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Slow cooker balsamic chicken (+ video)

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Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor!Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor! | www.familyfoodonthetable.com

We are quickly moving to the end of preschool and kindergarten for the year and I’m trying to get all my loose ends tied up so I’m not completely work-bound while the kids are home and underfoot the next few weeks.

Or, actually, each begging to sit in my lap while I lean around them to work on the computer. 😳

However, I am taking off tomorrow night for my annual baking day with my mom!

We’re definitely doing our Rice Krispies Christmas wreaths and my grandmother’s 4-ingredient chocolate chip brownies as well as our family’s classic chocolate chip cookie recipe. And we’ve always got lots of other recipes we want to try – just not enough time — or enough people to eat it all!

Coming up is a super packed weekend and lots of family around, which is when I tend to fall back on slow cooker recipes that will be ready and waiting for us at dinnertime.

Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor! | www.familyfoodonthetable.com

Honestly, I’ve been putting my slow cooker to seriously good use for the last couple of months now.

Apart from my regular rotation of chick peas and slow cooker turkey breasts (that we use for sandwiches), I’ve been making lots and lots of dinners in our slow cooker.

I love being able to set it and forget it, while I’m working, running out to get J from preschool, M from kindergarten, running errands and, this time of year, buying presents, going to parties and visiting with family.

Having the slow cooker going is just one less thing to think about at the end of the day when I’m exhausted and starving and ready to eat 5 minutes ago.

(You can see all of my slow cooker recipes and check out my slow cooker chicken recipes. I even have a slow cooker e-cookbook.)

Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor!

Today’s slow cooker balsamic chicken is one that’s really easy to prep and requires just a few basic ingredients. All kinds of good things about that!

It’s a recipe I originally came up with at a family beach vacation, when we were staying in a condo and didn’t want to have to buy too much stuff for our dinners.

(We also needed meals to be gluten-free for my mother-in-law.)

And at home, it’s a great go-to recipe because it’s all on-hand ingredients that you can throw together in the crock pot in the morning and off you go.

Slow cooker balsamic chicken Slow cooker balsamic chicken

Then you come home to this aromatic balsamic-laced chicken with onions and tomatoes and all kinds of delicious sauce. You know I love me a good sauce!

And the balsamic vinegar + tomato combo is just killer. A little tart, a little sweet, a little acidic and such a good melding. 👌

Notes on this slow cooker balsamic chicken recipe:

    • I serve the chicken breasts sliced and topped with lots of extra sauce. It’s all about the sauce. You could also shred the chicken if you prefer and stir it back into the sauce.
    • I serve this with quinoa or steamed brown rice, but it would work with couscous or polenta too. Or just add some crusty bread to scoop and eat with. The delicious juices are just dying for something else to soak into!
    • The recipe serves 6-8, but if you’ve got a smaller group for dinner, you can save the leftovers for lunch or freeze them for another time. Make sure to include plenty of sauce so your leftovers don’t dry out when you reheat them.
  •  

Slow cooker balsamic chicken dinner

(Also served here 👆 with my quick Southern collard greens with bacon from earlier this week. That was a good dinner!)

Here’s to simple weeknight meals with big flavor! 🙌

Enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn

Yield: 6 servings

Slow cooker balsamic chicken

Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor!

Slow cooker balsamic chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

For serving:

  • chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

  1. Combine Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl and sprinkle over chicken breasts. Place chicken breasts in the insert of the slow cooker.
  2. Top chicken with onion slices and diced tomatoes. Pour balsamic vinegar and chicken broth over chicken.
  3. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
  4. Serve hot, sprinkled with chopped fresh parsley.

Notes

I serve the chicken breasts sliced and topped with lots of extra sauce. It’s all about the sauce. You could also shred the chicken if you prefer and stir it back into the sauce.

I serve this with quinoa or steamed brown rice, but it would work with couscous or polenta too. Or just add some crusty bread to scoop and eat with.

The recipe serves 6-8, but if you’ve got a smaller group for dinner, you can save the leftovers for lunch or freeze them for another time. Make sure to include plenty of sauce so your leftovers don’t dry out when you reheat them.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 355Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 161mgSodium: 412mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 60g
© Kathryn
Cuisine: American / Category: Chicken
Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor! #slowcooker #chickenrecipes #chickendinner #crockpot

Comments

  3. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says

    Oh, SOO fun that you have a annual baking day with your mother!!! I hope you guys have a great time, but I feel like that is a given, right? Anyways, slow cooker meals are the best, but they are a definite life saver this time of year! I am LOOOOVING this balsamic chicken!!! I adore balsamic in general, so I am swooning over here. Plus I have a weird addiction to slow cooked onions, so I’m loving that this chicken is adorned with them! I am totally adding this to the rotation! Pinned! Cheers, friend!!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      We have so much fun!! And yes, bring on the balsamic! I love that stuff so much! And I’m totally addicted to slow cooked onions too – my husband and kids are kinda “meh” on them so I usually put them ALL on my plate!! XO

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Nope, Arleen, you can skip them! I kind-of adore slow cooked onions but I know lots of people – my husband included – don’t, so you’re fine to leave that out. Hope you give it a try and let me know what you think!

