Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes
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Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes is made with crispy, juicy chicken thighs and red potatoes, topped with olive oil, garlic, and homemade rotisserie chicken seasoning to make the perfect meal!
I’m using my homemade Rotisserie Chicken Seasoning for this recipe, but it works with almost any seasoning blend. You can also try this Homemade Ranch Seasoning. If you don’t have time for the slow cooker, I highly recommend One Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken w/Rice!
Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes is made with juicy rotisserie chicken thighs with crispy skin on top of tender potatoes and onions. It’s the perfect dinner for a busy day because it’s basically a complete meal without a lot of effort!
This is one of my go-to chicken recipes for a weeknight dinner because it’s minimal prep time and you have a complete chicken dinner without having to watch over it. Chicken with potatoes is a definite staple in this house! This is also a great way to meal prep lunches for the week.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Chicken Thighs – I recommend using chicken thighs with bone and skin, because the skin adds a lot of flavor. And browning the skin beforehand gives you a crispy texture.
This recipe will also work with boneless and skinless chicken thighs, but you won’t get the crispy texture or flavor from the skin. I also prefer dark meat but chicken breast will work, too.
Potatoes – Use either red potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes because they won’t get mushy when slow cooking. I usually pick gold potatoes for the flavor. I don’t bother peeling them, but you can if you want to.
We’re cutting them into quarters, so they cook at the right time. Try to make each piece around the same size. You can also use baby potatoes, or peeled russet potatoes.
Onion – I use Vidalia onion for a lot of my recipes because they are a little sweeter, which goes great in savory recipes. You can use yellow onion or white onion for this recipe, too.
Seasoning – I used my homemade Rotisserie Chicken Seasoning for this recipe because it adds tons of flavor. But this recipe works really well with almost any seasoning blend that you have. You can also just use a teaspoon of onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
Garlic – I love garlic, so I add it to almost everything. But it really depends on what seasoning blend you add. If it’s already heavy on garlic, you can leave this out. You can use cloves garlic or garlic powder.
Lemon Juice – The acidity in the lemon helps balance the dish, and adds some brightness to the flavor.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Mix one tablespoon of olive oil with the seasoning and season chicken thighs. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet. Place the chicken in the hot skillet and brown for 2-3 minutes on both sides. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
- Wash and quarter the potatoes, and place them in the slow cooker. Add the garlic, onion, and lemon juice and stir together. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and set on high for 4 hours (or on low for 8 hours).
How to Make Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes
If you don’t want whole potato pieces, it’s really easy to turn this into mashed potatoes!
- After the cooking time is up, remove the chicken and set aside. Poke the potatoes with a fork to make sure it goes through easily and they are ready.
- Add 1/4 – 1/2 cup heavy cream to the slow cooker. If you don’t have heavy cream, regular milk will work, too. You can also add 4 tablespoons of butter.
- Use an electric hand mixer to mash the potatoes, adding any more liquid as necessary. The bottom of the slow cooker will have some liquid, so keep that in mind.
Jacqui’s Tip! If you use skinless thighs, don’t worry about browning them beforehand. Just put the skinless thighs straight into the slow cooker. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts.
How to Make Gravy From the Liquid
You can also turn the chicken stock on the bottom of the slow cooker into a really nice gravy!
- Transfer the chicken thighs and potatoes to another dish. Very carefully pour the remaining liquid in the slow cooker into a measuring cup (I use a ladle).
- Use water or chicken broth to bring the measuring cup up to 2 1/2 cups of liquid (water works but chicken broth will give you more flavor).
- In the saucepan melt 3 tablespoons of butter. Whisk in 3 tablespoons of gluten free all purpose flour, whisking until it turns slightly brown and smells nutty. Pour in the liquid and whisk together.
- Add 1/4 teaspoon pepper and season with kosher salt to taste. Bring to a simmer, whisking often, until gravy thickens. For added flavor, you can also add some fresh thyme.
Storage
Refrigerate. Store this in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Freeze. Store this in the freezer in an airtight container for 1-2 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
This depends on the recipe, but for this recipe you don’t need to add any water. This is because the chicken will release enough water on its own, while also helping to flavor the potatoes.Â
Yes, but you need to cut them into smaller pieces so they cook in time. Also, try to cut each piece around the same size, so they all need the same amount of cook time.
Put them in right at the beginning of the recipe. We’re quartering whole potatoes, so because of the size, they’re going to need the entire time to cook. If the potatoes are too big, they might need more cooking time.
More Slow Cooker Recipes
Here’s a few more of my favorite slow cooker meals!
- Slow Cooker BBQ Spare Ribs
- Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Soup
- BBQ Slow Cooker Pork Loin & Sweet Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Kale Bean & Sausage Soup
- Slow Cooker Pork Chops & Potatoes
Jacqui’s Tip! Serve alongside a green vegetable like green beans, asparagus, or pressure cooker steamed broccoli. Or add other veggies in with the potatoes like bell pepper or baby carrots.
Recipe Variations
- Add extra heat with 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or chili pepper flakes to the recipe.
- I like making rotisserie chicken thighs, but this recipe works with most seasoning blends. Try taco seasoning, Italian seasoning, or dry Ranch dressing mix.
- Instead of rotisserie seasoning, add a teaspoon garlic powder, onion powder, and some butter for a garlic butter chicken. Add 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese for a garlic parmesan version.
- Throw in other root vegetables like turnips or parsnips with the potatoes for extra veggies.
- I added fresh lemon juice but you can also top the final dish with lemon zest for presentation. Or add a splash of white wine when browning the chicken.
- Top with chopped green onions or chives, which go really well with potatoes. You can also use other fresh herbs like chopped fresh parsley or sprigs of thyme and rosemary.
Cooking Tips
- You can make slow cooker chicken thighs without browning the chicken first, but the skins will be soft instead of golden brown and crispy.
- You can use unsalted butter instead of olive oil if that’s what you have.
- This recipe also works well with boneless chicken breasts.
- When you transfer chicken from the skillet to the slow cooker, you can discard the liquid in the pan, or pour it over the top of the chicken. That’s mostly oil and fat, so the final dish will have more fat in it, but it’s also flavor.
If you loved this recipe, be sure to leave a 5 Star review below, and tag me with a photo of your finished recipe on Instagram @Jacqui_DishingDelish!
Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs , bone-in with skin
- 1 tablespoon rotisserie chicken seasoning, gluten free
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil , divided
- 1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped
- 3 pounds red potatoes , washed and quartered
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Equipment
- 1 Slow Cooker
- 1 large skillet
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Mix one tablespoon of olive oil with the seasoning, and rub over both sides of the chicken thighs. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet.
- Place the chicken in the skillet and brown for 2-3 minutes on each side. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
- Wash and quarter the potatoes, and place them in the slow cooker. Add the garlic, onion, and lemon juice and stir together. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and set on high for 4 hours (or on low for 8 hours).
Notes
- If your potatoes are on the smaller size, just cut them in half instead of quartering them.
- You can make slow cooker chicken thighs without browning the chicken first, but the skins will be soft instead of golden brown and crispy.Â
- You can use chicken breast instead of thighs for this recipe.
- If you use skinless thighs, don’t worry about browning them beforehand. Just put the skinless thighs straight into the slow cooker.
- I like making rotisserie chicken thighs, but this recipe works with most seasoning blends. Try taco seasoning, Italian seasoning, or dry Ranch dressing mix.
Nutrition
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