This shop has been compensated by Inmar Intelligence and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #IGASweepstakes #IGAFamilyMeals

I don’t know about you, but the busier things get, the more stressful it feels to be in the kitchen. The prepping, the cooking, the cleaning up – it takes too much time when there are other things going on.

Our slow cooker sees a lot of action time in the fall and winter – honestly, it gets used a lot year-round. It’s just so easy to dump ingredients in the slow cooker, set the timer, and come home to dinner.

And while I sometimes cook a roast or cinnamon apples in the slow cooker, a chicken recipe is the most common in our house. So today I’m sharing 3 of our family-favorite, simple weeknight slow cooker chicken recipes. Bonus: all three of these are better-for-you recipes, full of veggies and all that good stuff!

Where I’m Shopping

All of these recipes that I’m sharing feature ingredients from our favorite grocery store, IGA. Check out the new packaging that helps  make shopping easier, like ‘microwavable’ or ‘cooks in minutes’.  I appreciate this because I’m drawn to products and brands that  I can get on the table quickly and easily!

Did you know that IGA has been selling quality store-brand food for almost 100 years?? When I was growing up, IGA was the only grocery store in my small town (it still is, in fact!). Now, I live less than 30 minutes from two different IGAs and they are my favorite place to get fresh meat (cut daily!). I appreciate that IGA stands behind their product! This is definitely a family-trusted brand; my mom trusted it when I was growing up, and now I trust IGA brand for our family too.

Do you buy store-brand products? I feel like store-brand products sometimes get a bad rap – but IGA’s store-brand is more affordable than name-brand and tastes just as amazing. I promise, if it didn’t taste good, my husband wouldn’t let me buy it! It’s important to me (and my family) that IGA values the quality of their products – it’s the reason I trust any IGA store brand product that I find on the shelf!

An example: IGA’s ranch seasoning mix. Ranch seasoning is NOT created equal; some are great and some are terrible. I never hesitate to grab IGA’s ranch dip mix because it’s amazing! I’m using it in Slow Cooker Taco Chicken below, and I use it in a bunch of other recipes, too.

But my favorite IGA is the Clinton, IL one, because in the fall, they carry my favorite local mums! Camden insisted on a red one this year, and so far, we’ve kept it alive and growing.

Make sure you click on the image below to enter IGA’s Family Meals Made Easy Sweepstakes!

“NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. IGA Family Meals Made Easy Sweepstakes begins 9/15/20 and ends 11/13/20. Legal resident of US. At least 18. Operated by Inmar Brand Solutions Inc. Official Rules at https://familymealsmadeeasysweepstakesrules.pgtb.me/kPWmPK

And now, let’s get cooking!

Chicken ‘Fried’ Rice – Weeknight Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 (20 oz) can pineapple chunks, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can sweet peas, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can carrots, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can OR 1 cup fresh green beans
• 1/4 c. soy sauce
• 1 cup leftover instant brown rice

Directions:

1. Cook rice and set in fridge.
2. Lay chicken in the bottom of the slow cooker.
3. Pour pineapple, sweet peas, corn and green beans over top. Sprinkle soy sauce over top.
4. Cook on high 3-4 hours or on low 5-6 hours.
5. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, open crockpot and add carrots.
6. During last 5 minutes, add rice, stir gently, and slow cook until heated through.

Chicken Marinara with Noodles – Weeknight Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, thawed
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 2 (8 oz) can OR 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper
• 2 fresh Roma tomatoes, diced
• (optional) 1 c. diced zucchini
• 1 (12 oz) bag dry egg noodles
• 1 bag (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 (8 oz) block light cream cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. Lay chicken breast in the bottom of slow cooker.
2. Pour tomato sauce, paste, canned and fresh tomatoes over top. Add optional zucchini as well.
3. Sprinkle Italian seasoning, basil, salt and pepper over top. Gently stir.
4. Cook 3 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low.
5. During last 30 minutes of cook time, boil egg noodles on stovetop.
6. Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred. Return to slow cooker and mix thoroughly. If desired, cut a block of cream cheese into cubes and stir into shredded chicken mixture.
7. Serve chicken marinara over the top of cooked egg noodles. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese.

Note: You can add egg noodles to the slow cooker during the last 20-30 minutes of cooking. However, I have found that egg noodles in the slow cooker become pretty mushy, and the leftovers don’t hold up well. So, I much prefer cooking them separately, but the choice is all yours!

Taco Chicken – Weeknight Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 1 packet dry ranch seasoning mix
• 1 packet dry taco seasoning mix
• 1 (15 oz) can tomatoes + green chilis, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup uncooked long grain brown rice

Directions:

1. Add chicken, corn, tomatoes + green chilis, black beans and tomato paste to the bottom of the slow cooker.
2. Sprinkle ranch seasoning and taco seasoning over top.
3. Cover and cook on high 3-4 hours.
4. During the last 2 hours, add 1 cup rice and 2 cups of water or broth. Stir, cover and continue cooking.
5. Remove chicken, shred, and return to slow cooker. Mix thoroughly.

What to do with all the leftovers from your slow cooker chicken recipes?

All 3 of these recipes are freezable! We typically freeze half of each recipe after making it.

Place leftovers in an airtight container. Seal the container either by putting in a zip-top bag or wrapping tightly in plastic wrap.

They should keep well in the freezer for about 3 months.