for 4
Not 6 if I use the same amount of ingredients
Or maybe less chicken broth?
Kathryn
Hi Erin! You can do the full recipe and just save any leftovers (it freezes great!) or you can reduce the ingredients a bit and just use 1 cup of chicken broth. Hope that helps!
Toni
This would be a perfect meal for me any night of the week!
Kathryn
It's so easy and so yummy! I hope you try it!
Holly
This looks so flavorful and delicious! I going to make a big pot of this for meal prep for the week and maybe freeze some for later since it freezes well. We're olive fans for sure so I'll definitely be adding the extra ones - yum!
Kathryn
It's definitely great for meal prep and for freezing for another night. I hope you love it! 🙂
Cranberry Run Campground
I own a campground and stay there on the weekends from April-October, so I'm always looking for easy crock-pot meals or casseroles. I made this last night - I used chicken thighs instead of breast and it ended up cooking on low for 8 hours. It was great. So easy, great flavor, something different! Going into regular rotation and I'll be trying your other crock-pot recipes. I'm glad I found the site (Simply Recipes Facebook post got me here). Thanks for a great recipe!
Kathryn
Oh I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed this! Thanks so much for sharing and have a wonderful weekend! 😊
Tiffany
Would I be able to use thighs instead of breasts?
Kathryn Doherty
Definitely! Thighs would work great in place of breasts. Just be sure they are trimmed of excess fat. Hope you enjoy it!