Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken
If you love tender, flavorful chicken in a creamy garlic sauce, you’ll absolutely love this Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken. Just like the original, but made in the slow cooker!
A SIMPLE SLOW COOKER RECIPE
After I posted the Marry Me Chicken recipe a few months ago, I immediately got a ton of messages asking how it can be made in the crock pot. Not every recipe translates well into a slow cooker meal and I had to really play around with it and test it to get it just right. I wanted it to taste just as good as the original without being overcooked or dry and tough. I am really pleased with the results and I think you will be too! I know it seems like a lot of ingredients, but I need you to trust me with this one, it will taste like a million bucks! This slow cooker recipe will leave your house smelling amazing with the delicious aromas of garlic, butter, and tender chicken!
Made this and didn’t change a thing. It doesn’t need any tweaking. It’s perfect as-is! Huge hit with the hubby.
– Patricia
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Ideally, I’d stick to the low setting. The whole point of a slow cooker is to cook on low. Using the high setting may scorch the cream sauce and ruin it. If you need to cook this faster, I would suggest going with the stovetop version of Marry Me Chicken.
I used rotini when serving this. But you can use any pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, or anything that will soak up the flavorful sauce nicely because you definitely want to take advantage of that gorgeous sauce! You could also serve with a nice side salad.
I’ve only tested this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I imagine you could use other boneless chicken, but may need to alter the cook time. In addition, this could work with pork chops as well (again, you’d have to play with the time as I have not tested it.)
I prefer to, I feel like it locks in the flavor and gives it a beautiful color. I guess, you could skip it, but you’d need to add 4 Tablespoons of melted butter (slightly cooled) to the sauce so you have plenty of sauce for pouring later.
Just leave them out. I will tell you that these are a big part of what makes this recipe special and I don’t think you get the same level of flavor. However, don’t put something in a recipe if you just don’t like it. It will still be good!
No, I do not recommend it with this recipe.
Leftover Marry Me Chicken should be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Or keep it for up to 3 months in the freezer. Please note: any time you reheat a cream sauce, it could separate so do your best to reheat slowly.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- boneless, skinless chicken breasts – as I stated above, you could certainly make this with other cuts of chicken, I just have not tested it and can’t tell you how to adjust the time.
- salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder – these seasonings are going to add an additional layer of flavor to the chicken.
- butter – I prefer salted butter here. I don’t think it makes it too salty. But you want real butter and not margarine (which is just oil).
- chicken broth – if you really want to reduce the sodium, you could use a low sodium chicken broth.
- cornstarch – this will help thicken the broth. I would not substitute with flour as it can get lumpy in the gravy.
- heavy cream – it has to be heavy cream, not milk. Also, if you have a slow cooker that runs hot (where it likes to boil), I would wait to add the heavy cream until the end (maybe the last 30 minutes or so of cooking).
- garlic – I prefer fresh garlic in this recipe over the jarred stuff but use what you prefer.
- red pepper flakes – I am super sensitive to spice and I don’t find this spicy at all. But you can certainly leave it out if you prefer.
- sun-dried tomatoes – these are the star of this dish. They add such a decadent and unique flavor. You can leave them out if you absolutely must but it is not recommended.
- freshly grated parmesan cheese – you could also use a finely grated mozzarella cheese.
- fresh basil leaves – this is optional. I would not substitute with dry. Fresh basil just goes very nicely with the sundered tomatoes.
HOW TO MAKE CROCK POT MARRY ME CHICKEN
Season the chicken on both sides with the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and melt the butter. Sear the chicken breasts until golden brown, take the pan off the heat, and set aside. You are not cooking the chicken all the way, you just want it brown on both sides.
Whisk together the chicken broth and cornstarch in a bowl until there are no lumps. Add the chicken broth mixture to the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker. Whisk in the heavy cream (note: if you have a slow cooker that runs hot, I would wait to add the heavy cream in at the end), garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and paprika. Place the seared chicken breasts into the slow cooker and pour the olive oil and butter from the pan on top. Top each piece of chicken with the chopped-up sundried tomatoes. Place on low for 6-8 hours.
