Slow Cooker Garlic Rice and Chicken-–brown rice is cooked with fresh garlic and tender bites of chicken. Parmesan cheese and asparagus (or broccoli) are stirred in to make a perfect one pot meal.
Get the INSTANT POT Garlic Rice and Chicken recipe here
Slow Cooker Garlic Rice and Chicken
This is a lovely one pot meal. The brown rice cooks perfectly in the slow cooker. The garlic and butter give a nice flavor to the rice. No cream soups are used but the rice almost as a creamy quality to it. The chicken thighs get fork tender. The asparagus is added after the chicken and rice are cooked through so that it is does not get overcooked and limp.
This is just a solid dinner idea for a weeknight that has all the things (whole grain, vegetable, protein) but doesn’t require a ton of effort. My whole family agreed that this was a great dinner.
If asparagus isn’t in season or if you don’t like it you can use broccoli instead.
More slow cooker recipes you’ll love…
Slow Cooker Greek Chicken Lemon Rice Soup
Slow Cooker Southwest Shredded Chicken Bowl
Slow Cooker Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole
What Slow Cooker Did You Use?
To make Slow Cooker Garlic Rice and Chicken I used my Ninja Auto-iQ 6 Quart Slow Cooker.* My favorite feature of this slow cooker is that it has a stove top function. This is perfect for sauteing or browning before you slow cook. This slow cooker has four manual cooking functions: slow cook, stove top sear/Saute, steam, and bake.
Slow Cooker Garlic Rice and Chicken
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Brown rice is cooked with fresh garlic and tender bites of chicken. Parmesan cheese and asparagus (or broccoli) are stirred in to make a perfect one pot meal.
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic
- 2 cups uncooked brown rice
- 3 cups boiling chicken broth
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 ½ pounds fresh boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese
- 1 large bunch of asparagus, washed and cut into 1 inch pieces (see note)
Instructions
- Heat a pan on the stove over medium heat. Add the butter into the pan and swirl around to melt. Once melted, add in the onion and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add in the garlic and saute for 20-30 seconds. Add in the brown rice and stir to coat the rice in butter and onions. Add the mixture to the slow cooker.
- Stir the boiling chicken broth, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper into the slow cooker.
- Nestle the chicken breasts into the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours or until rice is tender. Remove the chicken and cut into bite size pieces. Stir the chicken back into the slow cooker.
- Stir in the parmesan cheese and the asparagus. Cover and cook on high for about 10 minutes until asparagus is cooked. When asparagus gets to your desired softness serve and enjoy. I like my asparagus with a little crispness so it didn’t take much time at all. Plus my asparagus spears were pretty skinny.
Notes
If you prefer you can use broccoli florets in the place of asparagus. Cut a head of broccoli into small florets so they can cook quickly. Follow the directions above as written. You can also use frozen broccoli. Run hot water over the broccoli before adding it into the pot.
I used my Ninja Auto-iQ 6 Quart Slow Cooker.*
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Slow Cooker
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
How would this work if one did not saute the onion and garlic? Thank you
I’d just throw it in raw. It won’t have as good of flavor but it’ll still taste good.
Can you substitute white rice for the brown and cook the same way?
I haven’t personally tried it. But you could. You’d need to use the 1 cup of rice to 1.5 cups broth ratio. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces. 5 minutes pressure cook time.