We just LOVE this Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole recipe – a rustic, easy chicken casserole that’s quick to prepare and bursting with flavour. Just serve with crusty bread, creamy mashed potatoes, gnocchi or pasta for a delicious family meal.
Now I do just LOVE the convenience of slow cooker recipes, it’s great for busy school days and hectic family life!
Just throwing a handful of ingredients into a pot and coming home to a great smelling, delicious dinner is a good thing. And you just can’t go wrong with chicken casserole recipes! Super easy and super yummy.
It means less time in the kitchen and more time with the kids, which when they’ve got homework to do that I need to help out with is a total winner.
Our Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole is so simple to make, tasty and you can switch it up using different ingredients if you like. It’s a great chicken recipe!
Get loads more easy casserole recipes here!
Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole Ingredients
We just use a little selection of good rustic ingredients to make our easy chicken stew in the slow cooker.
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 celery sticks – scrubbed and sliced
- 2 carrots – peeled and sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic – peeled and finely chopped
- 1 red pepper – deseeded and roughly chopped
- 8 skinless and boneless chicken thighs
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- 200ml red wine
- pinch sea salt
- pinch cracked black pepper
- 1 small sprig rosemary – finely chopped – you could use a tsp of dried rosemary if you prefer
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves – I grow herbs in the garden so use the bay leaves from there.
Equipment Needed
You’ll just need a handful of equipment to make our chicken casserole recipes in the slow cooker.
- Slow cooker
- Chopping board
- Vegetable knife
- Tablespoon
- Teaspoon
- Measuring jug
- Cooking spoon or spatula
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How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole
It’s super easy to make this slow cooker chicken recipe – just add the ingredients and cook!
Step One – Prepare the slow cooker
- Lightly grease the inside of the slow cooker pan with the olive oil. This just prevents food from sticking.
- Switch the slow cooker onto the low heat setting.
Step Two – Load up the slow cooker with your ingredients
- Add the onions, celery, carrots and pepper to the slow cooker and give them a quick mix together with a spoon.
- Lay the chicken thighs on top of the chopped vegetables.
- Pour over the chopped tomatoes and red wine.
- Season with salt and black pepper and sprinkle over the herbs.
Step Three – Cook
- Cook for around 6 hours on low or until the chicken thighs are cooked through properly to a minimum core temperature of 75C.
Cooks Note! If you need to thicken the stew do so by mixing a couple of teaspoons of cornflour into a paste with some cold water, then stir through the stew and cook for a few minutes to thicken.
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What To Serve With Chicken Casserole
This slow cooker chicken stew is delicious served just spooned into bowls with some buttered crusty bread for dipping, but it’s also great alongside…
- Mashed Potatoes – serve the chicken casserole with a side of creamy mashed potatoes or try our tasty mustard mash for a tasty twist.
- Chips – throw a tray of oven chips in the oven – our easy chicken casserole is amazing with a side of McCain Triple Cooked Gastro Chips! Totally indulgent and lush!
- Rice – serve with some plain basmati rice or if you’re short on time try a couple of sachets of the flavoured microwave rice alongside the stew.
- Roast New Potatoes – delicious served with these skin on roast baby potatoes
You might also love our slow cooker beef joint recipe for an easy roast beef dinner
Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole Recipe Tips
Can I prepare slow cooker chicken casserole ahead of time?
Yes – you can make the chicken stew slow cooker recipe up the day before you want to eat it. And in fact it tastes even better made in advance as the flavours really marinate.
As long as you make sure to cool it within 90 minutes of it being cooked and store it in an air tight container in the fridge at less than 5C.
To reheat the sauce you can either do this in a saucepan or in the microwave. Be sure to stir often as you reheat to avoid uneven heating. And be sure the food is heated to a minimum of 75C throughout.
Can I freeze chicken thigh casserole?
If freezing the slow cooker chicken casserole be sure to cool the food quickly, within 90 minutes of making and freeze once cool in an airtight, freezer safe container. The slow cooker chicken stew should keep well in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Defrost thoroughly before reheating and reheat thoroughly until the core temperature is at least 75C when checked with a food thermometer.
Can I add other vegetables to my home made slow cooker dinner?
Yes – totally! You can add in whatever extra vegetables you like to eat, try adding mushrooms, courgettes or even some new potatoes. You could also stretch it further by adding in tinned lentils, cannellini or butter beans.
Get our BEST slow cooker recipes here
Can I use a different meat than chicken thighs in the slow cooker casserole?
Yes, you could make this recipe with chicken breasts for a chicken breast casserole or even some diced pork.
How To Use Up Leftover Chicken Casserole
Quick and easy ways to use up leftover slow cooker chicken stew to save waste and money!
- Make a pie – top the leftover stew with either a layer of mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes or puff pastry sheet for an easy pie idea.
- Try savoury rice – cook up some rice and stir the reheated leftover chicken casserole through the rice. Add a sprinkling of grated cheese and some chopped herbs. If you’ve only a little bit of leftover stew – then bulk it up with a few cooked and sliced sausages – they go great with rice.
- As a baked potato filler – you’ll only need a small amount of leftover stew to fill baked potatoes – you could then serve with some veggies on the side from out of the freezer. It’s a great way to use up our easy chicken casserole.
Get more leftover stew meal ideas here!
More Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes
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Slow Cooker Chicken Casserole
A super easy slow cooker chicken casserole recipe that's perfect for family dinner.
Ingredients
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion - chopped
- 2 sticks celery - sliced
- 2 carrots - peeled and sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
- 1 red pepper - roughly chopped
- 8 chicken thighs - skinless and boneless
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- 200ml red wine
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper
- 1 spring rosemary - chopped
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Lighly grease the inside of the slow cooker pan with the olive oil. This just prevents food from sticking.
- Switch the slow cooker onto the low heat setting.
- Add the onions, celery, carrots and pepper to the slow cooker and give them a quick mix together with a spoon.
- Lay the chicken thighs on top of the chopped vegetables.
- Pour over the chopped tomatoes and red wine.
- Season with salt and black pepper and sprinkle over the herbs.
- Cook for around 6 hours on low or until the chicken thighs are cooked through properly to a minimum core temperature of 75C.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 667Total Fat: 38gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 27gCholesterol: 333mgSodium: 526mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 4gSugar: 6gProtein: 63g
Nutritional content will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use and how careful you are with measuring - this nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate - you should always calculate your own nutritional information especially if you have specific dietary requirements.
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Disclaimer – in a lot of our slow cooker recipes we use a crockpot where the inner pan in safe to use on the hob as well as in the crockpot. If you don’t have a hob safe slow cooker – then use a pan for any hob cooking then transfer to the slow cooker pan for slow cooking.