6/17/20

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice

An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

JUMP TO RECIPE

I have wanted to try cooking a big-batch rice recipe like this in a slow cooker for forever! I never did because I was scared, since rice can be so persnickety, and who wants to spend a whole day and a bunch of chicken on something if it isn’t going to turn out right?? NOT ME!

I was at home the other day staring at three big ol’ chicken breasts wondering what to do with them and I thought, meh, let’s give it a try! We can eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches if it’s a flop.

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

In my part of the world, there are several different “chicken and rice” dishes. There’s the pilau dishes where the rice finishes a little drier and fluffier. And there are the chicken bogs wherein the dish is creamier and thicker.

No matter which type it is, they all start with tender, slow cooked chicken simply seasoned with salt and lots of black pepper (stewed chicken, we call it) and uncooked long grain white rice. What you do with it when you put it together, how much liquid you use, and what other ingredients and spices you add to it determines what you call it.

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

My family prefers the fluffier pilau type more but most of my friends seem to make the creamier versions so I went with a bog-type recipe for this by adding a can of creamed soup. If you prefer the fluffier, drier dishes, simply omit the can of soup.

I chose Cream of Celery soup because that’s the flavor I always choose when I use creamed soup with chicken. I think celery is a fabulous flavor to combine with chicken. I mean, celery is in both the French Mirepoix and in the Cajun/Creole Holy Trinity which are both almost always used with chicken recipes in those cuisines so how could you go wrong, right?

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

If you have no idea what the heck I’m talking about, Mirepoix is the flavor base of sautéing onions, carrots and celery and the Holy Trinity is a similar base made from onions, bell peppers and celery. Both are phenomenal!

If you prefer, feel free to use cream of chicken, mushroom or onion soup. Or, like I said, you’re welcome to omit it all together! Just don’t use the reduced fat versions because they have added starch and the rice already makes this plenty starchy. Plus I think they taste weird.

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

Traditional Chicken & Rice is made with a whole chicken or bone-in, skin-on pieces. But since this is a slow cooker recipe and those are usually made to save time and effort and not necessarily traditional, I went with boneless, skinless breasts. Adding the butter and cooking this is chicken broth will help make up for the flavor and richness we’ll lose from not using a whole chicken.

If you’d like to make this with a whole chicken or bone-in, skin-on pieces, go right ahead! If using a whole chicken, omit the butter and feel free to use water instead of broth (though broth would still be great). If using bone-in, skin-on pieces (white or dark meat), reduce the butter by half and still use the broth.

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

HOW TO COOK RICE IN A CROCK POT OR SLOW COOKER

  • Use HIGH HEAT setting – Cooking rice in a crock pot on Low is not recommended. Though rice cooks at a very slow simmer when cooking on the stovetop, most slow cookers will take too long to achieve the temperature needed to cook the rice which could make the rice become gummy and/or cause the grains to break apart.
  • Do not OVER-STIR the rice – As with any rice preparation, over-stirring the rice will cause the rice break down which can result in a grainy, mealy texture.
  • Keep the lid ON as much as possible – heat escapes every time the lid is removed. Crock pots are made for low and slow cooking so it takes a lot longer to regain temperature lost from removing the lid. Replace the lid immediately after stirring.
  • Use a FORK to stir the rice – forks will fluff the rice and separate the grains whereas spoons will push and compact it which can make it sticky and gummy.
Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

The seasonings and spices I used here are just a good jumping-off point. Feel free to add cayenne or red pepper flakes for heat (I don’t usually because I like to eat my chicken and rice with a good dousing of hot sauce). Herbs like rosemary and thyme are always good with chicken too!

If you’re wondering what that red stuff is in some of the photos, it’s hot sauce! I don’t know too many people around here who don’t eat their Chicken & Rice dishes with hot sauce but it is totally optional! We always use Texas Pete (even though that’s not what’s pictured here, damn you coronavirus) which, ironically is made in North Carolina and not commonly sold in Texas (??).

A few folks have told me I need to try this in an Instant Pot but do they make one big enough for a recipe this size? This recipe makes enough for 8-10 main dish servings or double that if you're serving this as a side dish. I might be wrong but I don't think there's an instant pot out there that big.