Take the chicken breasts out and whisk in the parmesan cheese to the sauce. Add the chicken back into the slow cooker, cover with sauce and add the basil, serve immediately.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
- Marry Me Chicken Pasta
- Marry Me Chicken Gnocchi
- Marry Me Chicken & Rice
- Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan
- Crock Pot Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta
- Crock Pot Chicken and Gravy
- Crock Pot Chicken & Rice
- Crock Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
- Crock Pot Mississippi Pork Chops
- Crock Pot Chicken Alfredo For Two
- Crock Pot Lasagna
- Crock Pot Angel Chicken
- 10 Crock Pot Mississippi Recipes
- Crock Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
- Butter Swim Biscuits
- Chicken Fried Chicken
- Longhorn Steakhouse Parmesan Chicken
Crock Pot Marry Me Chicken (+Video)
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons butter
For the sauce: (see notes below)
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup heavy cream (READ NOTES BELOW FIRST!)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ⅓ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes, drained
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together: 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper Season 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts on both sides with the seasoning mix.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tablespoons olive oil and 2 Tablespoons butter (allow the butter to melt.)
- Sear the chicken breasts on both sides until golden brown, take the pan off the heat, and set aside. Note: You are not cooking the chicken all the way, you just want it brown on both sides. Turn off the heat but keep the leftover oil and butter in the pan (you'll use that in a bit)
- Whisk together 1 1/2 cups chicken broth and 3 Tablespoons cornstarch in a bowl until there are no lumps.
- Add the chicken broth mixture to the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker.
- Whisk in 1 cup heavy cream (see my notes below – you may want to exclude it here if you don't want the heavy cream to come out lumpy or curdled), 4 cloves garlic, minced, 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes and 1/2 teaspoon paprika.
- Place the seared chicken breasts into the slow cooker and pour the olive oil and butter from the pan on top.
- Top each piece of chicken with the chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Place on low for 6-8 hours (do not cook on high – see my notes below.) The larger your chicken breasts, the more time they may need to cook to get nice and tender. Do not keep lift the lid while it is cooking, this will take it longer to cook and your meat may not come out as tender. Cover and let it cook – don't mess with it.
- Take the chicken breasts out and whisk in 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese. Add the chicken back into the slow cooker, cover with sauce and add 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped to the top and then serve.
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- I would not recommend cooking this on high, I think there would be a good chance of the sauce scorching at a higher heat. If you are in a time crunch, consider making the stovetop version of Marry Me Chicken.
- PLEASE READ: If you have a slow cooker that runs hot (where it likes to boil), I would wait to add the heavy cream so it doesn’t curdle. You can whisk it in during the last 30 minutes or so of cooking. If you are in doubt about how hot yours runs, just follow this advice to be safe.
- People really love the sauce so you may want to double it if you want to serve extra sauce with the chicken and over pasta or rice.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
If I use 6 chicken breasts for recipe, should I multiple ALL ingredients by 1.5 times?
thank you! E
That would be my best guess and make sure it’s at least an 8 quart crock pot. If it’s packed in there too tight, it won’t cook evenly.
Can I use chicken cutlets instead?
They’re a little too thin, they might dry out
This is delicious and so easy! I added a little white wine and a little tomato paste to the sauce. Scrumptious! This is one of the few things my 87 year old picky eater dad loves. Thank you!
My husband could not stop raving about how good this was! Chicken was so tender and the sauce is so amazing!
I looked through numerous comments to see if this question was already asked and did not see it so I apologize if I’m repeating a question. Could I use almond milk in place of the heavy cream to make it dairy free (not using cheese and using plant butter)? I like that you use cornstarch so that it’s gluten free.
I’m sorry, I’m just not familiar enough with dairy free options to say for sure. Perhaps someone on here has experience with using it in this recipe 🙂
There are dairy free heavy cream substitutes… I’ve tried the silk one and no one notices the difference
Thanks for chiming in Kathleen!
Make cashew cream- it is my go-to for all creamy soups and stews. It works beautifully in this recipe! Plant milk alone will be too watery. 1 cup soaked cashews and 1/2-3/4 water, blitz in blender (make sure it’s completely smooth). Stir it in the last 15 minutes.
I am so appreciative of everyone who is commenting to help – thank you!!
I added in frozen peas, sliced mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes during the last 30 minutes as well! My husband loved it!
Can you use whole milk and cornstarch for thickening?
I made this for my family adhering strictly to the ingredients and the recipe steps. It was a huge success and a 10 out of 10 from everyone. This is definitely a keeper recipe and meal. Thank you!
I have been so bored with food and eating and coming up with recipes! This was amazing! Made it for me and the boyfriend and we ate it up! I’ve been on a weight loss journey but this was an excellent cheat meal!
This is the best written instructions ever. Measurements are in the instructions! Thank you!!!
Haven’t even tried it yet. Making it now- but THANK YOU, for putting the measurements in the instructions, so we don’t have to scroll up. May be a small thing to you, but a huge help. Thank you!
