Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken Ragout

A slow cooker chicken recipe with a heavenly onion, garlic, spice and tomato topping that slow-roasts into a delicious ragout and super flavourful chicken that is reminiscent of coq au vin. As with other Slowcooker recipes, you can start this in the afternoon and set it on high. Or start it in the morning and set it on low – whatever suits your schedule.

The trick to this dish is to top the chicken with the ragout ingredients and then when serving, lift a piece of chicken out and onto the serving plate with the topping intact. It looks very impressive and tastes even better!

Leftovers are great the next day and leftover ragout can be served as a condiment in a wrap or a sandwich or over rice or quinoa for a quick, delicious and nutritious lunch

Chicken breasts – a great alternative to red meat, chicken breasts are a lean protein and a good source of amino acids to build and maintain muscle tissue and to support bone density.

Onions are a member of the allium plant family, that includes garlic. Allium plants have anti-bacterial properties and there are cancer-fighting properties that have been linked to the sulfur compounds and flavonoid antioxidants found in allium vegetables. Onions contain quercetin, a flavonoid antioxidant that’s highly concentrated in onions. It is a powerful anti-inflammatory and research shows that eating onions may help reduce risk factors associated with heart disease, such as high blood pressure and elevated triglyceride levels.

Tomatoes are an anti-inflammatory, an antioxidant and support the immune system. Tomatoes are a source of potassium, VitC, VitB and VitE, the latter two support heart health. Tomatoes also contain lutein and zeaxanthin that support eye health and macular degeneration.

As always, when you make this recipe, I would love to see your creation so please post a photo of your Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken Ragout goodness and tag my IG account #RenataCollective or leave a comment with your thoughts!

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook time: 6-7 hours on Low, 4 hours on High / Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 Cloves Garlic – sliced and set aside for 10 minutes to work its nutritional magic
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Skinless, Boneless Chicken Breasts halves – trimmed of extra fat
A Pinch of Herbed Seasoned Sea Salt, or Plain Sea Salt. salt
1 Yellow Onion – halved and sliced thinly
1 teaspoon dried Oregano
1 teaspoon Dried Basil
1 teaspoon Dried Ground Rosemary
½ teaspoon Dried Thyme
1 teaspoon Dried Parsley
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder (divided ½ teaspoon and ½ teaspoon)
½ teaspoon Onion Powder
2 Bay Leaves
½ Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1½ Cups Canned Diced Tomatoes
1 Cup Canned Ground Tomatoes or Passata (strained tomatoes)

How It’s Made

Prepare your slow cooker by spreading the 2 tablespoons of olive oil around the bottom of the pot. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of garlic powder over the bottom.
Place the chicken breasts in the pot in a single layer. Season with a pinch of herbed seasoned sea salt (or plain sea salt) and a few grinds of fresh black pepper.
Next, on top of the chicken breasts, place the onion slices, the garlic, and the spices: oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley, the remaining garlic powder and the onion powder.
Tuck the bay leaves in the pot, not on top of the chicken.
Gently pour the balsamic vinegar over each of the onion and garlic topped chicken breasts.
Gently add the diced tomatoes and the ground tomatoes to the pot, as much ON the chicken as possible.
Add a few grinds of fresh black pepper (no more salt is needed).
Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours or n high for 4 hours. Check the chicken with an instant read thermometer – must read 165°F, or carefully cut into a chicken breast to ensure it is no longer pink in the middle.
To serve, carefully lift a chicken breast out of the Slowcooker with as much of the topping as possible. Place it on the serving plate. Serve with pan fried polenta rounds (as in the photos) or mashed sweet potatoes, mashed regular potatoes, rice, pasta, quinoa… anything that soaks up the delicious sauce and a green salad or veggie on the side. This dish is reminiscent of coq au vin, but much easier to make!

Enjoy!