Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken is easy to prep with just a few ingredients for a simple weeknight dinner that has big flavor!
We are quickly moving to the end of preschool and kindergarten before the holidays and I'm trying to get all my loose ends tied up since those cute kiddos will be home with me while I'm still working.
Also, 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.
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 pick up kids, 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 round-up of healthy slow cooker chicken recipes for more inspiration.
This slow cooker cream cheese chicken is a favorite. And slow cooker chicken cacciatore is super cozy!
I even have a slow cooker e-cookbook.
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 a family member.)
This lemon pepper chicken recipe was another one that fit the bill.
Actually, I have a round-up of easy vacation meals that are perfect for beach trips, mountain getaways and more if you need more ideas.
And at home, this crock pot balsamic chicken is 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.
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.
OK, let's get cooking.
Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make crock pot balsamic chicken. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Recipe Notes:
- Chicken: I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but you could also substitute chicken thighs or use a mix of the two.
- Tomatoes: I use regular diced tomatoes, but petite diced tomatoes would be fine, too. You could also use fire-roasted diced tomatoes for an extra kick.
- 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.
- Serving: 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!
- Yield: 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. (More storage tips below.)
The flavors in this dish are so versatile, too, that it pairs well with all kinds of vegetables.
Keep it easy and steam some broccoli or asparagus or cook up some green beans. Or make a side salad.
OK, lastly, let's talk about what to do with any leftovers.
Storage Tips:
- The leftovers, once cooled, can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days.
- Reheat over medium low heat in a skillet or in single servings in the microwave. (Bonus: The sauce helps keep the chicken from drying out.)
- You can also freeze the leftovers. Once cooled, place in a freezer-safe ziptop bag or container, label and ate it, and freeze for up to 5 months.
- Defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then reheat in the microwave or in a skillet.
Here’s to simple weeknight meals with big flavor!
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
For serving:
- Chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- 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.
- Top chicken with onion slices and diced tomatoes. Pour balsamic vinegar and chicken broth over chicken.
- Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 2 ½-3 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Serve hot, sprinkled with chopped fresh parsley.
Tara | Treble in the Kitchen
I've got a slow cooker meal on the blog today too. Serious life saver when times get busy. And I feel in the cookie department. The issue is always not enough people to eat all the cookies 🙂
Kathryn
Yay slow cooker twins! And yes, you totally feel me on the cookie front 😉
Rose
Can i use mushroom in it ? Would it cook in the slow cooker ?
Kathryn
Absolutely! Yes, the mushrooms will cook right along with everything else. If you are using small ones, I'd leave them whole so they don't fall apart. I think I'm going to do this next time, too!
Antoinette Samuelson
I used bone in thigh chicken in my slow cooker and kept the liquid in the tomatoes. It smells great and I hope it cooks through, I have it for 5 hours, will let you know how it comes out.
Kathryn
I hope you enjoyed it!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
Just the kind of recipe I love <3 So much flavor!! I can't wait to get home so I can use my slow cooker again! Bahaha!
Kathryn
My slow cooker game has been strong lately - such a help!
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary
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!!
Kathryn
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
Arleen
Do u have to used onions in this recipe
Kathryn
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!
Arleen
Thank u cause my kids don't like onions. Making it tonight will let u know
Emily
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!
Kathryn
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.
Malia
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!
Kathryn
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!
Lauren
What kind of onion do you use? Thanks! Can't wait to make this recipe for lunch this week!
Kathryn
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!
Allissa
If I use frozen chicken is the time for low or high differnt in anyway?
Kathryn
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.
Lauren
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!
Kathryn
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.
Corie
If you want to thicken the sauce, you can always remove the chicken from the slow cooker when finishes and then whisk in a corn starch slurry. Add chicken back to sauce when finished.
Kathryn
Great tip Corie! That would definitely work as well. Thanks for sharing!
Genna
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!
Kathryn
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!
Kels
Have you ever tried serving this over angel hair pasta? Have this in the crock pot now and thought it might be interesting! Thanks!
Kathryn
I have not, but I think it sounds like a great idea! Would love to hear how you enjoy it!
Christina
Can i do this on high temperature instead? If so, for how long then?
Kathryn
Hi Christina! Yes, as noted in the recipe above, you can also cook this on high for 3-4 hours. Hope you give it a try!
Diane
I just noticed in the nutrition facts the sodium amount is 5957? Is that correct?
Kathryn
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!
Jeanette
Hi. Can you use beef broth instead of chicken broth?
Kathryn
Hi Jeanette! I think that would be fine! Hope you love it!
Jeanette Borges
I ended up using a chicken bouillon and made a mock broth. The meal was a little too vinegary for us but still pretty tasty!
Bethany
Do you think it would come out ok if I use a jar of spaghetti sauce instead of crushed tomatoes?
Kathryn
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.
Gabriel
How long do you think I can keep this in the fridge. I was hoping 2-3 days.
Thanks!
Kathryn
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!
Tabitha @ Tabitha Talks Food
I'm going to have to try this. I love balsamic chicken!
Kathryn
I hope you enjoy it Tabitha! 😊
Mariah
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!
Kathryn
That's the best, isn't it Mariah?! I'm so glad you found this recipe at the perfect time and I hope you enjoyed it!
JENN
Can I use tomato paste instead of tomatoes?
Kathryn
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!
Angel
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!
Kathryn
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!
Angel
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!
Beth
I need to serve 12-15 would I be able to double this recipe? I have a large slow cooker.
Kathryn
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!
Beth
Thank you! That helps
Jenny Hiller
What is the nutrition info? I'm mainly looking for the calories per serving. Thanks!
Kathryn
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!
rachel
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?
Kathryn
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!
John Wiankowski
Hello kathryn,
I like that you use chicken breasts in your recipe. Chicken thighs I think would work well too.The choice of spices is nice.
Kathryn
Thanks! And yes, chicken thighs should work well here too!
Laila
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
Kathryn
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!