Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Chicken (Printer-Friendly)
Slow-cooked chicken breasts in a tomato-basil sauce, tender and savory—serve over rice, pasta, or zucchini noodles.
# What You'll Need:
→ Meats
01 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
→ Vegetables
02 - 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes with juices
03 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
04 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
→ Dairy
05 - 1/4 cup heavy cream (optional, for creamier sauce)
→ Herbs & Seasonings
06 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
07 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
08 - 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
09 - 1/2 teaspoon dried basil (or 1 tablespoon fresh, chopped)
10 - 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional, for heat)
11 - 1 tablespoon olive oil
12 - 10-12 fresh basil leaves, roughly torn (for serving)
# How to Make It:
01 - Lightly grease the inside of the slow cooker with olive oil to prevent sticking.
02 - Place the chicken breasts in an even layer across the bottom of the slow cooker.
03 - In a mixing bowl, combine the diced tomatoes with juices, chopped onion, minced garlic, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, dried basil, and red pepper flakes if using. Stir to blend evenly.
04 - Pour the tomato mixture over the chicken breasts, ensuring they are well coated. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 4 hours, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
05 - For a creamier finish, stir the heavy cream into the sauce during the last 10 minutes of cooking and allow it to warm through.
06 - Transfer the chicken breasts to plates and spoon the tomato basil sauce generously over the top. Garnish with freshly torn basil leaves and serve immediately.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- You literally dump everything in, press a button, and four to eight hours later you have a meal that tastes like you stood at the stove for an hour.
- The tomato basil sauce gets so deeply flavored from the long simmer that people will assume you used a family recipe passed down through generations.
02 -
- Lifting the slow cooker lid even once can add twenty to thirty minutes to your total cooking time because all that trapped steam escapes instantly.
- Chicken breasts are lean and can dry out if left too long, so check at the minimum cook time rather than letting them go the full eight hours on high.
03 -
- Pound the chicken to an even thickness before adding it to the slow cooker and every piece will finish cooking at exactly the same moment.
- If the sauce seems too thin at the end, remove the lid and let it bubble on high for fifteen minutes to reduce and concentrate before adding the cream.