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Chicken Divine (in the slow-cooker!)

Yeah, no, that’s not a typo. This is not your average chicken divan, it’s Chicken Divine, people. It’s cheesy and starchy and warm, and even though I lightened up the America’s Test Kitchen recipe, it’s decadent. If you wanted to mess around with this and try the pre-cooked brown rice from Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s, you could, but I wonder if it’d be starchy enough. But me? I’m not going to bother. Because the alchemy of the instant white rice (yes, you read that right, had to make a special trip to Stah Mahket for that one) and the sauce and the cheese . . . well, you better hustle up to make this before the thermometer slides back up to 50, ’cause what we have here, folks, is certified winter comfort food. Just enjoy it.

Chicken Divine (adapted from the America’s Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution Cookbook)

2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
2 onions, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 t. dried thyme
3 T. all-purpose flour
1 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup 1/2 and 1/2
1 t. dry mustard
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of all visible fat
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 c. instant rice (such as Uncle Ben’s)
1 c. grated cheddar cheese (4 oz.)
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese (1 oz.)
1 lb. broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces

 

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and the thyme and cook until the onion is translucent. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the broth, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan, and smoothing out any lumps. Transfer to the slow cooker.

Stir the 1/2 and 1/2 and the dry mustard into the mixture in the slow cooker. Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and add it to the slow cooker, coating it evenly with the sauce. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

Break up the chicken into bite-sized pieces with a spoon (don’t be over-zealous – the chicken will break up more as you stir in the other ingredients). Stir in the rice and cheeses, cover, and cook on high until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as desired.

Microwave the broccoli in a covered glass dish, stirring occasionally, until tender; about 3 minutes total. At this point, you can either 1) stir the broccoli into the casserole, re-cover the slow-cooker and let stand until heated through (about 5 minutes); or 2) serve up some broccoli-free casserole for your veg-haters (you KNOW who you are) and then serve up casserole atop broccoli for those of the veg persuasion.

Serves 4 generously.

A note: Fear not the 5 cloves of garlic. Remember, the slow-cooker dumbs everything down, flavor-wise. Neither D. nor I would describe this as garlicky at all, just flavorful. Besides, garlic and onions are GREAT for your immune system, and it is winter, after all.

 

© 2011, Sarah. All rights reserved.

  • Erin

    This was my favorite meal as a kid.
    I haven’t had it in years.
    My mouth was watering as I read the recipe – I’m not kidding.
    I can’t wait to intriduce it to my family and share this recipe with my Mom.
    YUM!!

    • http://www.semisweetonline.com Semi-Sweet Sarah

      I hope you like it, Erin! I think it is DELICIOUS – not the most healthful thing on this site, but it is serious, serious comfort food. Bon appetit!

  • http://www.confessionsofachocoholic.com Bianca @ Confessions of a Chocoholic

    I don’t have a slow cooker but wish I do now so I could make all sorts of easy comfort food recipes like this one! I’ve had chicken divan a couple of times but haven’t made it myself yet – it’s definitely great winter weather food!

  • http://www.pink-apron.com Kelly

    Cheesy and starchy? You managed to incorporate two of my favorite adjectives. I have a slow cooker cookbook from ATK as well. I wonder if it is the same one.

  • Rachel

    loved it!! MJ liked it a lot, and ate it all up. E complained, but ate it, which means he liked it a little (we’d have had much more drama if he had actually hated it). It was salty to me, i usually don’t bother salting the chicken before it goes in, and i did this time… i guess that’s why it tasted salty to me. so i mixed the broccoli in with the whole dish (the kids had it on the side), let it warm up again, and it was much better that way. i did spend too much time thinking about what could replace that white rice! i actually think maybe some quinoa would give it some crunch and cook up quickly… weird?

    • http://www.semisweetonline.com Semi-Sweet Sarah

      So glad, again! Interesting re the salt – did you use Kosher? Next time, not so much I guess. And I know, the instant white rice goes against a lot of what I stand for . . . except for moderation in all things, right? Quinoa might be good – although it does seem weird. If you try it, will you let me know? It certainly would be a protein powerhouse with quinoa!

  • rachel

    it’s in the slow cooker. i have to say, it took me a few seconds to reach out and get that rice off star’s shelf! i loathe that it is in the house! but maybe my kids will eat this, and it will all be worth it.

    • http://www.semisweetonline.com Semi-Sweet Sarah

      @Rachel – you’ll have to let me know how you like it, and what the kids think. L. loved it, w/o the broccoli, of course.

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