Recipe for Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice! An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice

Southern Style Crock Pot Chicken & Rice
Yield: 8-10 Servings
Author: Mandy Rivers | South Your Mouth
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 4 HourTotal time: 4 H & 5 M
An easy slow cooker recipe for a Carolina favorite made with tender stewed chicken and long grain rice. No precooking the chicken and no instant rice – everything cooks in the crock pot!

Ingredients

  • 3 large chicken breasts
  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 can cream of celery soup
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 2 cups long grain rice, uncooked

Instructions

  1. Spray the inside of a crock pot with cooking spray then place chicken in the bottom.
  2. Cut butter into 6-8 pieces then arrange on top of chicken.
  3. Combine broth, soup, salt and remaining seasoning in a mixing bowl then stir until smooth. Pour over chicken.
  4. Cook on High for 3 hours or Low for 6 hours.
  5. If chicken was cooked on Low, increase temperature to High. Keep crock pot covered at all times to keep heat in. The rice cooks best when starting with HOT liquids.
  6. Remove chicken from crock pot then shred with two forks. Add chicken and uncooked rice to crock pot then cook on High for 45 minutes.
  7. Using a fork, stir rice, scraping the bottom and sides of the crock pot, once every 15 minutes. DO NOT over-stir the rice or it will break down and become gummy. Do not open the crock pot more than necessary.
  8. Check the rice after 45 minutes. My crock pot will cook rice in 45 minutes but all crock pots are different. Continue cooking for 15-20 minutes longer if needed until rice is tender.
  9. When ready to serve, stir once more with fork to fluff the rice. Serve with hot sauce if desired.

Notes

  • Please review the HOW TO COOK RICE IN A CROCK POT OR SLOW COOKER section above.
  • Feel free to make this with a whole chicken or bone-in, skin-on pieces. If using a whole chicken, omit the butter. If using bone-in, skin-on pieces (white or dark meat), reduce the butter by half. Discard skin and bones before adding chicken back to crock pot.
  • Use your favorite creamed soup if you prefer another flavor over cream of celery.
  • Do not prepare cream of celery soup before adding to the recipe. Yes, people ask that.
Chicken, rice, chicken bog, chicken pilau, perlo, jambalaya, southern, Georgia, south carolina, north Carolina, rice recipes, slow cooker, crockpot, crock pot, no minute rice, no instant rice, long grain rice, boneless chicken, hot sauce, dump and go
slow cooker, crock pot, main dish, southern
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25 comments:

  1. Excited to try this!! While working from home, I have been looking for some new slow cooker recipes to try since I'm normally gone from home to long to make those recipes. This is perfect for my schedule.

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  2. I can't wait to try this this week! Thank you!

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  3. I have a 10 quart instant pot of which would be plenty large enough to make this recipe.

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  4. I'm trying this today and my house smells amazing. While I'm not a "hot sauce" gal, I happened to have some fresh dill and fresh thyme, and I put in some turmeric. Can't wait for supper time! Thanks for the recipe!

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  5. I’m anxious to try this recipe, and I was wondering, what size of soup can are you using?

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    1. Just the standard size... I think most of them are about 10 ounces.

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  6. I do enjoy your recipes, so you can imagine my frustration when I was unable to print or even save this recipe. I have printed many of your other recipes without any issues in the past. Please explain what is different with this one?
    Thanks

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    1. I have no idea what the difference is or why the print function wasn't working but I just redid the recipe card and it looks to be working now. So sorry to hear this was such a frustration for you.

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    2. Do you wash your rice or put in dry.

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  7. Best new kitchen hack i have learned.... you can shred cooked chicken in about 15 seconds with a mixer ;) happy cooking, thanks for the recipe

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  8. Can you cook the rice separately and serve the other ingredients over the rice?

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  9. I made this for dinner tonight and used instant brown rice, 45 minutes was the perfect cook time for the rice. I also didn't have cream of celery so I substituted with a can of Campbell's Cheddar Cheese soup because it was what was in the pantry. Oh my goodness, it was so delicious! This is probably one of my favorite new chicken and rice recipes.

