For a quick dinner, what can be more perfect than chicken? It is economical and there are tons of recipes for every part and piece of it. Here are some ideas for cooking chicken in a crock pot.

It seems chicken is a staple in many American households, whether you live in the south or the north, whether you bake it or fry it, you find it being served for family dinners at least once a week in many households.

You can cook all parts of the chicken in a crock pot. Just like when frying or baking you have to be careful about temperature settings, and how different parts of the chicken will cook. If you cook a whole chicken in the crock pot you will find the thighs, legs and wings will cook faster than the breast which are thicker.

If you are cooking chicken pieces with bones in, you are in luck. These pieces are less likely to dry out in a slow cooker. However, you have to be a little more careful with boneless breast pieces. Without enough liquid, and cooking them too long you may find they dry out.

One way to avoid drying out is to cook chicken from frozen. The great thing about a slow cooker is that it works well whether the meat is frozen or thawed. Thawed meat will of course need less cooking time because the heat works directly to cook the meat. If the chicken is frozen, the heat defrosts the chicken before actually cooking it.

Prepare your chicken pieces as you would if you were cooking them in the oven. Clean the chicken thoroughly and season it. This will help to remove Salmonella bacteria commonly found in raw chicken, not to mention you dont want a lot of bloody juice in the bottom of their crock pot. 

You must add some liquid to your crock. Crock pots cook with moist heat, you have to add the moisture for this to work. You can use water, but sometimes even better is to add chicken stock. This will give your chicken a great flavor. If you have time you can also flour and saute your chicken before putting it in your crock pot. Make sure to scrape the bits from the bottom of your saute pan, this will add a lovely flavor to your dish. You won't need to add much liquid to frozen chicken, as it will create its own as it defrosts.

Adding vegetables to your crock pot meal makes it a full well balanced meal. You have to be careful with some vegetables though. Peppers will turn bitter if in a crock pot for a whole day, green beans will turn to mush or just disappear. These veggies are best added during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Vegetables such as potatoes and carrots are great to add in at the very beginning though.

Chicken pieces need to cook for three hours or more in a crock pot. With a slow cooker, two hours on a low setting would be equal to about one hour on the highest setting. Frozen chicken will need the maximum time to cook.

Any spices you add to chicken dishes can be left for last. Fresh herbs will infuse quickly throughout the meal so an hour in the cooker is good. Dried spices can take a bit longer to flavor so add about two hours before the meal is done. Stir up the dish so the herbs and spices are evenly distributed.

What You Need:

3 T canola oil
4 lg. chicken breast
1 (19 oz) can of enchilada sauce
2 (11 oz) cans cream of chicken soup
1 (4.25 oz) can black olives, sliced
2 dozen corn tortillas
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 (8 oz) pkg. taco style cheese

How to Make It:

Place a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil.
Once the oil is heated add the chicken.
Cook about 5 minutes per side.
Remove and allow to cool.
Once the chicken has cooled it can be shredded.
Cut the tortillas into 8 wedges per tortilla.
In a large mixing bowl combine the soup, olives and onions.
Begin layering in the crock pot with the enchilada sauce on the bottom.
Then add the tortillas, soup, chicken and the cheese in that order.
Continue layering in that order to the top being sure to end with the cheese.
Cover and cook on low temperature 7 hours.

Tip: This is best served in a bowl and topped with sour cream or guacamole. 

What You Need:

6 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut in cubes and frozen
3 T olive oil
1 (1.05 oz) pkg. dry Italian dressing mix
1 (11 oz) can cream of celery soup
1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, cubed
1/4 C chicken broth
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 tsp. garlic, minced
1 (10 oz) pkg. frozen broccoli florets

How to Make It:

Place the olive oil in a bowl.
Add the cubed chicken and cover completely.
Place the Italian dressing mix in a zip lock bag.
Add the chicken and shake to coat well.
Place the chicken in the crock pot.
Cover and cook on low 3 1/2 hours.
After 3 1/2 hours while continue to cook the chicken spray a skillet with non stick cooking spray.
Place over medium high heat and add the onion and mushrooms.
Add the cream cheese.
Stir in the soup and the chicken broth.
You can also add about 1/4 C of the juice from the crock pot if you like.
Add the garlic and stir until the mixture becomes smooth.
You can also add some salt and pepper to taste.
Pour the mixture over the chicken.
Cover and continue to cook 1 hour.

Tip: The chicken cooks better and has less of tendency to dry out if frozen when placed in the crock pot.  Cube the chicken before freezing to make it easier.
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