Lazy Day Spanish Style Chicken Breasts in the Crockpot

I have many, many nights where getting dinner on the table feels like an impossible feat.  The day is too hectic, too busy, too kid crazy or I’m just beat, exhausted and done.  These nights consist of leftovers, sandwiches, tortilla pizzas, a quick breakfast for dinner or occasionally some take out.  I really try to stay away from frozen foods and prepackaged foods as much as possible – eating is better, healthier and cheaper that way.

I’ve learned to fill these nights (becoming more frequent) with lazy, effortless dinners that involve as little work as possible.  Plan a bit ahead on these days and the crockpot could become your backup.

Chicken breasts cooked in the crockpot are notoriously known for being bland and dry.  Blame it on all the those old crockpot recipes we were subjected to as kiddos.  Chicken breasts, a cup of water, some salt and pepper – 8 hours later a barely edible protein was on the table.  Blah.  News is, though, that amazing chicken can come from the crockpot.

I think it takes more time to gather the ingredients for this dinner than it does to put it all together.  Throw the chicken in the crockpot, sprinkle all the spices on top of the chicken and pour the broth over it all.  Cook on high for 3 1/2 hours.  After 3 1/2 hours, remove chicken, shred it and dump it back in the crockpot.  Let it cook for another 10 minutes or so – giving it some time to soak up some of that seasoned broth.  That’s it. Really.  Dinner ridiculously simple.

This isn’t meant to be eaten soup style, so remove the shredded chicken from the crockpot with a slotted spoon to strain all the excess broth.  The broth the chicken is cooked in will be very salty – not so yum.   I serve this chicken with a plate of rice and beans.  On the sidelines is some chipotle sauce, avocado slices, shredded lettuce, sour cream or whatever else I might have around.

I get a twofer from this dinner and make double the amount we need.  This juicy chicken booming with flavor is perfect for some oven baked chicken and cheese quesadillas.  Awesome use for leftovers and another easy dinner!  Score and Score!

So go ahead and be a little lazy.  You’ll find that sometimes the search for simplicity results in surprisingly impressive results.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you swing back soon!  Happy Cooking!

-Amanda-

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Lazy Day Spanish Chicken (Crockpot)

A lazy day, throw it together chicken dinner for the crockpot.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time3 hrs 40 mins

Total Time3 hrs 50 mins

Course: Chicken &amp, Poultry

Servings: 6 -8

Author: Amanda

Ingredients

• 2 pound chicken breast tenders
• 1 packet sazon seasoning Goya
• 2 teaspoon Adobo seasoning Goya
• 2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
• pinch of oregano
• 2 cups chicken broth I use a chicken/tomato bouillon

Instructions

• Place chicken in crockpot.
• Sprinkle all spices over chicken.
• Pour chicken broth over chicken and seasonings.
• Cook on high for 3 1/2 hours.
• Remove chicken, shred and put back in crockpot.
• Cook for another 10 minutes.
• Remove chicken with slotted spoon to strain excess broth.
• Serve and enjoy.