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  10. I'm so stuffed from dinner and it's all your fault! Mandy, Mandy, Mandy! I haven't enjoyed a meal so much in a long time -- probably since the feast my sister provided last Thanksgiving. Anyway, with the exception of the can of soup, I practically made this recipe by accident. (I will, however, add the soup next time.) I started with chicken breasts in the slow cooker with a very generous application of your Chicken Scratch seasoning. I love that stuff and have used it for almost a year. Anyway, once the chicken was done and as I shredded it, I noticed all that good looking broth in the slow cooker and thought about your greasy rice. Yes, m'am, I turned that cooker back on, added my rice and the shredded chicken, and OH LORDY!! I am so stuffed! Absolutely delicious, and will definitely be prepared again and again! Thank you so much!

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    1. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!! I would be STUFFED too!

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  11. GoWISE USA makes a 14 quart Instant Pot-style pressure cooker. This is the link to the pressure cooker on Amazon.com. https://amzn.to/3hmrAEX.

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  12. I have fixed this once a week for the past 3 weeks bc I love it so much. I don't usually leave reviews but in this case I thought I should bc its so good. I use cream of mushroom 🍄 soup and it gives a really yummy flavor. My mom is getting chemo and it's a great thing to serve her on the days she doesnt feel so well. She doesn't use the hot sauce but I definitely DO. Soooo good!

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  13. This is sooooo good! A favorite of my grandsons, too!

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  14. So freaking good!! This is my third time making this and its bomb af every time!! Directions were great and easy to follow. I added some turmeric (because idk what to do with it lol), spinach, carrots, onions and celery when I added the rice. Delicious!

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  15. So freaking good!! This is my third time making this and its bomb af every time!! Directions were great and easy to follow. I added some turmeric (because idk what to do with it lol), spinach, carrots, onions and celery when I added the rice. Delicious!

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  16. Delicious! Made this tonight. Stuck to the recipe exactly (which is rare for me), but used an Instapot instead. Cooked the chicken and broth mixture for 30 minutes on high pressure, released steam manually. Shredded chicken, added rice and chicken back to Instapot, and cooked for 10 minutes on low pressure, released steam manually. It was perfect! Adding smoked sausage to the leftovers for a ‘chicken bog’ tomorrow night.

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  17. This is such a great recipe! I used a can of cream of mushroom and added sliced mushroom and finely chopped celery. I loved how easy it was to make. I will make this again and again!

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  18. WOW! I love this soup. I live in a building with a lot seniors so I make a 5 qt.crock pot full and share with friends. Love it with hot sauce. I maybe a Northener but I'm Southern at heart lol.

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  19. I made this recipe, and it is DELICIOUS! I will definitely make this again and again! Thanks!

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  20. It was delicious. Can you freeze leftovers? Just curious.

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  21. Hi I am originally from Charleston, SC and have been eating chicken and rice most of my 75 years. My mother taught me to first cook my chicken in a big pot till done and falling off of bone. Take chicken out of pot and let cool. Strain the broth and put back in pot. Shred chicken, add salt , pepper ,thyme and about two cups of rice. Stir and cook until all broth had been absorbed and rice is done. Watch carefully because it it will stick and burn easily.
    Well today after 55 years of marriage I learned how to make it easier. I took a package of legs, thighs, and breast out of the freezer last not and put them in my crock pot frozen with about 1/2 carton of broth; set it on low and went to bed. Got up this morning it was done but I had errands to run. Left crockpot on warm. Came home took all chicken out of crockpot and immediately started shredding, deboning, and taken skin off of chicken. I put 1/3 of chopped chicken in crockpot, added spices, and rice and about 4 or 5 cups of broth that the chicken had cooked in. I then put it on 2:30 hrs on high while I divided up my other two thirds of chicken I had left over. I not only had fluffy chicken and rice for supper but I also have 1 bag of shredded chicken for chicken noodle soup and another bag for chicken and gravy over noodles or rice. So what used to take almost whole day, I now have enough chicken and rice for another meal plus the two packages in my freezer for meals for other days. So I say you have taught an old dog new tricks and I thank you for sharing.

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Hi there! While I’m not able to respond to every comment, I try hard to answer any questions that haven’t been addressed in the post, recipe or in other comments.

I can tell you now 1) I have no idea if you can substitute Minute Rice or brown rice in my recipes because I’ve never used them and 2) If I know how to convert a recipe to a Crock Pot version, I will make a note about it (otherwise, I don’t know).

And though I may not respond to them all, I do read each and every comment and I LOVE to hear from you guys! Thanks, y’all! - Mandy