s/o chicken in crock pot- what am i doing wrong?

[Anonymous]

I attempted to make chicken thighs in the crock pot the other night, and the result was repulsive. They were this hideous whitish-gray color. I almost vomited when I removed the lid, and my husband started laughing, then immediately sprang into action and headed to the Chinese carry-out place.

I had marinated them in a mixture of maple syrup and dijon mustard, a recipe I found online that was "specifically" for making in the crock pot. The recipe was titled "the best chicken ever." The recipe photo looked lovely! Nice brown chicken. Mine was just terrible.

This isn't the first time this has happened to me when trying to make chicken in the crock pot.

Does it always turn out like this? Are you supposed to brown it first or something?

[Anonymous]

i like breast meta

[Anonymous]

Yes. You are supposed to brown it first.

Crockpots and slow cookers have some things they do very well, but their utility is limited by the fact that most protein needs to be browned first. Usually recipes fall into one of two categories:

1. You brown stuff on the stove first and then transfer it. Makes good food but often is no easier than cooking it on the stove in the first place.

2. You don't brown it , you just jam it in a crock pot. These recipes usually taste like junk.

Some crockpots allow browning in the same pot. The Cuisinart slow cooker has a ceramic inset that browns well but you need to heat it slowly since it is possible to shatter. People who have the ninja claims it browns well as well.

[Anonymous]

You should have put them on a pan and broiled them in the oven until brown and crispy on top.

Next time don't throw them out. Try it.

[Anonymous]

I am guessing you cooked it on low, next time try it on high for a shorter time. And try less sauce. When I make thighs in the slow cooker, I do not brown them first (I put them in raw) and they still usually brown/carmelize a bit (the parts that poke out from the sauce).

[Anonymous]

If the meat is intended to be sever as a whole piece, and look nice, then you need to brown it first.

If the meat is going to be shredded (like pulled pork) or is in small pieces (like chili) you can get away with not browning it first (though it still improves the flavor).

We pretty much never do chicken in the crockpot-I find it works better for large/tough cuts of meat so we stick with things like pot roast, pulled pork, stews, chilie, curries, etc.

[Anonymous]

I've done whole chicken in the crockpot and it's never gotten brown like a roast chicken. False advertising Did you taste it before you threw it away? The secret I have found is to rest the whole chicken on a bed of potatoes onions and carrots. That way the juices fall down and the chicken doesn't stew in its own juices all day long. Then you can eat the carrots and potatoes too! They are not as greasy as you'd think they would turn out. It's not the best chicken in the world but it does the trick when we are busy. I serve it with sauces to dip, like BBQ sauce. Then after dinner I clean out the crockpot and throw the carcas back in with fresh onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves and pepper corns and put it on low overnight and have a delicious chicken stock in the morning!

[Anonymous]

Agree with all pp's. You definitely should have tasted it first. It probably would have been fine to serve. Maybe you could have shredded it it for sandwiches.

[Anonymous]

What are you doing wrong? You're putting chicken in a crock pot.

[Anonymous]

OP here... I couldn't taste it. I couldn't bring myself to do it. It looked so terrible and had a strange, overpowering odor. But thanks for the tips-- I will definitely brown the chicken first next time.

[Anonymous]

I've found chicken in the crock pot to be very dry and tough. Beef (for stew) and pork seem to do better. Have you looked at Slow Cooker Revolution (book)? I've found a few good recipes in that.

[Anonymous]

I stopped cooking chicken breasts in a slow cooker entirely for that reason. Chicken thighs come out better provided they are submerged in a thick sauce (eg, curry, barbecue, etc).

[Anonymous]

I did a chicken stew Friday in the crockpot and used thighs and legs. It came out delicious. Used carrots, potatoes, red bell pepper, garlic, salt, and chicken gravy... 8 hours on low...no pre-cooking involved

[Anonymous]

I brown meat before putting the crock pot. Even then, I don't think chicken does that well in the crock pot , unless it's something like a stew or chicken soup. I make a pretty good beef stew in the crockpot. I brown and season the beef cubes first, including a light coating of flour before browning. This imparts a brown gravy aspect to the stew so that when it comes out of the crockpot and is served it's delicious and appetizing. Try it.

[Anonymous]

Cook chicken in the crockpot all the time. No, it doesn't brown. IF you want that effect brown it first.


Using frozen chicken breasts is great; they stay moist that way. We do this all the time.