Oh gosh, thank you for mentioning that! Sometimes I have no idea if certain changes are useful or if they’re annoying LOL. Thank you for mentioning that! Hope you love it!
I agree. I am making it now and wanted to hug her for doing that 🙂
It came out absolutely amazing. I doubled the recipe and used thighs and legs. All gone!
I would like to try this tonight, but I dont have heavy cream, can I substitute cream cheese?
I wouldn’t recommend for best flavor
This was delicious and loved by everyone! I didn’t change anything and made it exactly to the recipe.
Absolutely amazing! Seemingly simple recipe yielding amazing results
That makes me so happy Ariana – thank you!!
This is sooo good! I followed the recipe as written and had great results. My butcher had large Amish chicken breasts on special and this recipe really did them justice. I did add the cream at the beginning and it turned out just fine but my slow cooker does well on low. This is a keeper. Thanks so much for sharing.
A+++++++ EXCELLENT! Thank you! It was insanely delicious! Went exactly by your recipe. Even waiting to put the cream in 30 min before.
This is my fav recipe for Mary me chicken. I highly recommend waiting to add heavy cream/parm cheese until about 1hr before serving as well as adding in spinach and mushrooms at that time if that fits your vibe. If you are in the fence with this recipe, don’t be give it a try it’s amazing!
May I ask how much spinach and mushroom?
My goodness this was so good! Chicken came out perfectly juicy and moist, and the dish is so flavorful. I served it over some egg noodles and added some spinach at the end. Thanks for the great recipe!
Not sure if this was asked already but if I want to serve with potatoes can I add them in to cook with the chicken? Thank you! Looking forward to making this
Is there anything you could recommend using in place of the sundried tomatoes? I’m sure they are amazing in this recipe but due to dietary restrictions, I’m wondering if there’s something else that would add that pop of flavor. Looking forward to trying this!
Hi Jan! I answer that in more detail above in the Frequently Asked Question section 🙂
Evaporated milk is not quite as thick like heavy cream and I personally am not a fan of the taste of evaporated milk in something like this. I think it can throw flavors off sometimes but that is just my personal preference. If you decide to experiment, please let me know how it goes!
The sauce is amazing & chicken came out very tender! I only had thighs but they worked perfect!
Good
I saw all your notes everywhere about adding the heavy cream during the last 30 minutes. Clearly some folks haven’t paid attention so you had to underline it and put it in bold LOL! I listened! I know my slow cooker runs hot. I had an older one that was the opposite but this one I got a couple of years ago likes to boil things so I didn’t risk and I added in the heavy cream during the last 30 minutes per your advice. It came out perfect! I always have good luck with your recipes and this was no different. Thank you so much and thank you for all your pictures. It is so helpful!
Any modifications to cook time etc needed to double this recipe? Or would you not recommend doing so?
As long as your crock pot is large enough, I haven’t personally tested it though but people have commented they have done it successfully 🙂
Excellent! Everyone loved it. Served it with mashed potatoes. Lots of yummy gravy.
Will definitely make again!
Made this for 1 – since there is only me at home now – in a 1.5 qt crock pot. Didn’t have any pasta on hand so served over mashed potatoes – OMG – Yum!!!! Will definately make this again. Thanks for sharing.
Love hearing that Kathi!! Thanks so much and I am so happy to hear you made yourself something special and you enjoyed it!
Can you add some baby spinach at the end when you add in the cream for the last 30?
Sure! I think there are quite a few comments on here (perhaps in the older comments part) where people did just that 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I think my wife will marry me again after this lol very good, wouldn’t change a thing
When you say add the cream at the end for 30 min do you mean the dry ingredients and the minced garlic as well or just the cream?
Can you use bone-in chicken breast splits?
I’m sure you could. I just haven’t personally tested that out
Can you use chicken tenderloins?
I haven’t personally tested it with chicken tenderloins so I can’t give you much direction on that. I am sure you could but you’ll have to keep an eye on the time 🙂
This was insanely good! I followed the recipe to a tee and changed the quantity to 6 since I was using 6 chicken breasts. We ate it by itself but I could see rice being really good with it.
The sauce was absolutely fantastic, yet the chicken breasts came out a bit dry?
Hoping to find a way to ensure the breasts are juicier to go along with tje amzing sauce.
I used 3 fairly thick breasts, cooked on low for exactly 6 hrs (including the last hour, after adding the cream). Perhaps my crock pot runs a bit high. If so, should I be measuring the temp of the breasts at around 4 hrs or so and pulling them when they are done? I’m assuming that getting them closer to 140 degrees would make for a juicier experience.
