REALLY simple Everyday Slow Cooker Chicken! Plus I’m sharing two easy chicken salad recipes that barely take any effort. Whole30, paleo.
Have you ever lost a vegetable? …It’s a very odd thing to lose, you know? I wanted to prep some spaghetti squash the other day and I could not find the squash for the life of me. Here’s what I remember…
I got home from the grocery store last weekend and as I was juggling all of my bags–as one does because no one wants to make two trips to the car and back to the house, duh–I dropped my squash on the ground. That was probably a sign I should have considered making two trips but no, I’m stubborn. So I proceeded to pick the squash back up and rearrange items on my shoulders and forearms… but this is where I am lost. Did I put the squash in another bag? Did I put it on top of my car and leave it there? I looked in my car all over the place, looked in my house in the cupboards, under the sink <– seriously I would probably put it there. But STILL NO SQUASH. How does one looks a giant yellow squash? It is the weirdest thing. I will probably never know what I did with it. Ugh, hopefully it’s not hiding somewhere really random and then we find it when we move out this spring. That could be very bad…
Anyways, this whole story about losing squash has absolutely nothing to do with today’s recipe. It’s just been bugging me terrible… So let’s move on.
Everyday Easy Slow Cooker Chicken
I was debating whether or not to share this slow cooker chicken (raw chicken takes the ugliest photos, ugh) but I keep coming back to it myself while on the Whole30. It’s stupid simple and takes very little effort. And while I always have known how helpful meal prep is, these past couple weeks have made the importance of meal prep very, very clear.
I made this slow cooker chicken during the first week of Whole30 and all of my lunches were on point. I never had to think about what I was going to have for lunch. And the best thing about this slow cooker chicken recipe is you can divide it into portions and make it into various chicken salad recipes, leave plain, etc. Changing up the way you enjoy the chicken helps you not tire of it so quickly. The first week of my Whole30 I just made a huge batch and added some lime juice and spices. It was great and fairly versatile, but by day six I was kind of over it. So not only do we have a slow cooker chicken recipe but I am also sharing two different easy chicken salad ideas with you.
First things first
Season about two pounds of raw chicken breasts, place in slow cooker, cover with stock or broth and cook on high for about two and a half hours.
Next we shred
Transfer the cooked chicken breast to a bowl or cutting board and shred with forks. Roughly two pounds (I think I actually had 1 3/4 lbs) of chicken breast should get you about 4 cups of shredded chicken, lightly packed.
Divide and flavor
To add more variety to your prepared chicken, I recommend dividing the chicken breast into two separate bowls, 2 cups shredded chicken in each bowl.
Option 1 – Whole30 Compliant Mayo
This is super easy. You can either use a Whole30 compliant mayo (I used Primal Kitchen Chipotle Lime–delicious)
OR make your own and add chili seasonings, lime juice, and cilantro.
Option 2- Curried Avocado
Also delicious, easy and only 3 ingredients.
- Avocado
- curry powder
- pink salt.
Don’t mind the odd color, it’s actually quite delicious! Who knew curry powder and avocado went so well together?
Everyday Simple Slow Cooker Chicken
Everyday Slow Cooker Chicken! Plus two easy chicken salad recipes that are Whole30 and paleo.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 6-8 1x
- Category: Lunch
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Slow Cooker Chicken
- 1 3/4 lbs – 2 lbs chicken breast
- 1 TBS minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp chili powder
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth or stock (no sugar added for Whole30)
Chipotle Lime Chicken Salad
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 1/3 cup Whole30 Mayo
- handful cilantro
Avocado Curry Chicken Salad
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 1/2 medium avocado, pitted and fleshed
- 1–2 tsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp pink salt
Instructions
- Cut away excess fat from chicken. Place chicken breasts in bottom of large slow cooker. Cover with minced garlic sprinkle with seasonings.
- Gently pour in broth, cover with lid and cook on high for about 2 hours, or until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink.
- Transfer chicken breasts to bowl or cutting board and allow to cool before shredding with forks.
- If desired, divide shredded chicken into separate bowls and mix together above ingredients for different flavored chicken salads.
- Enjoy chicken salads on bed of greens, in lettuce wraps, stuffed potatoes, and more!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8th of chicken
- Calories: 146
- Sugar: 0
- Sodium: 122mg
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 0
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 28g
- Cholesterol: 79mg
Keywords: slow cooker chicken, whole30 chicken, meal prep chicken
Do you know who else this is great for? The SO’s that need to take a lunch to work.
I’ll tell you what… I can’t tell you how many times we have thrown away lunch meat because someone (*ahem Mr. FMK) doesn’t end up eating it all. Not to mention most traditional lunch meat is really not that great for you… But truly I can’t stand wasting food so I declared I was no longer buying lunch meat. Problem solved –> prep this slow cooker chicken and your “lunch meat” dilemma is now taken care of.
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Ellie | Hungry by Nature says
BAHAHHA are you serious about the squash?!? I’m picturing you leaving on the top of your car, driving away, it smashing to the ground, and you not even realizing! So funny. I love this.
Ashley says
I’m 100% serious! I have NO idea where I left it. It’s still driving me nuts… Like seriously where could it have gone?
Emily Swanson says
Wow, avocado and chicken and curry? That sounds awesome. And I know what you mean about losing things; we lost some half n’ half about a week ago, but thank God! We found it about an hour later in the pantry. O_O
I bet you’ll find that spaghetti squash! Keep us updated.
Ashley says
Hahaha, yes I probably put this squash in the most random place ever! I often look for my keys in the fridge if I’ve lost them…
Katie @ Live Half Full says
I ordered Whole30 Mayo and am trying this ASAP!
Nicole @ Blunders and Absurdities Blog says
Lunch meat grosses me out! Sometimes I’ll buy a rotisserie chicken for salads/soups, but I’ll be trying this instead sometime soon 🙂
Laura says
How long will this last for? Im assuming you can refigerate it only? Thanks heaps ?
Ashley says
Mine stayed fresh covered in the refrigerator about a 5 days 🙂 If using the avocado salad base I would cover the chicken salad with a layer of plastic wrapped pressed into the chicken salad as well as covering with a tight lid. The avocado may turn brown a little but it isn’t harmful, just oxidation. And yes to refrigerate only 🙂 You could try freezing but have’t done that myself with the mayo or avocado before.