      Reply

  5. Emily says

    I just realized my chicken is frozen. Is it ok to put in the crock pot frozen? I’m really wanting to try this tonight!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      I’ve used frozen chicken in the crock pot before for a number of different recipes and it’s always worked just fine. Technically, they say you shouldn’t because there’s a risk of the chicken being at an “unsafe” temperature during the cooking time, but again, I’ve done it a lot before and never had a problem.

      Reply

  6. Malia says

    Will this recipe turn out if I cook longer than 6 hours? I’d love to be able to prep before I head off to work
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Malia! I find chicken in the slow cooker dries out a bit after 6-7 hours on low. Does yours have a warm setting? Mine will switch to warm after the cooking time is done so that’s what I do if I’m gonna be gone all day (set to 6 hours and then let it stay on warm until I’m home). If yours doesn’t, you can let it cook longer and just spoon on extra sauce when you serve it to offset any dryness. Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Lauren! I tend to buy sweet or Vidalia onions (maybe because I’m from the South) but any yellow onion will do here. You could use a white onion too if that’s all you have. Hope you enjoy it!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Allissa! No, 6-7 hours on low should still be fine for frozen chicken breasts. As mentioned above, I’ve used frozen chicken in the slow cooker before for a number of different recipes and it’s always worked just fine. Technically, they say you shouldn’t because there’s a risk of the chicken being at an “unsafe” temperature during the cooking time, but I’ve never had a problem.

      Reply

  9. Lauren says

    I just finished and it smells great! My sauce is pretty watery, is that the way it is supposed to be? Just wanted to know if I did something wrong for the next time. I took a little try and it is so tasty! Thanks!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Lauren! So glad you liked it! Yes, the sauce is pretty thin for me too, so I serve it with quinoa or rice or couscous to help soak up some of those juices. 👌 You could also try skipping the chicken broth if you wanted it to be thicker next time.

      Reply

  10. Genna says

    I have this in the crockpot now and it smells delicious! I didn’t have any chicken broth on hand so I didn’t drain the can of diced tomatoes and included the liquid. Hope that doesn’t change much and it turns out! Excited to eat this tonight!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Genna! I bet you’ll be fine – plenty of liquid is released and retained in this slow cooker meal so it’s probably OK you didn’t have any broth. Let me know how it turns out!

      Reply

  11. Kels says

    Have you ever tried serving this over angel hair pasta? Have this in the crock pot now and thought it might be interesting! Thanks!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Diane! No, that’s definitely not correct!! Thanks for pointing it out! I got in touch with the tech people behind the recipe card database and they confirmed there’s a problem with the sodium content across a bunch of recipes. They’ve removed it temporarily and are working on a fix in the next couple of days. Thanks again!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Bethany! I don’t think that would work because spaghetti sauce usually has lots of extra add-ins and flavors that just a jar of tomatoes doesn’t have. But you could probably just skip the tomatoes all together if you don’t have any.

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Gabriel! Once cooked, it’ll keep 4-5 days in the fridge. I’ve also frozen the leftovers for 5-6 months and it was fine! Hope that helps!

      Reply

  18. Mariah says

    I was not sure what to do for dinner tonight and stumbled onto this recipe. I love it when I have all ingredients on hand and don’t have to make a trip to the store. It smells wonderful! Thank you for posting this!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Jenn! Tomato paste and canned diced tomatoes aren’t really interchangeable in terms of taste, texture and amount. You could just leave out the canned tomatoes. Or try 1-2 tablespoons of tomato paste that would melt into the sauce, but I’m not sure how that will affect the final dish. Let me know if you try it!

      Reply

  20. Angel says

    was wondering if you thought cornstarch would be ok to add to thicken it a bit and maybe make the vinegar less strong? Nervous my kids may not like the taste but I’m making it anyway!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi there! You could use a little cornstarch if you wanted to thicken it — it doesn’t have a ton of liquid and isn’t overly saucy, but feel free to try that. I’m not sure it would cut the vinegar flavor much, but balsamic vinegar has such a good sweetness to it that it’s not so strong for kids. You could also serve theirs without much extra sauce, which might help them. Would love to hear what you think!