Any tips in this regard?
Anyone here adjusting the slow cook time downwards to avoid dried out breasts?
If the chicken breasts are big I cut each one in half
And added the heavy cream only for last 30 min
I made this for the first time tonight as I had to work late this evening and dinner would be ready when i got home. I did put the heavy cream in the last 30 minutes of cooking and set the crock pot to low as my crock pot runs hot. I did leave off the fresh basil at the end but did everything else per the directions. I served it over linguine with green beans. It was delicious and will be making it again. As there is just my husband and myself I will b having the leftovers for dinner tomorrow night What a great recipe. Thanks again for sharing with us
Can confirm, my husband does indeed want to marry me again lol! Wouldn’t change a thing! Chicken breast was so tender and the sauce was perfection!!
the best chicken recipe I ever made. I’m making it for the 2nd time in a month tomorrow. I can’t wait
Holy moly, this was delicious! I used thighs instead of breasts (what I had in the freezer) and they were so tender and delicious. I could drink this sauce.
Did you alter the time for the thighs? I’m going to make this with thighs
Hi Rachel! Did you change the time for the thighs? Thanks!
Serious question…can anyone recommend a slow cooker that doesn’t run hot? Crock pot sent me a new one after I emailed saying mine boils stuff on low and EVEN warm. Same thing. Then I buy another new one maybe 6 months ago. Different model. Same thing. Help!
ninja makes a nice slow cooker
Black and Decker has a slow cooker model that works better for me, been there and it can be so exasperating!
Amazing!
How much of chicken and how much of the pasta would be considered one serving. We LOVE this recipe and I make it at least once a month.
Hi Jenna, so happy you like this! If you need nutritional information for diet or health purposes, I would recommend you use your own favorite trusted nutritional calculator. The information given on the recipe card is done automatically and I do not input it manually so it’s strictly just estimates so I recommend you input all the details into your own calculator so you can get the necessary information you need. 🙂
Does this recipe still taste good when you triple the amount to serve 12 people?
I haven’t tried doing that sorry
Hey I’m so excited to make this recipe this weekend!! Just a couple of questions. Idk what’s considered my crockpot running too hot.. I think I have a basic 6 or 8 qt but no fancy brand. It just says crock pot on it..
And also may be a stupid question, but is this recipe for frozen or thawed chicken breasts?
Not a stupid question. This is for raw, thawed chicken breasts – not frozen. If it is a newer crock pot (maybe in the last 10 years) or if you have made soups, etc. and you see it bubbling and boiling a bit then it runs hot. Older slow cookers (crock pots) cook much slower and had more even heating (it was changed a number of years ago to make sure a crock pot reached a certain temperature for food safety) so I would just assume your crock pot runs hot and add the heavy creamy in at the end 🙂
Is it necessary to brown the chicken first?
I answer that in a bit more detail above in the frequently asked question section 🙂
Fantastic. and so much flavor!! Hubby raved over how good it was and asked me to make again!
I am not good about leaving reviews for recipes even though I rely on them heavily when deciding which recipe to use. I had to come and leave a review to help others. This recipe is a favorite! I have made it at least 4 times and it turns out so well. It’s such a comforting meal that is such an easy one pot meal! I’ve made it for a number of friends, especially after someone has a baby and it’s always a hit. So nice to have such a delicious meal that you don’t have to stand over the stove to make!
I’m glad you finally commented! It really means a lot and lets me know if people are liking a recipe or not. I completely re-did a recipe a few months ago because I only had received negative feed back so I figured the recipe needed fixed. Well after I changed it, I got SO many comments asking why I changed it. It’s because no one ever commented positively that they liked it LOL. So it really helps to know when a recipe is enjoyed!
Excellent! Made it exactly to recipe and it was perfect!
Can you whisk in the heavy cream and then keep the slow cooker on warm until you’re ready to serve?
Thank you so much!
Yes, I think that would work 🙂
This is a great recipe. We loved it. The chicken was so tender and the sauce was delicious. So easy to make. I made one small modification – in addition to the sun dried tomatoes I added artichoke hearts. Yum!
I tried this too, such a good recipe!
Made this and didn’t change a thing. It doesn’t need any tweaking. It’s perfect as-is. Huge hit with the hubby.
I have made this recipe many times and love it. I did one small change and that was to use half dry white wine and half chicken broth instead of all broth…..delicious!
Love your recipes ….simple but very tasty!
That sounds so good Linda!! Thanks so much and it means a lot that you took the time to come back and comment!