Tuscan Style Crockpot Chicken

Tuscan Style Crockpot Chicken–an easy slow cooker or Instant Pot dinner made with tender chicken thighs, whole garlic cloves, Parmesan, spinach and a sun-dried tomato pesto cream sauce.

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Tuscan Style Crockpot Chicken

This chicken is all about the sauce! It’s creamy and dream and garlicky. The chicken gets so tender you can break it up with a spoon. The chicken and sauce taste really good over mashed potatoes! But pasta would be delicious too. This one is easy to make in the slow cooker or the Instant Pot depending on what your day looks like. It’s also super easy to double. I only used 4 chicken thighs but there’s enough sauce for 6 to 8 thighs, I would suspect. We had this for Sunday dinner and served it alongside corn and fresh nectarines that were sliced up. I’m trying to eat all the delicious fruits before summer is gone!

Ingredients/Substitution Ideas

• Chicken broth–or Better than Bouillon chicken base and water
• Boneless skinless chicken thighs–Chicken breasts can also work, although thighs stay more tender and juicy
• Kosher salt
• Dried basil–or Italian seasoning
• Paprika
• Garlic powder
• Black pepper
• Red pepper flakes–leave out if you don’t want any heat
• Garlic cloves–Yes, there are 10! They soften as they cook and give the sauce tons of flavor without being overwhelmingly garlicky. I buy a big bag of peeled garlic cloves from Sam’s Club and throw them in the freezer.
• Cornstarch
• Heavy cream–Half-and-half or evaporated milk can be substituted
• Sun-dried tomato pesto–or sundried tomatoes, chopped
• Parmesan
• Spinach–fresh or frozen

Steps

Add broth and chicken thighs into slow cooker. Sprinkle the chicken with salt, basil, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper and red pepper flakes. Add the garlic cloves (whole) in around the chicken.

Cover slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours. 
Stir cornstarch together with 2 Tbsp cold water until smooth. Stir the mixture into the slow cooker. Turn to high and cook for about 10 minutes. 
Stir a cup of the hot liquid in with the cream to temper it. Stir the cream, pesto, parmesan and spinach into the slow cooker.

Break the chicken up with a fork. 
Serve chicken and sauce over mashed potatoes or pasta.

Notes/Tips

• What to serve it with: Mashed potatoes are my first choice because they soak up all that creamy sauce. You can also serve the chicken over pasta, rice or cauliflower mash. Add a side of corn and fresh fruit on the side.
• Don’t be scared of the garlic: Ten cloves sounds like a lot, but because the cloves cook whole for several hours (or under pressure), they become soft and mellow.
• Temper the cream: Mixing some of the hot cooking liquid into the cream before adding it to the pot helps keep the cream from separating.
• Spinach: Add the spinach at the very end. The heat of the sauce is enough to wilt it, so there’s no reason to cook it for a long time. I used frozen spinach. I buy the big bag from Costco and throw it in the freezer and use it for recipes. It’s very handy.
• Chicken breasts: If substituting boneless skinless chicken breasts in the slow cooker, watch the cooking time since they can dry out more easily than thighs.
• Storing leftovers: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days. Reheat gently so the cream sauce doesn’t separate. I don’t love freezing this one because of the creamy sauce which separates upon reheating.
• This recipe can be gluten free. Just check your pesto label to be sure.
• Other recipes you can make with sundried tomato pesto are Creamy Tuscan Garlic Tortellini Soup and Marry Me Chicken Soup. I used the Rao’s brand and I found it in the pasta section of the grocery store. It adds so much flavor! If you’d rather you can use chopped sundried tomatoes in oil.

Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for. 

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