      Reply

      • Angel says

        Thank you I will see how it looks toward the end and see if I want to try it. I do that with teriyaki chicken to make it kind of like a gravy but I don’t want to mess this up because it already smells delicious!

        Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Beth! That’s a big crowd! Yes, I think you would be fine to double this recipe if you have a large slow cooker. Just be sure to check that the chicken breasts are cooked through (I prefer to use a meat thermometer). And if you need to stretch this a little, you can slice the chicken breasts or cut them into large chunks after they are cooked (be sure to return them to the slow cooker and get them coated in the sauce). I hope you enjoy it!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Jenny! I had to work with my tech team to figure out why the nutrition information wasn’t displaying for this recipe. They finally resolved it and it’s showing up now! It’s 269 calories/per serving for 6 servings total. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  23. rachel says

    This looks great! Question, do your kids like it? I’ve never made Balsalmic chicken before but having a dinner party tomorrow night and this looks divine! However we will have 4 children under the age of 5! They aren’t super picky eaters but curious how your children like it?

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Rachel! My kids do like this but it does have a strong vinegar flavor, which could be a turn-off to some kids. Balsamic vinegar is a lot sweeter, so I think that helps balance the acidity, but you never know! Would love to hear if you try it!

      Reply

  25. Laila says

    Hi there I actually have the crock pot going right now with this recipe in there!!! CANT WAIT … Just wanted to know how to do the shredded chicken instead of the whole chicken breasts. Love that idea…
    Thank you

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Laila! You can just remove the chicken breasts after they are cooked and use two forks to shred it. Then return the meat to the crock pot and stir it into the juices and let it sit on warm for 10-15 minutes. Hope you enjoy it!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Sun-dried tomatoes have a different flavor and consistency than canned tomatoes so I don’t think that would be a good substitution in this recipe. But yes to adding some spinach – great idea! I’d make the recipe as instructed, remove the chicken once it’s cooked and then add a few handfuls of spinach into the slow cooker with the sauce. You can stir in for a couple of minutes to get it to wilt down. I hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Jessica, that’ll just add some extra liquid to the slow cooker. You can drain some off as you serve it (or use a slotted spoon) if it seems too soupy. Should still taste great – would love to hear what you think!

      Reply

  29. Vanessa says

    Hi. I recently made your recipe, but the sauce is too dark. I wonder what type of balsamic vinager do you use? May you tell me? Thanks.

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi Vanessa! I actually use and like the balsamic vinegar from Costco – it’s affordable and tasty. But also, I take my photos in specific lighting and edit them to make sure the pictures look pretty, so the colors are different than what the sauce looks like just in the slow cooker in my kitchen. Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi! I usually make a steamed veggie on the side to go with this. You could try adding a hearty veggie – like carrots – but I think something like broccoli might get mushy in the slow cooker for that long. Generally, more tender veggies should be added towards the end of the cooking time. I hope that helps!

      Reply

  34. Devyni says

    Could you make and freeze this ahead of time and then when ready to make thaw overnight and then place in slow cooker? We love this meal but prepping for baby and looking to make meals ahead of time 🙂

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi there, yes! You can certainly prep this ahead of time, freeze it, then let it thaw overnight in the fridge and just dump it in the slow cooker! I also love making batches of chili then freezing it (already cooked) so you just have to thaw and reheat it. It’s a great one to eat one-handed too when you’re holding a baby! (Here’s some of my chili recipes: https://www.familyfoodonthetable.com/?s=chili) Good luck! ❤️

      Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Hi! I haven’t tried it that way, but since the tomatoes would cook, that could work. It might be a little less rich, since canned tomatoes have more depth of flavor, but you could certainly give it a go!

      Reply

  38. Casey says

    I did this in the Instant Pot! I halved a lot of grape tomatoes (I didn’t have canned) and added a can of artichokes (drained). I also did not add chicken broth and shredded my chicken when finished. Served over brown rice. Very good!

    Reply

  40. Elizabeth says

    This sounds delicious! I was just curious, do you think this would work as an instant pot recipe or not? If so, what time modifications would you suggest? Can’t wait to make this either way! Thanks!!

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Hi Elizabeth! I think this would definitely work in the Instant Pot. I haven’t made this particular recipe that way, but I think if you cooked it on high pressure for 10 minutes, it’d be done (that’s the standard time for fresh chicken breasts; it’s 12-15 if they are frozen). Would love to hear if you try it!

      Reply

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